THE VANGUARD BLOG
Physician-curated deep dives into the science of men's health optimization.
Monograph
Correcting a measured vitamin B12 deficiency is established care, and high-dose oral therapy matched injections in small trials. With normal or only moderately low levels and no anemia, randomized trials found no gain for fatigue, cognition, or heart protection.
19 Oct 2026
Monograph
Branded fenugreek extracts have a modest, mostly manufacturer-funded record on sex-drive questionnaires in healthy men, but the testosterone evidence is very low certainty and fenugreek is no substitute for testosterone replacement therapy.
05 Oct 2026
Monograph
Bacopa’s densest human evidence is free-recall memory after about twelve weeks of standardized extract — not same-day IQ, Alzheimer treatment, or proven ADHD therapy.
21 Sep 2026
Monograph
Emerging research: a 2026 combined analysis of randomized trials shows retatrutide moves blood pressure and cholesterol numbers — not just weight. Still not approved.
07 Sep 2026
Monograph
N-acetylcysteine is an FDA-approved antidote for acetaminophen overdose; randomized trials leave most over-the-counter capsule wellness claims weakly supported or null.
07 Sep 2026
Methylene blue for oral use is a real drug, not a benign supplement. One small acute imaging study (Rodriguez 2016, n=26, 2 mg/kg) drives the cognitive claim. The Alzheimer's tau story is about a different molecule (LMTX). Serotonin syndrome risk with SSRIs, SNRIs, MAOIs is FDA-warned.
23 Jul 2026
Boron for men's health — the entire optimization case rests on one small pre-post study in eight men (Naghii 2011). No proper RCT replication exists. Safety margin at 3–10 mg/day is generous (adult UL 20 mg/day). Defensible as a low-cost hedge; not a testosterone move.
23 Jul 2026
Monograph
Per 1,000 asymptomatic adults screened with WB-MRI: ~950 abnormal findings, ~15-20 cancers, ~30% trigger workup. Zero RCT mortality evidence. ACR does not recommend for average-risk adults. Vanguard's read on Prenuvo, Ezra, Q Bio.
19 Jul 2026
Monograph
The NHS-Galleri trial missed its primary endpoint at ASCO 2026. High specificity (~99.6%) and PPV (52-62%), modest sensitivity (~30-40% all cancers), zero mortality data. $949 cash pay. No FDA approval as screening. Vanguard's read on the largest multi-cancer detection trial to date.
19 Jul 2026
Monograph
Two lists — the Optimization List (12 non-negotiable tests before starting hormone, cardiovascular, or metabolic optimization) and the Vanguard List (25 total tests including 13 deep-dive add-ons). Tiered by evidence, honestly.
19 Jul 2026
Monograph
Overview Tadalafil is a long-acting phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor — the same drug class as sildenafil, distinguished by a
07 Jul 2026
Monograph
Losartan (Cozaar, first FDA-approved 1995) is the prototype angiotensin II receptor blocker. It shares the class-level mechanism (selective AT1 receptor blockade), core indications (hypertension, diabetic nephropathy, heart failure, cardiovascular…
05 Jul 2026
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