Disclaimer: None of the information in this article constitutes medical advice, and is just the opinion of the writer(s). We recommend that patients follow their doctor’s guidance in regard to pain relief.
Golden Revive + (also described as “Golden Revive Plus”) is a dietary supplement for joint pain relief manufactured by a brand called UpWellness. The brand describes this product as a “natural solution for stiff joints, ligaments, tendons and muscles.”
But can a dietary supplement really relieve joint pain? Does Golden Revive + contain research-backed ingredients? Does it contain any unhealthy ingredients? And do the brand's own research citations disprove their health claims?
In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in Golden Revive + to give our take on whether or not it's likely to be effective for pain relief, and whether or not it's healthy.
We'll also highlight some questionable health and research claims on the brand's website, and compare Golden Revive + to other popular pain relief supplements like Relief Factor, in terms of formulation quality, to pick our winners (and losers).
Key takeaways:
- Contains research-backed ingredients for pain relief
- Questionable health claims on brand's website
- We do not currently recommend Golden Revive +
Ingredient Analysis
The ingredients in Golden Revive + are shown below:
Boswellia serrata extract is included at a dose of 333 milligrams (mg). We consider this an effective dose.
A medical review published in the BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies journal analyzed data from seven clinical trials on this ingredient for pain, and reported the minimum effective dose to be 100 mg daily.
BCM-95 is a patented turmeric extract that's also included at a 333 mg dose.
A 2012 clinical trial found this ingredient to be effective for reducing pain and other symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at a daily dosage of 1,000 mg, or more than 300% of the amount in Golden Revive +.
We cannot locate any medical studies proving that BCM-95 is effective for pain reduction at the dose in Golden Revive +, nor does the brand currently cite any on its product page.
Bromelain is an enzyme that’s included at a 167 mg dose. As we documented in our Heal n Soothe reviews article, the only medical studies we could find on bromelain and pain reported a minimum-effective dose of 200 mg, so we consider this ingredient slightly underdosed in Golden Revive +.
Quercetin may be effective for pain, as a 2022 meta-study found quercetin to be effective for various types of chronic pain including cancer pain and inflammatory pain.
Piperine is a black pepper extract that’s included because it’s proven in medical studies to increase the bioavailability of curcumin (the active chemical compound in turmeric) by up to 2,000%. We consider this an effective ingredient inclusion.
We can’t identify any medical studies proving the remaining ingredients (vitamin C and magnesium) to be effective for pain at the dosages used.
Overall, we consider Golden Revive + likely to provide some level of pain relief, because most of its active ingredients have research backing, and several are effectively dosed in our estimation.
Another good thing about this supplement is that its inactive ingredients should be entirely safe and non-toxic.
Brand's Own Research Disputes Their Claims
The product page for Golden Revive + on the UpWellness website cites clinical research that fails to support the brand's own claims.
As shown above, the brand claims that the patented form of turmeric they use is "backed by over 50 clinical studies and a 15-year track record for safety and effectiveness" with two citations to support those claims:
However, the citations do not actually prove those claims.
The first citation is a medical review that is not focused on the specific patented turmeric used in Golden Revive +, but rather an overview of curcumin, which is a chemical compound in turmeric.
The second citation is an animal study on curcumin treatment for pain relief that didn't even use the patented turmeric extract used by Golden Revive +.
The brand's website also claims that bromelain "works as well as many anti-inflammatory drugs for pain relief":
However, the study cited to back this claim does not prove that bromelain in isolation is as effective as anti-inflammatory drugs.
It shows that bromelain when combined with two other compounds (one of which, Devil's Claw, is not even included in Golden Revive +) has an anti-inflammatory effect.
We consider it to be a major red flag when a brand makes health claims that are unsupported by their own citations, and we urge UpWellness to remove the unsupported health claims from their website, or adjust them to match the research they're citing.
Questionable Health Claims
The Golden Revive + website claims that the patented turmeric they use is 200x stronger than raw turmeric:
There is no citation for this claim.
While extracts of plants are more potent than the raw material, we have not come across any research suggesting that BCM-95 is 200x more potent than raw turmeric.
A clinical trial that the manufacturer of BCM-95 cites on their own website reported that BCM-95 is 6.93x better-absorbed than raw turmeric.
We urge Golden Revive + to either cite this claim or to remove it from their website.
UpWellness also claims that their supplement only takes 30 seconds per day to “grease your joints and protect your heart and lungs:”
This claim is also uncited.
Ignoring the strange “grease your joints” statement, there is no explanation as to how this supplement “protects” the heart and lungs.
Golden Revive + doesn't appear to have been studied in any clinical trials, so we don't understand how its manufacturer can make such specific health claims.
Golden Revive + vs. Pain Relief Supps
Here's how Golden Revive + compares to other popular pain relief supplements in terms of formulation quality, in our opinion:
Joint Food
Contains research-backed active ingredients like tamarind seed extract, which is clinically shown to relieve knee pain by over 50% in at least one trial.
However, at the time of our last analysis, the manufacturer failed to publish an inactive ingredients panel, which is a consumer safety issue.
With Golden Revive +, you know all of the ingredients in the formulation, so we give the brand the advantage.
Winner: Golden Revive +
Heal n Soothe
Contains an active ingredient which is clinically shown to cause pain, as we documented i our Heal n Soothe reviews article.
Golden Revive + has the advantage from a potential efficacy perspective.
Winner: Golden Revive +
Relief Factor
Contains research-backed active ingredients, and sold by a more reputable brand (none of the questionable health and research claims we documented with Golden Revive +).
We also tested the product and found it to be (subjectively) highly effective.
Winner: Relief Factor
Our Clean Anti-Inflammatory Picks
Illuminate Labs Ceylon Cinnamon Extract is our top anti-inflammatory supplement.
Cinnamon was shown to reduce inflammatory markers in a 2020 clinical trial. The study authors concluded that “Cinnamon could be regarded as a safe supplement to relieve pain.”
Cornbread CBD Lotion is our top anti-inflammatory skin lotion.
Cannabidiol (CBD) is clinically shown to be effectively absorbed through the skin, and CBD caused "significant improvements in pain" when applied topically in a 2020 clinical trial.
Both of the products recommended in this section are free of ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.
Golden Revive + Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Should provide some level of pain relief
- Contains multiple research-backed active ingredients
- Contains black pepper which enhances the effects of curcumin
- No unhealthy additive ingredients
- Healthier than some competitors
Cons:
- Brand's own research citations fail to prove their marketing claims
- Brand makes questionable and uncited health claims
- Doesn't appear to be clinically tested
