What can you say about L-carnitine in your ads and on your site?

The library supports 4 wordings for L-carnitine; the strongest is “Provides an antioxidant that helps protect cells against free radical damage” (moderate, up to 4 g a day). Avoid wording that names or implies a disease, a drug or a treatment, such as “Treats heart disease or angina”.

Also called: Carnitine, L-carnitine L-tartrate, L-carnitine tartrate, L-carnitine fumarate

Reviewed 15 October 2026

Not legal advice. This guide shows the wording that published evidence supports at a daily dose, from the sources linked below; it is not a ruling on any claim. Your own product, its form and dose, and your own evidence still need to match the wording you use.

Supported wordings

What you can say.

Moderate evidenceWording 1

Claims Facts

“Provides an antioxidant that helps protect cells against free radical damage.”

Daily dose	up to 4 g a day
Support	Health Canada lists it; no other listed source covers it.
Dose details	Adults 18 and older. Health Canada: not more than 4 g a day; not more than 2 g per dose.
Form	L-carnitine, L-carnitine tartrate or L-carnitine fumarate, counted as L-carnitine
Source	Health Canada monograph: Carnitine, L-

Moderate evidenceWording 2

Claims Facts

“Helps support muscle recovery and muscle tissue repair in people doing resistance training.”

Daily dose	1-4 g a day
Support	Health Canada lists it; no other listed source covers it.
Dose details	Adults 18 and older. Health Canada: 1-4 g a day; not more than 2 g per dose. Take 2-4 hours before exercise.
Form	L-carnitine or L-carnitine tartrate, counted as L-carnitine
Source	Health Canada monograph: Carnitine, L-

Moderate evidenceWording 3

Claims Facts

“Helps improve physical performance and delay fatigue during physical activity, with a training regimen.”

Daily dose	2-4 g a day
Support	Health Canada lists it; no other listed source covers it.
Dose details	Adults 18 and older. Health Canada: 2-4 g a day; not more than 2 g per dose. Take 2-4 hours before exercise.
Form	L-carnitine or L-carnitine tartrate, counted as L-carnitine
Source	Health Canada monograph: Carnitine, L-

Moderate evidenceWording 4

Claims Facts

“Helps support fat metabolism.”

Daily dose	3-4 g a day
Support	Health Canada lists it; no other listed source covers it.
Dose details	Adults 18 and older. Health Canada: 3-4 g a day; not more than 2 g per dose.
Form	L-carnitine or L-carnitine tartrate, counted as L-carnitine
Source	Health Canada monograph: Carnitine, L-

How strong the evidence is

Strong evidence: At least two listed sources support it independently at a comparable dose and form, and none disagrees.
Moderate evidence: One listed source supports it as an evidence-based use at that dose, and no listed source disagrees.
Limited evidence: The only support is traditional use, the sources disagree, or the source itself calls the evidence weak.

Wordings to avoid

What to leave out.

Claims Facts

Ingredient: L-carnitine

Wording to avoid	Reason
“Treats heart disease or angina”Names diseases.	Disease
“Treats male infertility”Names a medical condition.	Disease

Disease: names or implies a disease. Drug: names a drug or presents the product as one. Treatment: promises to treat, cure or prevent a condition.

Sources

Where this comes from.

Health Canada monograph: Carnitine, L-

All ingredient guides

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