The best DIM supplements

Joanna Evans tracks down top-quality diindolylmethane supplements to help with hormonal balance

In How Supporting Your Liver Can Help Balance Your Hormones, Dr Jennifer Pfleghaar recommends several supplements to support the liver and promote healthy estrogen metabolism and hormonal balance. One of the key ones is diindolylmethane, also known as DIM, a natural compound produced when the body breaks down cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cabbage and kale. It’s widely used as a supplement to help balance estrogen levels in the body, and research shows it may help the body process estrogen beneficially.¹

More research is needed, but evidence so far suggests that taking DIM supplements may help support weight loss,² treat acne,³ improve symptoms of endometriosis⁴ and reduce the risk of certain cancers.⁵

If you’re looking to make DIM part of your daily supplement stack, here are a few pointers on what to look for.

What to look for

Form. If you’re looking for superior absorption, BioResponse DIM®, a microencapsulated formulation of DIM, appears to be your best bet.⁶ It’s also the form used in most of the published clinical trials on DIM. That said, many well-regarded brands use standard crystalline DIM and focus instead on formulation quality and complementary ingredients.

If you go for standard DIM, a higher dosage may help compensate for the lower bioavailability. Or look for absorption-enhancing ingredients like black pepper extract. It hasn’t been specifically studied with DIM, but it’s known to increase the absorption of some compounds.⁷ Taking DIM with a healthy fat-containing meal can also aid absorption.

Dosage. DIM is typically used at a dosage of 100–200 mg daily, so make sure you’re getting a decent dosage per capsule to avoid having to take multiple capsules a day.

Complementary ingredients. Many DIM supplements include other active ingredients to work in synergy with DIM, such as sulforaphane, calcium-D-glucarate (CDG), N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and milk thistle. If they’re included, look for meaningful dosages.

Excipients. These are the inactive ingredients in a supplement, and you want as few as possible. Scan the ingredients list on the label or website to make sure you’re not getting any unnecessary extras, like sugars, sweeteners, fillers and artificial colorings and preservatives.

Testing. Seek out brands that specify third-party testing for product potency and purity and have certificates of analysis available for you to view. If you’re unsure about anything, get in touch with the company to check.

High manufacturing standards. Is the supplement manufactured according to stringent quality standards? Look for certifications of good manufacturing practices (GMPs) on the product label or website.

Product picks

To save you the hard work, we handpicked some high-quality DIM supplements available in the US and UK.

Pure Encapsulations

DIM Detox/Ultra, $58/£60.16 (60 capsules)
US: pureforyou.com; UK: pure-encapsulations.co.uk

As well as 100 mg of BioResponse DIM, each two-capsule serving of this hypoallergenic formula contains 100 mg CDG, 100 mg broccoli sprout concentrate with a guaranteed level of sulforaphane, 150 mg milk thistle extract, 200 mg NAC and a handful of other liver-supporting ingredients. Like all Pure Encapsulations products, it’s independently tested for potency and purity and free of unnecessary additives.

Lifetropics

DIM, $33.64/£25.16 (90 capsules)
lifetropics.com

This good-value supplement—free of fillers and additives—contains 200 mg DIM per capsule plus 20 mg black pepper extract to aid absorption. It also features a whole fruit and vegetable blend that includes acai berry, acerola cherry, beetroot, broccoli, spinach, spirulina, chlorella and wheatgrass and is third-party tested for purity.

You can buy it alone or as part of the Estrogen Reset Kit, which also includes the Estro Broccoli Complex, a combination of CDG and broccoli seed extract, to further support natural detoxification and estrogen balance.

Thorne

Hormone Advantage, $51/£55.23 (60 capsules)
US: thorne.com; UK: uk.iherb.com

Providing 150 mg DIM per capsule along with 25 mg sulforaphane (from broccoli seed extract) to further support estrogen metabolism, this US-made supplement is GMP-certified and third-party tested with minimal excipients. It also contains 100 mg pomegranate extract, a potent antioxidant that may also help promote hormonal balance.⁸

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