Muscle and strength
How do I build muscle, and how do I keep it?
Muscle is the body tissue most tied to how the second half of life goes. This covers building it, keeping it while you lose weight, and the research on losing muscle with age.
82 compounds studied for this · 25 with a completed trial of a hundred people or more · 7 with no study in people at all
What has actually been measured here
This page lists the compounds studied for muscle and strength. These pages work the other way round. They take one goal at a time and list every compound by how many people it was measured in, most first. Each shows what the study found, and the trials that found nothing are counted.
Keeping or building muscle
Does it build muscle, or just stop you losing it?
Getting stronger
Did people actually get stronger, or just bigger?
Lasting longer, stamina
Does it improve endurance or work capacity?
Strong and Moderate 25
At least one finished trial that gave the compound to a hundred people or more. That tells you how much has been measured. It does not tell you whether it will work for you. The math sits under every band.
Tesamorelin
Strong. At least two finished studies in people, and at least 1,000 people who took it. 8 completed trials, 1,729 people given it.10 reported8 citedAn FDA-approved shot that shrinks belly fat, the deep fat around the organs. It is also being studied for memory and thi...
PeptideGrowth HormoneIpamorelin
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 157 people given it.9 reported3 citedA peptide that tells the pituitary gland to release growth hormone in natural bursts. It barely touches cortisol, the st...
PeptideGrowth HormoneCreatine
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 3 completed trials, 168 people given it.5 reported4 citedOne of the most studied supplements there is. It clearly boosts strength. Its effect on muscle size is smaller than the...
SupplementMuscle & PerformanceTestosterone
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 1 completed trial, 5,246 people given it.10 reported2 citedThe best-tested hormone on this site. A study of 5,246 men settled the heart safety question. A review that pooled 36 st...
HormoneHormoneMyostatin
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 3 completed trials, 188 people given it.4 citedMyostatin is the body's brake on muscle growth. Mice bred without it grew two to three times more muscle, which started...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceStamulumab
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 122 people given it.3 citedThe first myostatin-blocking antibody ever given to people. In 2008 it was tested in 116 adults with muscular dystrophy....
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceLandogrozumab
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 3 completed trials, 726 people given it.4 citedThe clearest test in the whole field. In 201 older adults who had fallen, it added 0.43 kg of lean mass, a very clear re...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceEcdysterone
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 3 completed trials, 233 people given it.5 reported3 citedIn a study in people, those taking ecdysterone gained more muscle and lifted more on the bench press. The researchers th...
SupplementMuscle & PerformanceEnobosarm
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 1 completed trial, 159 people given it.5 reported3 citedThe drug sold on the grey market as ostarine. In proper studies, 3 mg added to semaglutide cut muscle loss by 71 percent...
Small moleculeMuscle & PerformanceBimagrumab
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 507 people given it.1 reported2 citedAn antibody shot that takes the brake off muscle growth. In studies it took off fat while adding muscle. It is being tes...
BiologicMetabolicBIO101
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 1 completed trial, 233 people given it.3 reported2 citedIn 233 older adults losing muscle with age, BIO101 missed its main walking speed target when everyone was counted. It di...
Small moleculeMuscle & PerformanceInsulin
Strong. At least two finished studies in people, and at least 1,000 people who took it. 5 completed trials, 29,691 people given it.4 reported8 citedInsulin is the hormone that keeps people with type 1 diabetes alive. It is the most tested peptide in medicine. Those bi...
PeptideMetabolicGDF15
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 313 people given it.3 reported6 citedGDF15 is a stress signal your body makes when cells are in trouble. It acts on the part of the brain that makes you feel...
BiologicMetabolicTesamorelin / Ipamorelin
Strong. At least two finished studies in people, and at least 1,000 people who took it. 5 completed trials, 1,507 people given it.9 reported5 citedThe clinic version of the growth hormone blend. It pairs tesamorelin, a GHRH copy with FDA approval and results from 806...
BlendGrowth HormoneCJC-1295 with ipamorelin and GHRP-2
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 117 people given it.5 reported4 citedThree growth hormone boosters in one vial, often 2 mg each in a 6 mg vial. Two of the three press exactly the same switc...
BlendGrowth HormoneMIB-626
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 4 completed trials, 107 people given it.1 reported4 citedThe only NMN product with a real set of studies in people: three studies with a dummy pill group, about 104 people in al...
SupplementLongevityCoQ10
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 162 people given it.4 reported3 citedOne strong study in people with serious heart failure cut major heart problems from 26% to 15%. For statin muscle pain,...
SupplementAntioxidantNRPT
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 3 completed trials, 176 people given it.3 reported3 citedIn 120 healthy adults aged 60 to 80, it raised NAD in whole blood by about 40 percent at the normal dose and about 90 pe...
SupplementLongevitySermorelin with ipamorelin
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 1 completed trial, 117 people given it.8 reported3 citedThis is the blend most likely to come from a compounding pharmacy with a prescriber's name on it. It is usually a nightl...
BlendGrowth HormoneCarnosine
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 299 people given it.4 reported2 citedA two-part molecule the body makes itself, sold as an anti-ageing supplement. It is not approved anywhere for anything....
SupplementAntioxidantMCT oil
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 1 completed trial, 152 people given it.6 reported1 citedFed to mice from 4 months of age, it did not change how long they lived, in either sex. A review pooled 13 human studies...
SupplementMetabolicMetformin
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 3 completed trials, 489 people given it.6 reported7 citedA cheap, very safe diabetes drug that many people take hoping to live longer. Big studies in people have not shown it he...
Small moleculeLongevityElamipretide
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 5 completed trials, 487 people given it.6 reported5 citedApproved in 2025 for one rare genetic disease, Barth syndrome, on a result its own main study missed. In a large final-s...
PeptideAnti-agingMifepristone
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 2 completed trials, 320 people given it.4 reported2 citedIn people, mifepristone is approved for high blood sugar in Cushing's syndrome and for ending early pregnancy. Nobody ha...
Small moleculeHormoneAICAR
Moderate. At least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. 1 completed trial, 3,080 people given it.5 reported1 citedAICAR was the first exercise in a pill, from a 2008 mouse paper. It switches on AMPK, and it has been banned in sport si...
Small moleculeMuscle & PerformanceLimited and Preliminary 50
Someone has been given it and a result was published, but in fewer than a hundred people. Or the studies in people only watched and never gave anybody anything. The math on each card says exactly how thin.
CJC-1295 / Ipamorelin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 20 people given it.9 reported3 citedThe most popular peptide pair on the market. It is sold as 5 mg plus 5 mg, or 10 mg plus 10 mg, in one vial, so each pep...
BlendGrowth HormoneMK-677
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 65 people given it.11 reported3 citedA daily pill that raises growth hormone and IGF-1. It is not a peptide. It was tested in people for years but was never...
Small moleculeGrowth HormoneIGF-1 LR3
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.8 reported1 citedA long-lasting, lab-made form of IGF-1. It has only been studied in animals, for muscle growth and repair.
PeptideGrowth HormoneFollistatin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 12 people given it.2 citedA natural protein that blocks myostatin and activin, two brakes on muscle growth. It is studied mostly as gene therapy f...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceDomagrozumab
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.3 citedA well-built study in 120 boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. On its main test, stair climbing, the drug and the dumm...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceACE-031
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, 48 people given it.5 reported2 citedA decoy that traps myostatin and activin, studied for muscular dystrophy. Its studies were stopped over blood vessel sid...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceApitegromab
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 2 human studies where nobody was given it.1 reported2 citedAn antibody that blocks myostatin, a brake on muscle. The FDA is reviewing it for spinal muscular atrophy, with a decisi...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceTrevogrumab
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.3 reported2 citedRegeneron's antibody that blocks myostatin, used alone or with garetosmab, which blocks activin A. Added to semaglutide,...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceGYM329
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 2 human studies where nobody was given it, 1 registered with no result.1 reported3 citedThe one myostatin antibody now being tested where it matters most for readers. One study pairs it with tirzepatide in pe...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceAzelaprag
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 2 registered with no result.2 citedThe mid-stage study of azelaprag with tirzepatide, in 204 adults with obesity, was stopped. The registry says why: liver...
Small moleculeMuscle & PerformanceClenbuterol
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 11 people given it.5 reported6 citedThe first proper human study, in 2025, found two weeks of clenbuterol added 0.91 kg of lean mass, did nothing to fat, an...
Small moleculeMuscle & PerformanceIrisin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, 7 people given it.2 reported4 citedIrisin is a small protein your muscles release, and people link it to exercise. Nobody has ever given it to a person. In...
BiologicMetabolicFLGR-242
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.3 reported1 citedFLGR-242 is a lab-made piece of follistatin, sold on the gray market since late 2025. It is pitched as a way to trap myo...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceGDF11
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.3 reported1 citedGDF11 is the protein behind the young blood story. Two famous mouse papers in 2013 and 2014 said it drops with age and t...
BiologicAnti-agingL-leucine
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, 30 people given it.3 reported1 citedIt did not help mice live longer, in either sex. That was in the same test where rapamycin plus acarbose did better than...
SupplementMuscle & PerformancePEG-MGF
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.6 reported1 citedA longer-lasting form of MGF, a version of IGF-1 that muscle makes after damage. It is studied in animals for muscle rep...
PeptideMuscle & PerformanceUrsolic acid
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, 16 people given it.6 reported1 citedIt did not change lifespan at the dose tested in mice, in the same test where acarbose made male mice live 16 to 17 perc...
SupplementMuscle & PerformanceTaldefgrobep alfa
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 2 human studies where nobody was given it.3 reported2 citedBiohaven's drug that blocks myostatin and activin, two brakes on muscle. It is being tested on its own for weight loss....
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceApelin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 3 completed trials, 68 people given it.3 reported6 citedApelin is a natural signal that widens arteries and makes the heart pump harder. That was shown with short drips in abou...
PeptideMetabolicSemaglutide with BPC-157
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.7 reported1 citedAn approved drug with a 14.9% weight loss result, paired with a peptide the FDA looked at in 2026 and found no good huma...
BlendMetabolicEpicatechin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 4 completed trials, 44 people given it.1 reported6 citedIn people, small studies of the pure compound found a small drop in fasting insulin at 100 mg a day and nothing at 25 mg...
SupplementLongevitySermorelin / GHRP
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 4 completed trials, 56 people given it.9 reported5 citedThe standard growth hormone blend from compounding pharmacies, usually 5 mg sermorelin with 5 mg GHRP-2 in one 10 mg via...
BlendGrowth HormoneCJC-1295
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, none stating how many people.9 reported4 citedA lab-made copy of the body's growth hormone releasing signal, built to last longer. It keeps growth hormone and IGF-1 r...
PeptideGrowth HormoneSermorelin with GHRP-2 and GHRP-6
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 9 people given it.6 reported4 citedAn old pharmacy-made triple, usually 3 mg of each in a 9 mg vial, or 2 mg of each in a 6 mg vial. Two of the three press...
BlendGrowth HormoneCJC-1295 with GHRP-2
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, none stating how many people.8 reported3 citedA 10 mg vial split evenly between two kinds of growth hormone booster. One copies GHRH, the brain's own growth hormone s...
BlendGrowth HormoneCJC-1295 with GHRP-6
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 9 people given it.7 reported3 citedThe same two-switch pairing as the GHRP-2 version, but with the hungriest booster of the group in the second slot. GHRP-...
BlendGrowth HormoneNandrolone decanoate
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 3 completed trials, none stating how many people.6 reported3 citedTested in people on dialysis, in burn patients, and in women with thin bones after menopause, in a review that pooled se...
HormoneMuscle & PerformanceUrolithin A
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, none stating how many people.4 reported3 citedA compound your gut makes from pomegranates and berries. In older adults it helped muscle stamina and strength on some t...
SupplementMuscle & PerformanceForskolin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 53 people given it.5 reported2 citedIt did not help mice live longer, in either sex, in the 2021 test where epicatechin, halofuginone and mitoglitazone all...
SupplementMetabolicGlyNAC
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, none stating how many people.3 reported2 citedA mix of glycine and NAC, two building blocks the body uses to make its main antioxidant, glutathione. Small studies in...
SupplementAntioxidantModified GRF 1-29
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.9 reported2 citedSold as "CJC-1295 without DAC", which makes no sense. The DAC is the part that makes a molecule CJC-1295. The human stud...
PeptideGrowth HormoneOsteocalcin
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 2 human studies where nobody was given it.2 citedThe bone hormone said to control muscle, blood sugar and testosterone in mice. Then in 2020, two separate labs made new...
PeptideHormoneSomatropin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, 84 people given it.9 reported2 citedLab-made human growth hormone, the same as the one your body makes. It is FDA-approved for growth hormone shortage and a...
BiologicGrowth HormoneFisetin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.3 reported1 citedA plant compound found in strawberries, sold to clear worn-out cells. No results in people yet. One mouse study found lo...
SupplementLongevityFOXO4-DRI
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, 74 people given it.8 reported1 citedAn experimental peptide that kills worn-out cells in animal studies. It has not been tested in people.
PeptideAnti-agingMagnesium
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, 46 people given it.4 reported1 citedIt lowers blood pressure by a real but small amount, about 2 points. The sleep evidence is three small studies in 151 pe...
SupplementLongevityMGF
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.6 reported1 citedA 24 amino acid fragment of a load-induced IGF-1 splice variant, sold for local muscle repair. The published record is c...
PeptideMuscle & PerformanceOxandrolone
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.5 reported1 citedThe steroid with the best medical record, from a place you would not guess. Badly burned children took it for up to two...
HormoneMuscle & PerformanceTirzepatide with BPC-157
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.7 reported1 citedThe same pairing idea as the semaglutide version. One side has a bigger weight loss effect. The other side is just as em...
BlendMetabolicUrolithin B
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.1 citedSold on the good name of urolithin A, which has human studies. Urolithin B has none. Its muscle result comes from muscle...
SupplementMuscle & PerformanceWolverine blend
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 registered with no result.9 reported1 citedTwo gray-market healing peptides in one vial, usually 10 mg of each, sold for injury recovery. No study has ever tested...
BlendHealing & RecoveryBPC-157
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 3 completed trials, 31 people given it.10 reported7 citedA lab-made piece of a stomach protein. It has lots of animal studies on tendon, muscle and gut healing. In people there...
PeptideHealing & RecoveryHumanin
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, 30 people given it.6 reported5 citedA tiny peptide made from mitochondrial DNA. In people it has been watched, not given. It falls with age, runs high in th...
PeptideLongevityTUDCA
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 3 completed trials, 54 people given it.7 reported5 citedIn twenty obese adults over four weeks, insulin sensitivity in the liver and muscle rose about 30 percent on a detailed...
SupplementLongevityHalofuginone
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 3 human studies where nobody was given it, 1 registered with no result.2 reported4 citedIt has barely been tested in people. 24 cancer patients took it by mouth in an early safety study, and nausea capped the...
Small moleculeLongevityPemvidutide
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 2 completed trials, none stating how many people.1 reported3 citedAn experimental weekly shot from Altimmune that works on GLP-1 and glucagon. It is being made for obesity and fatty live...
PeptideMetabolicMOTS-c with SS-31
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.6 reported1 citedTwo peptides aimed at mitochondria, the energy makers inside cells, sold as one stack. SS-31 is elamipretide. It reached...
BlendLongevityRilmenidine
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.1 reported1 citedA European blood pressure pill that makes tiny worms live longer. In mice, the results are worse than nothing. It did wh...
Small moleculeLongevityStanozolol
Preliminary. Studied in people, but no published study has had people take it. 1 human study where nobody was given it.1 citedBest known from the 1988 Olympics. Its only real medical record is long-term use in a rare swelling disease, where it wo...
HormoneMuscle & PerformanceL-Carnitine
Limited. People have taken it in a published study, but fewer than 100 of them. 1 completed trial, none stating how many people.4 reported1 citedA compound your body needs to burn fat. It is FDA-approved for a real carnitine shortage and widely used for energy and...
SupplementMuscle & PerformanceAnimal or lab only, and nothing measured 7
Studied in animals or in cells in a dish, or studied in people for something else entirely. Listed, not hidden, because knowing a thing has not been tested in a person is the useful part.
SRK-439
Animal or lab only. Only animal or lab studies on this page. No study in people yet. 1 animal study, no human study.1 reportednone citedScholar Rock's follow-up to apitegromab, built to be self-injected alongside GLP-1 drugs. First results in people are ex...
BiologicMuscle & PerformanceTrigonelline
Animal or lab only. Only animal or lab studies on this page. No study in people yet. 1 animal study, no human study.2 reportednone citedTrigonelline is a natural compound in coffee and fenugreek that the body can turn into NAD+. It improved muscle function...
SupplementLongevityTurkesterone
None. No study cited on this page yet. no study cited on this page yet.6 reported1 citedThe best-selling supplement in this family, and the one with no study in people at all. Its reputation is borrowed from...
SupplementMuscle & Performance5-Amino-1MQ
Animal or lab only. Only animal or lab studies on this page. No study in people yet. 2 animal studies, no human study.6 reportednone citedAn experimental small molecule that blocks an enzyme linked to fat storage. It has only been studied in animals, and it...
Small moleculeMetabolicIGF-1 DES
Animal or lab only. Only animal or lab studies on this page. No study in people yet. 2 lab studies, no human study.5 reportednone citedIGF-1 DES is IGF-1 with its first three building blocks cut off. That stops the body's carrier proteins from grabbing it...
PeptideMuscle & PerformancePDA with TB-500
Animal or lab only. Only animal or lab studies on this page. No study in people yet. 1 lab study, no human study.6 reportednone citedThe 2026 stand-in for the Wolverine stack. It pairs a salt form of the BPC-157 peptide with the piece of protein sold as...
BlendHealing & RecoverySLU-PP-332
Animal or lab only. Only animal or lab studies on this page. No study in people yet. 2 animal studies, no human study.8 reportednone citedAn experimental compound sold as exercise in a pill. It boosts how muscle burns fuel in mice. It has never been tested i...
Small moleculeMuscle & PerformanceReading on this goal
Peptides for Longevity: What the Evidence Actually Shows in 2026
A full review of every peptide and related compound sold for aging: GLP-1 drugs, rapamycin, the growth hormone peptides, epitalon, thymalin, klotho, humanin, senolytics, SS-31, GHK-Cu, MOTS-c and FOXO4-DRI. What happened in people, what happened in animals and the legal status of each, in one table. Plain English.
Peptides for Sleep: DSIP, Epitalon and Pinealon Against the Evidence
What the DSIP sleep studies from 1981 to 1992 actually found, why an FDA panel voted against DSIP (emideltide) and for Epitalon in July 2026, what one Russian lab's melatonin data can and cannot show, how growth hormone signals change deep sleep, and how it all compares with approved sleep drugs. Plain English.
Peptide Side Effects by Class: What Is Documented, What Is Anecdotal
A group-by-group table that separates side effects counted in studies and on FDA labels (GLP-1 drugs, bremelanotide, MK-677, elamipretide) from the stories that fill forums about BPC-157, TB-500, copper peptides and brain peptides. Plain English.
Fasting worth reading alongside this
Protein-Forward Fasting
A short eating window done on purpose with lots of protein and weight training. The main lesson: when people lose muscle on fasting plans, the cause is low protein plus a short window plus time. It is not the window by itself.
16:8 Time-Restricted Eating
You eat all your food inside 8 hours, most often noon to 8pm. For the other 16 hours you take in no calories. This is the most tested fasting pattern. The studies still disagree on whether the window itself helps once you account for eating less.
What the number counts, exactly
The number on each card is how many sources on that compound’s page are studies in people. It is counted the same simple way for all 453 compounds. You can check any of it by opening the profile and reading the list of sources. That is the whole point of showing a number at all.
It counts what we cite. It does not claim how much research exists. A compound with three studies in people here may have thirty in print, and the honest thing to say is that we have read and listed three. It is also not a quality score. Three small, loose studies count the same as three careful ones. So the groups tell you how much was measured in people, and the profile page tells you how well.