admin's Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Listerine Listerine Zero (Health & Wellness)

Wednesday, 21 September 2016


Overall rating		1.4
Low side effects		1
Taste		4
Safety		1
Value for money		1
Ingredient profile		1

There isn’t a proper category for this product, as it’s not a supplement. However, I felt compelled to provide a review of it.

It’s a litlte strange how Listerine Zero got such high reviews and ratings on the Canadian Listerine site (http://www.listerine.ca/products/classic-clean/classic-clean-zero), but not anywhere close on the .com site (https://www.listerine.com/mouthwash/alcohol-free/listerine-zero-mouthwash), where it garnered 1 out of 5 stars for 41 of the 126 reviews. One wonders why…

I started searching the reviews after I had been given a free sample and started using it, and getting some nasty effects that I could liken to another product I had used years earlier. That product was Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS for short), which I reviewed here: http://www.supplementarium.com/supplements/817-miracle-mineral-solution-mms/reviews.

MMS is basically sodium chlorite, an industrial cleaning agent. I found that it caused the tissues in my mouth to slough off, and I could literally feel them coming off on my tongue as I ran my tongue along the sides of my mouth. A similar thing happened with Listerine Zero. If you look at the ingredients, it has sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) listed as an “inactive ingredient”. Supposedly, the “4 essential signature oils” comprise the active ingredients, and are responsible for keeping one’s breath fresh. I would argue that it’s the sodium lauryl sulfate that is doing most of the work, killing the bacteria - and, unfortunately, destroying other good tissue in the process.

Even the top positive review on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/product-reviews/B003QH1P6W/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_hist_1?pageNumber=1&filterByStar=one_star) mentions "possible mouth peeling", and there are plenty of negative reviews there that describe the skin peeling effects.

Another reviewer on the Listerine.com site identified SLS as the cause of huge chunks of cheek and gum tissue to be coming off; it was also confirmed by this reviewer’s dentist. SLS is an industrial detergent and known irritant, which you can read more about here: http://slsfree.net (and many other sites, if you search around).

All that Johnson and Johnson, the company behind this product, would respond to these negative reviews was how they want to gather additional information from and speak with the reviewers directly. However, that was over a year ago, and the product is still on our supermarket shelves, being bought and used by the unsuspecting public. I find it utterly disgraceful that such a dangerous product is allowed to be sold.

Use Listerine Zero at your peril!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Supreme Sports Enhancements Omnibolic (Muscle & Strength)

Tuesday, 07 April 2015


Overall rating		0.5
Endurance		1
Fat loss		1
Muscle gain		1
Strength		1
Low side effects		5
Value for money		1

I'm writing this rather long overdue review of Omnibolic, which I tried a while ago.

I bought this product on the basis of several reviews I read on Bodybuilding.com, hoping that even if it doesn't work for me, at least I can put up a review of my experiences with it. I also checked the Examine.com page for it, http://examine.com/supplements/Ecdysteroids.

The label on the bottle makes several bold claims, most prominently "Omnibolic will produce significant and immediate increases in protein synthesis and nitrogen retention, resulting in a rapid accumulation of lean muscle mass and strength." Wow, they make it sound like it's comparable to AAS.

The marketing blurb also makes claims of increased endurance, and "enhanced muscle definition and hardness", which really translates to fat loss.

Examine.com touts that there is some promising evidence for its anabolic properties in the form of in vitro studies on human muscle fibre, and in numerous animal models. However, the site also notes that for scientific evidence of the effects on lean mass and power output, there is "no difference between improvements in power output between ecdysteroids and placebo."

I approached this with a totally open mind, not expecting anything great, nor that it would be a failure. Well, I can tell you without a doubt, that for me this product did absolutely NOTHING. Nada. Nothing positive, nothing negative. Which is why it gets the top score for "low side effects," though the lowest score for everything else, unfortunately.

My take is don't waste your money on this. For me, personally at least, ecdysteroids/Ecdybolan/ecdysterone is totally ineffective.

24 of 79 people found the following review helpful
Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS) (Health & Wellness)

Tuesday, 31 January 2012


Overall rating		0.5
Low side effects		1
Immune system enhancer		1
Safety		1
Value for money		1

I was recommended this by a friend, so I thought I would investigate it first and then give it a try.

After starting on a 3 drops per day dosage and intending to build up to 15, I investigated some more and realized that what I was doing was quite silly - putting a non-selective biocide into my body - so I stopped immediately, and continued to use it for another purpose - as a mouthwash. For this, it works extremely well.

It is just ridiculous to assume that a substance that destroys organic matter can selectively kill "bad" bacteria and leave the good ones (e.g. intestinal flora) alone, and that's what made me extremely dubious about the claims made for it.

In fact, even though as mouthwash it works better than anything I've ever used before, in this function I don't think it's particularly safe. That's because when rinsing with 4 drops of MMS mixed with 4 drops of citric acid in a mouthful of water, a few hours later I notice tiny pieces of cheek tissue becoming loose and detaching. This causes tissue regeneration, and guess what that can increase the risk for in the long term? That's right - cancer! Exactly the disease that the MMS proponents claim it cures.

The supposed background of Jim Humble (the "inventor" of MMS) is also extremely suspect. Here's a paragraph that you can find scattered around the web:

"Jim began his career in the aerospace industry in which he decided upon becoming a research engineer. Jim doesn’t speak of this often, but he worked on the first intercontinental missile, worked on lunar vehicles, wrote instruction manuals for the first vacuum tube computers, set up experiments for atomic bombs, completely wired up the first machine to be controlled by computers at the Hughes aircraft company - and also invented the first automatic garage door!"

Astounding! If he did just two of those things he might be considered an absolute genius. This "bio" cannot be found on his website, but how could similar ones be found across the web if it hadn't originated from one place? The last sentence is easily verifiable as false: http://sites.google.com/site/mmsdebunked/home/jim-humble-claims/garage-door-inventor

One blogger presents an excerpt from an eBook on the 2008 version of his website (it must have been removed since) that includes this:

"He had 100% cure rate of over 75,000 malaria patients and 388 out of 390 documented aids patients. It was achieved by using the MMS to create Chlorine Dioxide."

On his current website (http://jimhumble.biz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=38&Itemid=66), in describing MMS 2 (another pool chemical), Humble says this:

"What we found out recently is that MMS (now called MMS1) when given to HIV people generally cures all of their health problems associated with the HIV, but it does not cure the HIV in some cases. It is more valuable than the HIV drugs for treating HIV, but it doesn't kill the HIV virus always, just sometimes."

So, in the first sentence he's saying that MMS *does* cure HIV in most cases, and then in the very same very paragraph he's saying that it kills HIV just sometimes! What a hilarious contradiction. So now that MMS1 doesn't cure HIV, you should start using MMS2, because it will! Even the first sentence is a contradiction of the 2008 excerpt above.

This must have also originated from Humble's own writings:

"Note: Jim Humble is completely altruistic with his relationship with the miracle mineral supplement - he has given it away to the world to get it out there and does not receive any financial remuneration from the proceeds of it being sold."

Maybe, but his website does currently state (http://jimhumble.biz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=23&Itemid=2) that "You get a 50% commission for each book you sell and you don't have to handle the book, money, or shipping. To request information about how to become an MMS affiliate..." There you have it! He makes his money on the sale of his books, not MMS, and you can become an affiliate and make money too!

(I didn't rate this for low side effects, simply because I didn't get to the suggested dosage and I didn't want to experience nausea nor diarrhea.)

Update (17 July 2015):

It is extremely dangerous to use this as a mouthwash. i just had gum surgery to attempt to restore my gingiva, which I believe one year of using MMS as a mouthwash destroyed a substantial amount of.

Do not, I repeat do not, use Miracle Mineral Solution as a mouthwash unless you too want to lose your gingiva!

I will be posting a review of Listerine Zero which contains sodium lauryl sulfate, a substance that has similar effects in this respect to sodium chlorite.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Gaspari Nutrition Myofusion (Meal Replacement & Protein)

Friday, 11 February 2011


Overall rating		3.6
Taste		3
Mixes well		5
Value for money		4
Ingredient profile		4

With all the hype surrounding the flavour of this product, I wanted to give it a try and see how it compares to my staple, Muscle Milk. I tried the Strawberries and Cream variety.

The ingredient profile is pretty good, with cross-flow, cold infused whey protein concentrate and isolate as the principal proteins, and a small amount of quality lipids (including CLA and flax seed oil). However, the one thing that bothered me about Myofusion was that it contains xanthan gum, cellulose, and carrageenan. This contributes to its thick, milk shake-like consistency, and seems to mask the fact that the taste itself is just average. It also makes me feel full without a good feeling that I've just had something delicious.

Overall, it's not bad value for money, but I prefer something that tastes better and doesn't contain thickening agents.

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful
Kaizen Whey Protein Isolate (Meal Replacement & Protein)

Friday, 26 March 2010


Overall rating		4.6
Taste		4
Mixes well		5
Value for money		5
Ingredient profile		5

After reading the review here and discovering that my local Costco carries this, I decided to give it a try, as the price is so good, especially for whey protein isolate.

I got the vanilla ice cream flavour. The taste is mild yet pleasant. It doesn't taste as good as a micellar casein-based product, but to me it tastes better than American Whey (another great budget protein).

Since I'm in Canada and the only way to get American Whey at a good price is from the US, I would rather avoid the substantial shipping charges, thus this Kaizen isolate will probably replace it as my budget protein.

Note that the serving scoop that comes in the container provides 35g of protein, which may be too much if you mix it in a cup of milk - I changed mine to a 70g scoop so that my total protein including the milk is about 35g.

Containing very little lactose, this WPI should be good for those who are lactose intolerant, like me.

Update:

Being somewhat of a chocoholic, I've been buying the decadent chocolate version for a couple of years now. However, after so long, the flavour gets a little tedious. Being also a coffee lover (mostly because I'm a flavour junkie), I can give you a couple of tips on how to spruce up the taste immensely and really enjoy your protein break:

1) Make a cup of your favourite coffee, let it cool down a bit, then put it into a container that pours well and refrigerate it. Whenever you mix up the Kaizen, add a small amount of coffee. This makes for a great mocha beverage.

2) This variant requires more patience, but is well worth it. An hour in advance of consumption, add about a teaspoon of pure cocoa powder and 1/2 sachet of sweetener (or sugar, if you prefer), and mix it with the Kaizen and milk in a shaker cup. Shake it up several times during the hour to make sure all the cocoa is dissolved. This is my current preferred blend, and is truly delicious.

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