The most common reason brands don’t run clinical trials is not cost — it’s the assumption that they take too long. “Three years” is a number that kills a lot of conversations before they start.

It doesn’t have to be three years. With the right trial design and the right partner, most nutrition and supplement brands can get from first call to published data in 6 to 9 months. Here’s exactly how that timeline breaks down, and what can speed it up or slow it down.

The full timeline: 6 to 9 months for most trials

The following assumes a commercially managed trial with a CRO like StudySetGo using independent ethics approval and remote-first data collection. University-run trials typically take 18–36 months; the reasons why are covered in our CRO vs. university guide.

Weeks 1–2: Discovery and scoping

The process begins with a discovery call where we learn about your product, the claim you want to make, your target market, and your timeline requirements. From this, we design three study options (Bronze / Silver / Gold) covering different outcome combinations and investment levels. You receive a written scope document and quote within 48 hours of the call.

Weeks 2–4: Protocol design and contracting

Once you’ve selected a tier and signed the contract, the scientific team begins protocol design. This document defines everything: the research question, participant inclusion and exclusion criteria, randomisation and blinding procedures, outcome measures, data collection schedule, and statistical analysis plan. A well-designed protocol is the foundation of a credible, publishable study.

Weeks 4–7: Ethics submission and approval

The protocol is submitted to an independent Research Ethics Committee (REC) for review. StudySetGo submits to independent boards rather than university ethics committees, which reduces approval time from 3–6 months (university) to typically 3–5 weeks. Ethics approval is a legal requirement before any participant recruitment can begin.

“We had ethics approved and recruitment underway before a university would have responded to our first email.”

Founder, supplement brand, UK. StudySetGo client.

Weeks 7–10: Participant recruitment

Once ethics is approved, recruitment begins. StudySetGo operates a pre-screened UK-wide participant network, which means we are not starting from zero when your approval comes through. Recruitment timeline depends on your inclusion criteria: broad criteria (e.g. healthy adults aged 25–55) recruit faster than narrow criteria (e.g. post-menopausal women with borderline hypertension).

For most nutrition and supplement studies, we aim to reach target enrolment within 2–4 weeks of ethics approval.

Weeks 10–22: Data collection

The data collection period runs for the duration of your intervention, most commonly 8 to 12 weeks for nutrition studies, though some studies run longer (e.g. 16–24 weeks for studies measuring body composition or longer-term metabolic changes). During this phase, participants complete their intervention and outcome measures are collected at defined time points.

Remote-first data collection (at-home blood collection, validated wearables, digital questionnaires) means participants across the UK can contribute data simultaneously rather than visiting a single site. This removes the single-site bottleneck that extends many traditional trials.

Weeks 22–27: Analysis and manuscript preparation

Once data collection is complete, the statistician runs the pre-specified analysis and the scientific writing team prepares the manuscript. This phase includes data cleaning, statistical modelling, interpretation of results, and preparation of a submission-ready manuscript for a peer-reviewed journal. We typically complete this within 4–6 weeks of data collection ending.

Weeks 27 onwards: Publication

Peer review and publication timelines vary by journal. Many journals complete peer review within 6–12 weeks. You can begin using the evidence in marketing from the point of manuscript acceptance — you do not need to wait for the physical journal issue to go live. We help identify the right target journal for your study and support the submission process as standard.

What causes delays, and how to avoid them

1. Recruitment shortfall

Slow recruitment is the single biggest cause of trial delays, accounting for the majority of timelines that run over by more than a few weeks. The most common causes: overly narrow inclusion criteria, underestimating how long screening takes, and starting recruitment before you have a verified pipeline. StudySetGo addresses this by pre-screening participants before ethics approval, so recruitment can begin immediately rather than building a pipeline from scratch.

2. Ethics approval through a university committee

University ethics committees are not designed to operate at commercial pace. Most operate on monthly or bi-monthly review cycles, meaning a submission arriving the week after a meeting waits until the next scheduled cycle. This alone accounts for months of delay in university-partnered trials. Independent ethics boards review on a rolling basis.

3. Protocol amendments

Changing the protocol after ethics approval requires a re-submission, which can add weeks. Good protocol design upfront — which includes piloting where possible and anticipating likely challenges — prevents the need for amendments.

4. Participant dropout

Participants who drop out partway through a study reduce your sample size and can compromise statistical power. Remote-first trials consistently show lower dropout rates than clinic-based trials, because participants don’t have to travel or take time off work to participate. Incentive design also matters; we include this in protocol planning.

University trials: why they take 18–36 months

For comparison, a university-partnered trial typically involves: a commercial contracts team processing your agreement (6–18 months is common), ethics submission to a university committee (2–6 months), recruitment through limited university-affiliated channels, and data collection paced around academic terms and researcher availability. The total is rarely under 18 months and often exceeds 36 for complex studies.

The academic system was not designed for commercial pace. It was designed for long-term scientific programmes where an 18-month delay to a paper is acceptable. For a brand with a product launch to hit, it usually is not.

Frequently asked questions

With a managed CRO like StudySetGo, most trials deliver first results within 6–9 months of kick-off. Protocol and ethics takes 3–7 weeks. Data collection runs 8–16 weeks. Analysis and manuscript preparation takes 4–6 weeks. University-run trials typically take 18–36 months.

Participant recruitment shortfall is the most common cause. Overly narrow inclusion criteria, underestimated screening time, and starting recruitment without a pre-screened pipeline all contribute. Ethics committee delays — particularly through university committees — are the second most common cause.

Independent Research Ethics Committees (RECs) typically approve within 3–5 weeks of submission. University ethics committees operate on monthly or bi-monthly review cycles, making the effective wait time 2–6 months. StudySetGo uses independent boards as standard.

Once a manuscript is accepted by a peer-reviewed journal, you can begin using the evidence in marketing immediately. Most advertising platforms and retailer buyers accept an accepted manuscript as evidence, without waiting for the physical journal publication.