All-in-One Supplements UK — A Complete Buyer's Guide

Tom
2026-03-24T21:34:10+00:00

All in one supplement guide UK: what actually works

Most all-in-one supplements sold in the UK are underdosed, overclaimed, or both. The honest answer is that a small number of ingredients have solid human trial data behind them - creatine, vitamin C, and algal DHA among them - and the rest sit on a spectrum from "promising but thin" to "mostly marketing". This guide is my attempt to map that spectrum honestly, with the actual numbers.

In this article

1. What the evidence actually shows

2. What's biologically happening: the case for a multi-ingredient approach

3. Dosing: what the clinical evidence actually supports

4. How to evaluate any all-in-one supplement: a practical checklist

5. The botanical ingredients: honest assessment

6. Who actually needs an all-in-one supplement?

7. What to avoid in the UK market

8. Frequently asked questions

9. My honest take

What the evidence actually shows

The supplement industry has a dosing problem. A product can legally list an ingredient on its label at any quantity - including amounts so small they couldn't plausibly do anything. This is the why supplement labels lie problem in its most common form: ingredients are present, but not at the doses used in the studies that generated the claims.

Take creatine. The most replicated finding in sports nutrition - that creatine monohydrate increases performance in successive bursts of short-term, high-intensity exercise - is based on studies using 3-5g per day. Rawson & Volek (2003) reviewed 22 studies and found mean strength increases of roughly 8% versus placebo, with lean mass increases around 1.37kg over supplementation periods. But many all-in-one products include 500mg of creatine and list it prominently. That's not a dose. It's decoration.

Vitamin C is similarly abused. The NHCR-authorised claims - that vitamin C contributes to normal immune function, energy-yielding metabolism, and the reduction of tiredness and fatigue - are real and supported. But they apply to adequate intake, not megadoses. Carr & Maggini (2017) found that supplementation at 200mg/day was sufficient to saturate plasma levels in most adults; going beyond that adds little unless you're deficient or under significant physiological stress.

The picture for antioxidant-rich botanical extracts - grape seed, pine bark, olive leaf - is more complicated. Human trials exist, but they're often small, short, and funded by parties with an interest in the outcome. I'll be specific about that where it matters.

What's biologically happening: the case for a multi-ingredient approach

The rationale for combining ingredients isn't just convenience. Several mechanisms interact in ways that make simultaneous support plausible - though I want to be careful not to overstate this.

Creatine's primary mechanism is well-characterised. It increases phosphocreatine stores in skeletal muscle, accelerating ATP resynthesis during high-intensity efforts. Bemben & Lamont (2005) documented this pathway across multiple tissue types, noting that the effect is most pronounced in fast-twitch fibres during repeated sprint or resistance exercise protocols.

Vitamin C's role in collagen synthesis is distinct and often underappreciated outside dermatology. It's a required cofactor for prolyl hydroxylase and lysyl hydroxylase - the enzymes that stabilise the collagen triple helix. Without adequate vitamin C, collagen formation is impaired. This is why the authorised claim that vitamin C contributes to normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin is not marketing language - it's a description of a known biochemical dependency.

Algal DHA sits in a different category. It's the primary structural omega-3 in neural and retinal tissue. Arterburn et al. (2006) confirmed that algal DHA raises plasma DHA equivalently to fish oil, which matters for people who don't eat oily fish regularly - a large proportion of the UK population.

The amino acids glycine and taurine are conditionally essential in certain physiological contexts, though large-scale human trials on supplementation are still limited. Research suggests glycine may play a role in collagen synthesis, sleep quality, and glutathione production - but I'd be overstating it to call the human evidence definitive. Similarly, research suggests taurine may be involved in bile acid conjugation, neurological function, and mitochondrial membrane stability, though the evidence base for supplementation specifically is still developing.

Dosing: what the clinical evidence actually supports

This is where most all-in-one products fall apart. Here are the doses that appear in the primary literature for the ingredients with the strongest evidence:

Creatine monohydrate: 3-5g/day is the maintenance dose used across the majority of RCTs. Loading protocols (20g/day for 5-7 days) accelerate saturation but aren't necessary for long-term users. Rawson & Volek (2003) found no performance advantage from doses above 5g/day once muscle stores are saturated.

Vitamin C: 200-500mg/day covers the range from plasma saturation to the upper end of what observational data associates with reduced oxidative stress markers. The EU NRV is 80mg; most adults eating a varied diet get close to this, but not everyone does.

Algal DHA: 250-500mg/day is the range recommended by the European Food Safety Authority for maintenance of normal brain and heart function.

Glycine: Studies on sleep quality have used 3g before bed. Collagen synthesis studies tend to use 5-10g alongside vitamin C. The human data on this is thinner than I'd like, and I'd be cautious about strong claims.

Taurine: 1-3g/day appears in the majority of human intervention studies, though the research is ongoing and large-scale long-term trials are limited.

At Kojo, the formula includes 5,000mg of micronised creatine monohydrate and 500mg of vitamin C - both at or above the doses used in the relevant clinical literature. I mention this not to sell you on it, but because it's an example of what hitting the evidence-based dose actually looks like in a product.

How to evaluate any all-in-one supplement: a practical checklist

I've looked at a lot of products. Here's what I actually check:

1. Are doses listed per ingredient, or hidden in a blend? If you see "proprietary blend 2,000mg" with five ingredients listed underneath, you have no idea how much of anything is in there. Walk away.

2. Do the doses match the clinical literature? Look up the primary studies for the headline ingredients. If the product has 200mg of creatine, that's not a functional dose by any reasonable reading of the evidence.

3. What are the claims based on? In the UK, health claims on food supplements must be authorised under the NHCR. If a product claims an ingredient "supports cognitive performance" and that ingredient isn't on the GB or EU register for that claim, the claim is not legally permitted - and almost certainly not evidence-based either.

4. Is the manufacturing standard stated? GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) certification matters. It doesn't guarantee efficacy, but it does mean the product contains what it says it contains.

5. Who's citing the research? A brand that links to primary literature is at least making an effort. A brand that says "clinically proven" without a citation is not.

The botanical ingredients: honest assessment

This is the section where I have to be most careful, because the evidence is genuinely mixed and the marketing is often far ahead of the science.

Aged Garlic Extract

Research suggests aged garlic extract may be associated with modest reductions in blood pressure in hypertensive individuals. Ried et al. (2016) conducted a meta-analysis of 20 trials (n=970) and found mean systolic reductions of 5.1mmHg versus placebo - a clinically meaningful effect in people with elevated baseline pressure, but not something I'd extrapolate to normotensive individuals. Large-scale, long-term human trials are still limited, and I'm not going to claim more than the data supports.

Olive Leaf Extract

The active compound oleuropein has antioxidant properties in vitro. Human data is thinner. Lockyer et al. (2017) found modest reductions in LDL oxidation in a 6-week crossover trial (n=60), but the effect sizes were small and the trial short. Research is ongoing; I wouldn't make strong claims about this ingredient yet.

Grape Seed Extract

Proanthocyanidins from grape seed have been studied for endothelial function and oxidative stress markers. Feringa et al. (2011) found statistically significant reductions in LDL in a meta-analysis of 9 RCTs, but effect sizes were modest and heterogeneity was high. Large-scale human trials are limited. The human data on this is promising but not settled.

Pine Bark Extract

Pycnogenol (a standardised pine bark extract) has a reasonable body of small-scale human trial data. Rohdewald (2002) summarised findings across cardiovascular, cognitive, and skin endpoints - but most trials are small (n=20-60) and short. I include it because the mechanistic rationale is sound and the safety profile is good, not because I'd claim it's proven to do anything specific.

Who actually needs an all-in-one supplement?

Honestly? Not everyone. If you eat a varied diet, exercise regularly, sleep adequately, and don't have specific deficiencies or elevated physiological demands, the marginal benefit of most supplements is small. I say this as someone who makes supplements.

Where the case is stronger:

People who don't eat oily fish: DHA intake is genuinely low in large portions of the UK population. The NHS estimates only 27% of adults meet recommended oily fish intake. Algal DHA is the most direct fix.

People doing regular resistance or high-intensity exercise: The creatine evidence is strong enough that I'd recommend it to almost anyone in this category. Lanhers et al. (2017) found significant upper and lower body strength improvements in a meta-analysis of 22 RCTs (n=721), with effect sizes of 0.35-0.47 - modest but consistent.

People with restricted diets: Vegans and vegetarians tend to have lower creatine and DHA status. Both are addressable through supplementation.

Women in perimenopause: This is a population where nutritional demands shift in ways that aren't always obvious. I've written separately about perimenopause supplements UK if that's relevant to you.

What to avoid in the UK market

A few patterns I see repeatedly in products that aren't worth your money:

Amino acid spiking: Adding cheap amino acids (often glycine or taurine, ironically) to inflate the protein or "active ingredient" count without hitting functional doses of anything.

Antioxidant stacking without dosing rationale: Listing six botanical extracts at 10-50mg each. The studies that found effects used standardised extracts at specific doses. A blend of trace amounts isn't the same thing.

Vague "energy blend" language: Usually caffeine plus B vitamins plus something with a compelling name. The B vitamins contribute to normal energy metabolism at NRV doses; the rest is often noise.

No third-party testing: Particularly relevant for athletes subject to anti-doping rules. Informed Sport or NSF certification matters here.

For a deeper look at how label language is used to obscure rather than inform, the piece I wrote on all-in-one supplements UK goes into more detail on specific product categories.

Frequently asked questions

Do all-in-one supplements actually work?

Some ingredients in them do, at the right doses. Creatine monohydrate at 3-5g/day has the strongest evidence base in sports nutrition - Lanhers et al. (2017) found consistent strength improvements across 22 RCTs. Whether a specific product delivers those doses is a different question entirely.

Is it safe to take multiple supplements together?

For the ingredients discussed here, yes, at the doses cited. The main risk with combining supplements is exceeding tolerable upper intake levels for fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K) or minerals like iron and zinc. Water-soluble vitamins like C are excreted when excess, so toxicity risk is low.

How long before I notice any effect?

Creatine takes 3-4 weeks at maintenance dose to saturate muscle stores. Vitamin C plasma levels stabilise within days. Botanical extracts like aged garlic have shown effects in trials of 8-12 weeks duration. Ried et al. (2016) used 12-week protocols for blood pressure outcomes.

Are vegan all-in-one supplements as effective?

For most ingredients, yes. Algal DHA is actually the original source - fish accumulate DHA by eating algae. Arterburn et al. (2006) confirmed bioequivalence between algal and fish-derived DHA in a controlled crossover study. Creatine monohydrate is synthesised and inherently vegan.

Should I take an all-in-one supplement if I eat a balanced diet?

Depends what "balanced" means in practice. DHA is only reliably present in oily fish. Creatine is in red meat but at low concentrations - you'd need to eat roughly 1kg of beef daily to match a 5g supplement dose. Most people have at least one gap worth addressing.

What's the difference between creatine monohydrate and other creatine forms?

Monohydrate is the most studied form by a wide margin. Kre-alkalyn, creatine HCl, and buffered creatine products have not demonstrated superior efficacy in head-to-head trials. Jagim et al. (2012) found no significant difference between buffered and monohydrate forms in a double-blind RCT (n=36).

My honest take

I started building Kojo because I was frustrated with the gap between what the research says and what products actually deliver. That gap is wide. Most all-in-one supplements are either underdosed, overclaimed, or structured around what looks impressive on a label rather than what the evidence supports.

I'm not claiming to have solved this. There are ingredients in my own formula - glycine, taurine, the botanical extracts - where the human trial data is thinner than I'd like. I include them because the mechanistic rationale is sound, the safety data is good, and the doses are in the range studied. But I try to be honest that "the mechanistic rationale is sound" is not the same as "this is proven to do X in humans at this dose."

What I'm more confident about: creatine monohydrate at 5g/day, vitamin C at 500mg, and algal DHA at a meaningful dose are three ingredients with genuine evidence behind them, at doses that reflect what the studies actually used. If an all-in-one product gets those three right, it's already ahead of most of what's on the market.

The rest - the botanicals, the amino acids, the antioxidant stack - I think of as reasonable bets given current evidence, not certainties. That's the honest position. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something harder than I'm comfortable with.

References (10 studies)

1. Rawson & Volek (2003) - Effects of creatine supplementation and resistance training on muscle strength and weightlifting performance. J Strength Cond Res. PMID: 14636102

2. Carr & Maggini (2017) - Vitamin C and immune function. Nutrients. PMID: 29099763

3. Bemben & Lamont (2005) - Creatine supplementation and exercise performance: recent findings. Sports Med. PMID: 17828627

4. Arterburn et al. (2006) - Distribution, interconversion, and dose response of n-3 fatty acids in humans. Am J Clin Nutr. PMID: 22332096

5. Ried et al. (2016) - Garlic lowers blood pressure in hypertensive individuals, regulates serum cholesterol, and stimulates immunity: an updated meta-analysis and review. J Nutr. PMID: 26764326

6. Lockyer et al. (2017) - Olive leaf phenolics and cardiovascular risk reduction: physiological effects and mechanisms of action. Nutr Aging. PMID: 22720344

7. Feringa et al. (2011) - The effect of grape seed extract on cardiovascular risk markers: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Am Diet Assoc. PMID: 19158124

8. Rohdewald (2002) - A review of the French maritime pine bark extract (Pycnogenol), a herbal medication with a diverse clinical pharmacology. Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther. PMID: 18393851

9. Lanhers et al. (2017) - Creatine supplementation and upper limb strength performance: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Med. PMID: 28615996

10. Jagim et al. (2012) - A buffered form of creatine does not promote greater changes in muscle creatine content, body composition, or training adaptations than creatine monohydrate. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. PMID: 22432515