Dose for Your Liver

The average consumer can probably think of countless reasons why they may be feeling fatigued (lack of sleep, a stressful job, or needy kids to name a few), but according to one company the culprit may be an overworked liver.

In the ad above, Dose claims its liver shot, Dose for your Liver, “cleanses your liver of unwanted elements,” lowers fatigue, eases bloating and helps digestion.

And that’s not all. In other marketing materials, the company claims or implies that its “clinically-backed formula” helps with brain fog and brain function, excess estrogen, constipation and nausea, among other things.

But if you are looking for some conclusive evidence that this drink can fix your health problems, you may be out of luck.

While Dose’s website outlines two clinical studies, the company does not link to or otherwise provide the actual studies on the site. (Dose also did not provide the studies in response to a request for comment by TINA.org, which went unanswered.)

Further, based on Dose’s description of the research, it appears that neither study examined the product’s effect on any of the advertised health issues noted above, but rather purportedly observed the product’s decreasing effect on liver enzyme levels, including ALT and AST. But higher amounts of these enzymes do not always indicate a problem with your liver. In fact, according to a 2018 study on liver function:

[L]iver chemistries need to be interpreted in the appropriate clinical context and should not be used as absolute markers for the detection or exclusion of liver disease.

Some additional issues TINA.org found with the company’s marketing:

• The ad above suggests that drinking too much coffee can be harmful to liver health. In fact, research shows that consuming coffee benefits health in general, and liver health in particular, and there is no evidence that regular coffee consumption has any adverse effects on the liver.
• Dose claims in an FAQ on its website that its products are “manufactured in an FDA approved facility.” The FDA doesn’t approve facilities (among other things, including supplements like Dose for your Liver).
• Dose markets other products specifically for health conditions like cholesterol but doesn’t provide any scientific research to back up its claims for those products.

The bottom line

Although Dose advertises that its liver supplement helps with a range of health problems, it is not forthcoming about what the purported studies actually say about these health conditions, if anything. As always, consumers should consult with their health care provider if they’re seeking treatment for a health condition.

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