THE SCIENCE
Eight actives. Every dose on the label. Every dose from the research.
Serune was formulated backwards from the studies: find the form of each active the research used, find the dose it used, then build a cacao drink that carries all eight at once. This page shows the working. For each active: the dose and form in one sachet, the study it is dosed to, and what the law lets us say about it.
How a dose gets into Serune
The eight actives and the research each one is dosed to
What is in one sachet, the study behind the dose, and the authorised claims where they exist.
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Saffron
30mg Safr'Inside™ extract, standardised to at least 3% crocins
Safr'Inside is a characterised, full-spectrum saffron extract, so the crocins, safranal and picrocrocin are measured rather than assumed. We use the higher of the two doses studied, 30mg, taken in the evening.
What the research looked at
A four-week, three-arm, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 165 adults reporting moderate insomnia. Participants took one capsule of Safr'Inside (20mg or 30mg) or placebo each evening about an hour before bed; the primary measure was change in the Athens Insomnia Scale.
Effects of Saffron Extract on Sleep Quality: A Randomized Double-Blind Controlled Clinical Trial Nutrients, 2021 (Pachikian, Copine, Suchareau, Deldicque)
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
No authorised health claims in Great Britain, so we make none. We include it at a researched dose and print exactly how much is in every sachet.
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Glycine
3,000mg
The amino acid at the dose the sleep research used: a full 3g, not a token pinch. It is also why the sachet is 11.2g; three grams of anything does not fit in a capsule.
What the research looked at
Volunteers with unsatisfactory sleep took 3g of glycine before bed. The study measured subjective sleep quality alongside polysomnography (the laboratory sleep recording), reporting changes in time to fall asleep and to reach slow-wave sleep, and in next-day sleepiness.
Glycine ingestion improves subjective sleep quality in human volunteers, correlating with polysomnographic changes Sleep and Biological Rhythms, 2007 (Yamadera et al.)
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
No authorised health claims in Great Britain, so we make none. We include it at a researched dose and print exactly how much is in every sachet.
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Magnesium
150mg elemental (40% NRV), as fully reacted, chelated magnesium bisglycinate
We dose the elemental magnesium, not the weight of the compound, and we use the fully reacted bisglycinate chelate: each magnesium bound to two glycine molecules, the form chosen for how it is absorbed and how gently it sits in the stomach.
What the research looked at
A double-blind, randomised crossover trial comparing absorption of isotope-labelled magnesium from the glycinate chelate against magnesium oxide. Absorption from the chelate was substantially greater in the patients with the poorest absorption, and the chelate was better tolerated by all of them; the authors suggest part of the chelate is absorbed intact through a dipeptide pathway.
Bioavailability of magnesium diglycinate vs magnesium oxide in patients with ileal resection Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition, 1994 (Schuette, Lashner, Janghorbani)
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
Magnesium contributes to a reduction of tiredness and fatigue, electrolyte balance, normal energy-yielding metabolism, normal functioning of the nervous system, normal muscle function, normal protein synthesis, normal psychological function, the maintenance of normal bones and normal teeth, and has a role in the process of cell division.
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L-Theanine
200mg, from green tea extract
The amino acid behind green tea's savoury calm, at the 200mg a day the four-week research used, and from the leaf rather than a synthetic copy.
What the research looked at
A randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind crossover trial in 30 healthy adults taking 200mg of L-theanine a day for four weeks. It measured stress-related symptom scales and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, reporting lower scores after L-theanine than placebo, including the sleep-latency and sleep-disturbance sub-scores.
Effects of L-Theanine Administration on Stress-Related Symptoms and Cognitive Functions in Healthy Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial Nutrients, 2019 (Hidese et al.)
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
No authorised health claims in Great Britain, so we make none. We include it at a researched dose and print exactly how much is in every sachet.
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Lemon balm
400mg leaf extract, standardised to 7% rosmarinic acid
A standardised leaf extract of Melissa officinalis, so every batch carries the same rosmarinic acid rather than a variable spoon of dried herb.
What the research looked at
An open-label, 15-day pilot study of a standardised lemon balm leaf extract (Cyracos) in 20 stressed volunteers with mild-to-moderate anxiety and sleep disturbance, measuring anxiety manifestations and insomnia scores before and after. A small, uncontrolled study, cited for the extract and the dose, not as proof.
Pilot trial of Melissa officinalis L. leaf extract in the treatment of volunteers suffering from mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders and sleep disturbances Mediterranean Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism, 2011 (Cases et al.)
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
No authorised health claims in Great Britain, so we make none. We include it at a researched dose and print exactly how much is in every sachet.
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Chamomile
400mg extract, standardised to 3% total apigenins
The familiar bedtime herb as a concentrated extract standardised to its apigenins, the flavonoids the research is interested in, rather than a tea bag of variable strength.
What the research looked at
A single-blind randomised trial in 60 older adults given 200mg of chamomile extract twice a day, or a placebo capsule, for 28 days, with sleep quality measured on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index before, during and after. The treated group's sleep quality scores improved relative to placebo.
The effects of chamomile extract on sleep quality among elderly people: A clinical trial Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2017 (Adib-Hajbaghery and Mousavi)
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
No authorised health claims in Great Britain, so we make none. We include it at a researched dose and print exactly how much is in every sachet.
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Vitamin B6
2.8mg (200% NRV), as pyridoxal-5-phosphate
Included in its active, co-enzymated form, P-5-P, which the body can use without first converting it.
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
Vitamin B6 contributes to normal cysteine synthesis, normal energy-yielding metabolism, normal functioning of the nervous system, normal homocysteine metabolism, normal protein and glycogen metabolism, normal psychological function, normal red blood cell formation, the normal function of the immune system, the reduction of tiredness and fatigue, and the regulation of hormonal activity.
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Zinc
10mg elemental (100% NRV), as zinc citrate
A full day's reference intake of elemental zinc, as the citrate.
Authorised health claims (Great Britain)
Zinc contributes to normal DNA synthesis, normal acid-base metabolism, normal carbohydrate metabolism, normal cognitive function, normal fertility and reproduction, normal macronutrient metabolism, normal metabolism of fatty acids, normal metabolism of vitamin A, normal protein synthesis, the maintenance of normal bones, hair, nails, skin and vision, the maintenance of normal testosterone levels in the blood, the normal function of the immune system, the protection of cells from oxidative stress, and has a role in the process of cell division.
Each study is described as it was published: who took part, what they took and what was measured. They are cited to show where the form and dose of each active come from, not as claims about Serune. Serune is a food supplement and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The authorised health claims are those registered for use in Great Britain; the other five actives carry none, so we make none.
The night, and the day that follows
Serune was designed around the whole night and the morning after. Three findings from sleep research on why the night matters.
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Sleep and appetite
Sleep and what you eat the next day
The study
In a randomised trial of 80 adults with overweight who habitually slept under 6.5 hours, those helped to sleep about 1.2 hours longer a night for two weeks ate roughly 270 fewer calories a day, with no change in energy spent. The study is about sleep, not about any product.
Effect of Sleep Extension on Objectively Assessed Energy Intake Among Adults With Overweight in Real-life Settings: A Randomized Clinical Trial JAMA Internal Medicine, 2022 (Tasali et al.)
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Sleep and mood
Brighter days start the night before
The study
A meta-analysis of 65 randomised controlled trials (8,608 people) found that improving sleep quality produced a medium-sized improvement in mental health, including depression, anxiety and rumination, with a dose response: the more sleep improved, the more mood did.
Improving sleep quality leads to better mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials Sleep Medicine Reviews, 2021 (Scott et al.)
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Sleep and stress
Short nights, higher evening cortisol
The study
In healthy young men, a single night of restricted or lost sleep raised cortisol the following evening, the body's stress hormone, compared with a normal night. The finding is about sleep loss itself.
Sleep Loss Results in an Elevation of Cortisol Levels the Next Evening Sleep, 1997 (Leproult, Copinschi, Buxton, Van Cauter)
These three studies are about sleep itself, in people who were not taking any supplement. They are here to explain why we care about the whole night, not to claim that Serune produces these outcomes.
Made in the UK. Tested every batch.
Serune is made in a UK facility certified BRCGS AA. An independent auditor inspects the whole site every year and can arrive unannounced, checking hygiene, allergen separation, traceability and recall readiness. Every ingredient is tested and assessed on every batch, with a Certificate of Analysis per ingredient.
- BRCGS AAThe food safety grade UK supermarkets ask their suppliers for.
- Certificate of AnalysisOne per ingredient, every batch.
- No proprietary blendsEvery dose on the label. Nothing hidden inside a blend.
One sachet. Eight actives. Twenty-eight nights.
Real cacao, Madagascar vanilla and Montmorency tart cherry, an hour before bed. Pre-orders are selling fast, shipping from mid November.