Well it looks like after years of people taking about it, it may indeed happen: LongeCity adding a Supplement DataBase
Its going to be a lot of work and we will need a dedicated team. I am out of class for the summer and fall, don't go back to class tell spring session, so I will have plenty of time to commit to this project.
You're a brave soul for taking this on. Done right, this could turn into a very powerful resource.
It should be a relational database. I'd like to see supplements broken down into sortable categories by their ingredients and biological activity. For example olive leaf is a 'herbal' supplement rich 'apigenin' 'luteolin' 'oleuropein' 'hydroxytyrosol' etc. Each of those supplements or compounds (a compound is also a supplement) is classed (is it a herb, peptide, sterol, flavonoid etc) and associated to biological activity and pathways, with links to cited studies and articles. For example, because olive leaf contains luteolin, and luteolin is a PDE-inbitor, olive leaf would have that listed as a property. Because luteolin is in the flavonoid class of chemicals, olive leaf would also be listed as having a potential anti-glycation effect, as thats a property of flavonoids. Or if you select 'luteolin', you'd have a list of all it's properties and other supplements containing it. If you select PDE-inhibitor you'd instantly have a list of supplements and compounds with this biological activity. See the idea? The hydroxytyrosol in olive leaf activates pgc-1a. PGC-1a itself is classed as a protein that has a property of boosting T3 levels (proven activity of olive leaf not too long ago). You end up with the ability to map complex pathways and the supplements that influence those pathways. Thus, each supplement would have activity listed as either proven (directly linked) or probable (linked to compounds contained in the supplement). You don't have to worry about putting things like pgc in there yourself, but if you make it possible to populate the db with this sort of information, it will be hugely flexible in the future. An OCD sufferers dream. At first the db would be barebones, but as people add to it, it could become extroardinary complex and rich. I could see research scientists using this.
The backend would be a little tricky to program and populate, but the frontend would be nicely condensed and organized to something that people could make sense of. You've done a great job with your original mockup.
It should also be possible to sort supplements according to their closest relatives.
Trusted users (members) should be allowed to add entries with only mods allowed to delete and modify.
I will have time to add entries to this DB and to offer further suggestions, but too many cobwebs to help you program.
Edited by 1kgcoffee, 24 May 2013 - 03:35 AM.