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Evidence Based Longevity (EBL)
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Immune

Infection, Inflammation and Immune Aging

13 entries are commonly sold for this. EBL grades them from A to D on published human trials. This page is a map to those grades, not a substitute for them.

Immune support is the category where a real, measurable effect is most often reported for a condition nobody was going to be seriously harmed by. Duration of a cold is a legitimate endpoint The outcome a trial measures to decide whether the treatment worked, such as heart attacks, blood pressure or a symptom score.. It is not evidence about immune aging.

Two features of the grading system matter on a page like this. A grade attaches to a use, not to a molecule, so the same compound can carry different letters for different questions. And a grade is capped by the kind of outcome the trials measured: a surrogate marker A lab value or measurement used in place of the outcome that matters, such as LDL cholesterol standing in for heart attacks. Moving a surrogate does not always move the outcome. or a self-reported score cannot reach Grade A under the EBL rubric no matter how well the trial was run.

Every letter below links to its own page, where the trials, the PMIDs PubMed ID: the permanent number the US National Library of Medicine gives a published paper. Each one links to that paper's record on PubMed. and the reasons for the ceiling are set out in full.

WGP Beta-1,3/1,6-D-Glucan

Incidence and duration of upper respiratory tract infections
C

Graded C for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Zinc

Common cold duration when lozenges start early
B

Graded B for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Vitamin D3

Prevention of acute respiratory tract infection
C

Graded C for this use. This entry carries more than one grade; the letter shown is the one for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Curcumin (Turmeric Extract)

Anti-inflammatory and NF-kB pathway
B

Graded C for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

EGCG (Epigallocatechin Gallate / Green Tea Extract)

Anti-inflammatory and cardiometabolic support
B

Graded B for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Lactoferrin

Respiratory and systemic symptom scores
C

Graded C for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum)

Immune measures as an adjunct in cancer care
C

Graded C for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Turkey Tail (Trametes versicolor / PSK)

Immune measures as an adjunct in cancer care
C

Graded C for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Quercetin

Anti-inflammatory and immune modulation
C

Graded C for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Selenium (Selenomethionine)

Antioxidant status in deficient or low-replete adults
C

Graded C for this use. The trials measured blood markers, not illness.

Grade basis and citations →

Astaxanthin

Not graded for this use
NG

Graded C for skin moisture and elasticity, and C or D on its other uses, which are different questions. No separately graded use covers this topic.

Grade basis and citations →

Beta-Carotene (supplemental)

Cancer prevention
D

Graded D for this use.

Grade basis and citations →

Vitamin E (supplemental alpha-tocopherol)

Cancer prevention
D

Graded D for this use.

Grade basis and citations →
Grades that do not transfer

1 of the entries above carry a letter earned answering a different question. The grade is real; it is simply not about this topic. EBL does not restate those letters on the badges above, because a badge is read faster than a sentence and a letter next to a name is taken as a verdict about that name. No separately graded use covers immune for these:

  • Astaxanthin: graded B for antioxidant and skin photoprotection.