Is Pterostilbene legal in the United Kingdom?

One randomised human trial, 80 adults with raised cholesterol. At 250 mg a day it lowered systolic blood pressure by 7.8 mmHg and raised LDL cholesterol by 17.1 mg/dL in the same people. No human trial has measured an ageing endpoint of any kind.

Pterostilbene is sold as the better resveratrol, and on one narrow measure that claim is defensible. In rats given equimolar oral doses, resveratrol was about 20 percent bioavailable and pterostilbene about 80 percent, because replacing two hydroxyl groups with methoxy groups slows the glucuronidation that destroys resveratrol on its first pass through the liver.

Mechanism: Structurally, resveratrol with two of its three hydroxyl groups replaced by methoxy groups. That change makes the molecule more lipophilic and a much poorer substrate for the phase 2 conjugation enzymes that clear resveratrol, which is the entire pharmacokinetic argument for it.

Regulatory history: Not an approved drug. Sold as a dietary supplement, frequently bundled with nicotinamide riboside or resveratrol in longevity formulations.

Licenses medicines for the UK market. A compound without a marketing authorisation is an unlicensed medicine, which can only lawfully be supplied for human use through a prescriber under the specials scheme, not sold as a research product.

The classification above is the The Longevity Archive reading of Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency listings for Pterostilbene at the reviewed date, not a legal opinion. Rules change, and importing, prescribing and possessing a compound can each be treated differently. Check the regulator directly before acting on anything here.