Relaxium is a sleep brand that claims it can help users fall asleep faster, sleep longer, and wake up more refreshed. The brand's website claims that the supplement is "clinically studied."
But is Relaxium actually proven to work in clinical studies? Does it contain any unhealthy additives? Why was the brand sued? And how do real users rate and describe the effects of Relaxium?
In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we share our concerns about the clinical research backing Relaxium.
We'll then analyze the ingredients in Relaxium to give our take on whether or not the supplement is likely to work, and whether or not it's healthy.
Finally, we'll feature real Relaxium customer reviews, and explain why the company was sued in 2022.
Questionable Clinical Study on Relaxium
Relaxium claims that their supplement is clinically studied.
However, the "clinical trial" backing their supplement does not appear to be published in any peer-reviewed journals like the research we cite on Illuminate Health.
It's just a PDF posted to their website which is sponsored by American Behavioral Research Institute; the same company that manufactures Relaxium.
It's not particularly convincing when a supplement manufacturer sponsors a study proving their own product works, and we recommend that consumers entirely disregard such clinical trials, and only consider research published in peer-reviewed journals.
We're not the only ones who find this business practice questionable.
According to the Arkansas Times, Relaxium was sued in a class-action lawsuit in 2022 related to some of its clinical claims, and has since settled.
The above-linked article documents that Relaxium's own study found that the supplement did not improve sleep.
Ingredient Analysis
The ingredients in Relaxium are shown above.
Magnesium has been clinically shown to be effective for sleep, but may be underdosed in Relaxium.
A 2021 meta-review on magnesium supplementation for sleep found that it was effective, but the lowest dose in all of the examined studies was 320 milligrams (mg) daily, or 3.2x the amount in Relaxium.
L-tryptophan is an amino acid that can be effective for sleep, but a medical review published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research suggests its effective dose is over 1,000 mg, while the amount in Relaxium is only 500 mg.
GABA is included at a dose of 100 mg.
This compound is a neurotransmitter that’s directly involved with sleep function. Clinical research has shown that GABA supplementation can improve sleep duration and reduce nighttime wakefulness, and the dose in Relaxium appears to be at the low end of the effective range.
Chamomile is included at 75 mg, which may also be underdosed.
A medical review published in the Phytotherapy Research journal analyzed results from six clinical trials on chamomile and sleep, and the typical dosage was around 400 mg.
Passionflower was shown in a 2011 clinical trial to improve sleep quality.
Melatonin is one of the most well-studied natural sleep aids, and as we documented in our review of Dr. Teal's Sleep Spray, it's clinically proven to work.
The 5 mg dose in Relaxium is an effective dose.
Overall, we consider Relaxium somewhat likely to be effective for improving sleep quality and duration, although we consider a majority of its active ingredients to be underdosed.
All of the active ingredients in Relaxium appear to have research backing.
One benefit of this supplement is that it's free of any harmful additive ingredients.
Does Relaxium Cause Side Effects?
There are no ingredients in Relaxium's formulation that stand out to us as likely to cause side effects.
Melatonin may cause slight daytime drowsiness according to a 2016 medical review.
Valerian may have a slight stimulating effect in a minority of users, and cause restlessness, according to a 2020 meta-analysis.
The clinical trial on Relaxium funded by the manufacturer that we cited in the first section states the following:
"Adverse events reported for Relaxium were drowsiness/sleepiness, headache, uneasy stomach, and waking up during normal sleep patterns."
The percentage of trial participants who experienced these effects does not appear to be reported.
Customers Rate Relaxium
Amazon is a better resource for honest customer reviews than a brand's website in our opinion.
At the time of updating this article, Relaxium has been reviewed over 21,000 times on Amazon and has an average review rating of 3.3 out of 5 stars.
A top positive review from a verified purchaser comes from a user named "Brian J. Le Clair" who gave the product a 5/5 rating:
"I had been taking an Rx med, zolpidem, for many years in order to sleep...After about a week, I began taking only Relaxium and within a half an hour, my body just naturally falls asleep. I have been enjoying this!"
A top negative review from a verified purchaser is written by a user named "Darice" who gave the product a 1/5 rating:
"Finally after several nights of this I took my BP because it felt like my heart was racing. 190/120 pulse 95. Took an extra BP med. After 3 or 4 days of this the light bulb finally went on and I stopped the Relaxium. Stopped waking up in panic. Then the itching stopped along with the leg twitching."
Many customer complaints about Relaxium exist on the Better Business Bureau (BBB) website, and there's actually a "Current Alert" about the brand, stating that some customers are being billed for an amount much greater than the free trial amount.
One Relaxium customer shares their complaint about the brand overcharging them in this video on the "PissedConsumer" YouTube page:
Our Clean Sleep Picks
Ritual BioSeries Melatonin is our top premium sleep supplement.
It provides an effective dose of melatonin, which is clinically shown to improve sleep quality, and which is arguably the best-studied compound for sleep support.
Nolah Weighted Bamboo Blanket is a great option for consumers who prefer non-supplement solutions for sleep. Weighted blankets are clinically shown to improve sleep quality in both older adults and in children, and early research suggests they may also reduce anxiety.
Both of the products recommended in this section are entirely free of ingredients or materials that we consider to be unhealthy.
Where to Get the Best Price
Relaxium is sold at a variety of online retailers.
Here's a price breakdown for a one-time purchase at the time of updating this article:
Brand website: $44.95 (plus shipping, link)
GNC: $29.99 (plus shipping, link)
Amazon: $29.99 (free shipping, link to official Amazon listing)
Walmart: $26.80 (plus shipping, third-party seller, link)
Walmart currently has the best price on Relaxium by a few dollars.
However, the Walmart listing is from a third-party seller, while the Amazon listing is from the brand itself. We generally recommend purchasing directly from the manufacturer to reduce the risk of receiving a counterfeit product.
Relaxium Pros and Cons
Here are the pros and cons of Relaxium in our opinion:
Pros:
- Contains research-backed ingredients
- Some active ingredients appear effectively dosed
- Zero unhealthy additive ingredients
- Relatively affordable
Cons:
- Most active ingredients are underdosed in our opinion
- So many complaints about billing practices that BBB has a warning
- Sued over false advertising and settled
- Questionable clinical and health claims
- Mediocre Amazon reviews
- Brand's website charges for shipping
