Editorial Policy

This page explains how Enzyax decides what to publish, how we weigh evidence, how we describe existing purchase options and would compare products, and how we keep commercial relationships from influencing editorial judgment.

Source hierarchy

We rank sources in this order, highest confidence first:

  1. Government and clinical health authorities — NIDDK, other NIH institutes, FDA guidance, and equivalent professional medical body positions.
  2. Peer-reviewed clinical research — randomized controlled trials, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses, cited directly (PubMed/DOI links), not through secondhand summaries.
  3. Peer-reviewed mechanistic or preclinical research — useful for explaining why something might work, but treated as weaker support for a real-world claim than clinical trial data.
  4. Manufacturer and retailer claims — never used as the basis for an effectiveness claim. We may cite a manufacturer's own label data (activity units, serving size) as a factual product detail, but never as evidence that a product works.

Manufacturer marketing is not evidence of clinical effectiveness. We use original research and health-authority guidance, report funding and conflicts, and distinguish an investigational formulation from a retail product.

How we evaluate documentation

Every use-case claim on this site is assigned one of these tiers, stated explicitly on the page:

  • Well documented — Supported by consistent findings across controlled trials or a clear clinical/regulatory consensus. (example: lactase for lactose intolerance).
  • Mixed evidence — Some controlled trials show a benefit; other trials — often more recent or run in a more specific population — do not. The direction of the effect isn't settled. (example: alpha-galactosidase for gas and bloating).
  • Limited evidence — Small, acute or preliminary studies with limited clinical generalizability. Results can differ by endpoint; a short-term biomarker change does not establish a routine or longer-term clinical benefit. (example: protease for general high-protein-diet support).
  • Out of scope for OTC — The underlying condition requires medical diagnosis and prescription treatment; we won't present an over-the-counter product as a substitute. (example: exocrine pancreatic insufficiency).

"Framework, not a ranking" is a separate page-type label, not a clinical evidence tier — it marks buying-guide pages that give readers a method for evaluating any product themselves — what to compare, in what order — rather than presenting or ranking specific branded products. (example: how to choose a digestive enzyme supplement).

How we'll compare products

The three existing purchase options are product examples, not rankings or evidence of clinical superiority. Any product comparison must use measurable, verifiable facts: which enzymes a product contains, activity per serving with the enzyme, assay method and serving basis identified (see our enzyme activity units guide), price per relevant activity unit, enzyme source (animal, microbial, or plant-based), allergens, and capsule type. Label data will be verified against the manufacturer's own published specification, not third-party copies, before it's used in a comparison.

We will not publish "best supplement for [symptom]" rankings for use cases where the underlying evidence doesn't support that level of specificity — see our current guides for examples of where we've drawn that line.

Update routine

The eight authored guides display the existing content-review dates near their source lists. These dates are separate from source publication dates, retrieval dates and technical checks; they do not imply a credentialed clinical review. New findings and corrections should be checked against the original source before updating the authoritative content.

Separating editorial judgment from commercial relationships

Enzyax earns commissions from qualifying purchases made through the disclosed Amazon and Microbiome Plus (Awin) links on three guides — see our affiliate disclosure for the current status of any such relationships. Our policy:

  • A commercial relationship never determines which products we describe favorably.
  • If a brand we have a commercial relationship with makes a product that doesn't hold up under our evidence standard, we say so.
  • If a product we can't yet earn a commission on is the better choice on the merits, we say that too.
  • Affiliate links, where they exist, are disclosed at the point where they appear — not only in a footer link.

Corrections

If you believe something on this site is factually wrong or out of date, tell us via our contact page, including the page URL and the specific claim. We review sourcing before responding.