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Proprietary Blend Math: What 500 mg Can Hold
Proprietary blend math turns one printed total into upper limits. Melonex prints a 500 mg blend with three lines in weight order, so line one holds at most 500 mg, line two at most 250 mg and line three at most 167 mg. The label never prints the real amounts, and no trial tested the capsule.
Written by the Melonex numbers deskUpdated · 4 min read
01The rule
What is the rule behind proprietary blend math?
Federal labeling rules say a proprietary blend lists its total weight and names its ingredients in descending order of weight. Individual amounts are optional (21 CFR 101.36 (proprietary blends)).
That order is the only clue. If a blend has three lines, the first weighs the most and the last the least.
A tie is allowed, so the ceilings below are upper limits and not guesses. Melonex lists L-Citrulline DL-Malate, then L-Arginine (Alpha-Ketoglutarate dihydrate), then L-Arginine HCL.
The 500 mg total covers those three lines. The shell and fillers are counted apart as other ingredients.
02The sums
How do you work out each ceiling?
Divide 500 mg by the line's place in the list. Line one: 500 / 1. Line two: 500 / 2. Line three: 500 / 3.
Why does it work? Line two cannot weigh more than line one. If it did, the order would be wrong. So lines one and two together hold at least twice line two, which caps line two at 250 mg.
| Place | Line | Divide | 1 capsule | 2 capsules |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | L-Citrulline DL-Malate | 500 / 1 | 500 mg | 1,000 mg |
| 2 | L-Arginine AKG | 500 / 2 | 250 mg | 500 mg |
| 3 | L-Arginine HCL | 500 / 3 | 167 mg | 333 mg |
Ceilings do not add up to 500 mg. At least one line sits below its limit.
03Even split
What is the most likely split of the blend?
Nobody outside the maker knows. An even split is about 167 mg a line, and a lopsided one is just as legal.
Take one made-up split: 300, 120 and 80 mg. It follows the order and adds to 500. So does 167, 167 and 166. Both are examples, not Melonex data.
The two arginine lines together can weigh at most 333 mg, because line one must be at least 167 mg. That cap matters when you compare with studies.
- Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose The vegetable capsule shell (a plant-cellulose material)
- Microcrystalline cellulose A plant-fiber filler that bulks out the powder
- Magnesium stearate A flow aid that stops powder sticking to machines
From the Supplement Facts panel. The three blend lines are listed from most to least by weight (21 CFR 101.36 (proprietary blends)), so each "≤" figure is a ceiling per capsule, not the real amount. The other ingredients are not part of the 500 mg.
04Versus trials
How do the ceilings compare with studied doses?
Every ceiling sits far below the grams used in blood-pressure trials, and the pure amino acid is lower than the line weight.
Eight small trials of L-citrulline used 3 to 9 g a day (Avicenna J Phytomed 2019, L-citrulline and BP meta-analysis). Eleven small trials of L-arginine used 4 to 24 g a day (Am Heart J 2011, L-arginine and BP meta-analysis).
- Citrulline line: at most 500 mg, about 17% of the 3 g low end.
- Arginine pair: at most 333 mg, about 8% of the 4 g low end.
- Two capsules double both figures. They stay well below the low ends.
No trial tested Melonex, so this comparison shows scale and nothing more. The post on citrulline malate covers the weight of the malate part.
05Reading labels
What should you do with this math?
Use it as a filter. Ask any blend label for the order, the total and the gap between the total and the dose a study used.
Check each line on the Melonex label, and see the full capsule breakdown on what is in one capsule. The bottle gives 60 days at one a day.
If you take blood-pressure drugs, nitrates or erectile-dysfunction drugs, ask your pharmacist first. Keep taking prescribed medicine either way.
Prices listed on the seller's order page; confirm at checkout. The 2-bottle kit costs $158, with $9.99 shipping. Ask your doctor about your medicines first. 60-day money-back guarantee per the seller.
Melonex is not a treatment; it is a dietary supplement. Ask your doctor or pharmacist first if you take blood-pressure medicine, nitrates for chest pain, an erectile-dysfunction drug such as sildenafil or tadalafil, a potassium-sparing diuretic (amiloride, spironolactone, triamterene), a blood thinner, or diabetes medicine, or if you have had a recent heart attack. Arginine and citrulline can add to these. Keep taking prescribed medicine. See side effects and interactions.
06FAQ
Melonex questions people ask
How do you calculate a proprietary blend's ingredients?
You cannot get exact amounts. You can get ceilings: divide the blend total by each line's place in the list. For a 500 mg blend that is 500, 250 and 167 mg. The real amounts are only known to the maker.
Can a proprietary blend line be below its ceiling?
Yes, and at least one line must be. The ceilings 500, 250 and 167 add up to 917 mg, but the blend weighs 500 mg. Any line can fall short, so the ceiling is a limit, never a promise.
Why do supplements hide blend amounts?
Federal rules let a blend list one total and its parts in weight order without single amounts. A maker may choose to hide them. Melonex does, so readers must use weight order to bound each line.
Does blend math change at two capsules a day?
It doubles. Two capsules hold a 1,000 mg blend, so the ceilings become 1,000, 500 and 333 mg. The ratio between lines stays unknown. According to the label, up to two capsules a day is allowed.
07Who wrote this
Written and reviewed by
Pages built from the label, the seller's materials and linked NIH, FDA, CDC, AHA, FTC and peer-reviewed sources.
Last updated . Read how we write and how we check reviews. This website is run by Melonexheart, which describes itself as a U.S. authorized Melonex merchant. It is not the manufacturer or the label's distributor, and we cannot independently verify the 'authorized' status. We are paid when you buy through our order links.
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