• by Les Luchter , Staff Writer, July 11, 2024

Are high levels of cortisol, the so-called stress hormone, at the root of many of our modern-day health problems?

Startup Rebalance Health thinks so. It sells three separate supplement “systems” designed specifically to reduce anxiety, increase testosterone or eliminate hot flashes by bringing hormones into balance. Each system consists of three differently formulated lozenges, to be taken in the morning, afternoon and at bedtime.

The products, available only online through Rebalance’s website, cost from $63.75 to $84.99 monthly via subscription, or $75 to $99.99 on a one-time basis.

Pharma & Marketing Insider spoke with Rebalance Health founder Justin Hai about his products and the cortisol “pandemic.”

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Pharma & Health Insider: Why did you start Rebalance Health?

Justin Hai: My wife was diagnosed with Cushing’s, which is an overdevelopment of cortisol. It lit my fire to dive into how the body works and what specifically wasn't functioning for my wife. I put the pieces together to support her.

P&HI: Why is cortisol such a problem in the modern world?

Hai: The digital world, whether social media, email, the internet, streaming services, has increased cortisol exponentially and unreasonably over the past 40 years and has caused the true pandemic of the world to be cortisol.

Most people suffer from the inability to get a good night's sleep, all caused by cortisol. That directly affects their ability to generate hormones, which is causing anxiety, exhaustion, exacerbated menopausal symptoms, low testosterone, overweight and muscle mass decrease.

PHI: What kind of studies have you done to prove efficacy?

Hai: We've gone through extensive testing, somewhat unprecedented for a nutraceutical company. We treat ourselves very much like a pharmaceutical company in terms of testing and studies -- in order to continue to evolve product, make sure we have a high level of efficacy, and to be able to make claims that support our marketing materials and not get into trouble with the FDA or the FTC.

Supplements have a bad rap, so we really want to focus on proving that our product works above and beyond testimonials and people's personal experiences. 

It’s great when patients say, “my cortisol tests on my quarterly blood work has never been lower, “my testosterone has never been higher,” “my hot flashes have gone away,” “I'm much calmer.” But the medical field and a lot of skeptics want to see data around it. We are actually putting our money where our mouth is, doing these studies, and getting them published.

You can't buy the publications. You have to actually have something that works.

I would say that more than 95% of supplements in the market have never ever done a study like we've done.

P&HI: Your website provides a count of how many doctors have recommended your products to patients via the FrontRow brand referral service. How important is the medical community to Rebalance Health?

Hai: We've got products placed at doctors' offices around the country, and FrontRow is rapidly picking up more and more doctors recommending our product. Why wouldn't you give a natural product an opportunity before you start diving into things like HRT [hormone replacement therapy] and pharmaceuticals that could be very expensive, have significant side effects, or become reliant upon them for the rest of your life?

 P&HI: How do you get this message out to potential users?

Hai: We do affiliate marketing, paid advertising, editorials, events. We do a very traditional online marketing approach.

P&HI: An early press release of yours touted the signing of former pro volleyball player Gabrielle Reece as a brand ambassador. What’s going on in that area?

Hai: The time for influencers is very much early on in the cycle. Nowadays, the consumer knows that influencers are pretty much purchased. It isn't as authentic as it might have been four or five years ago. The world is rapidly changing in regards to marketing strategies. I'm a firm believer that word-of-mouth is the fastest and the most potent method.

P&HI: How is the brand growing, and what’s the breakdown on subscriptions versus single unit sales?

Hai: We're seeing growth every month, at least 40% to 50%. Probably close to 90% of our sales are subscription. Most people who have purchased supplements realize that it takes more than 30 days to see some kind of benefit.

P&HI: Which product is hottest?

Hai: Testosterone, primarily because guys are easier. Women are more selective of what they put in their bodies because, when it comes to their hormones, they’ve gone through the gamut, starting at puberty and heading into perimenopause, menopause, post-menopause.

So the sales cycle is going to be a little longer, though we've seen Hot Flash pick up tremendously over the past 60 days, and I would imagine it will be our flagship product for Q3.

PHI: One last thing. How's your wife doing?

Hai: Very well. Her Cushing’s diagnosis has been removed, and her cortisol levels are well below the national average. She sucks on those lozenges every day with vigor.