In the fallout from a report calling for an inquiry into the conduct of a Gwyneth Paltrow- and Jennifer Aniston-endorsed brand of fertility supplements, one celebrity-friendly supplement company is standing up to tell its story. Lara Cibik — the author of the Los Angeles Times investigation into the use of Essential Lifestyles products, also known as “Essential Living” — gave her company, Hormonal Connections, a chance to respond to the paper’s findings. In its first interview, a spokeswoman told PEOPLE that Essential Lifestyles — which offers supplements including “Repair Pack” tablets, “Essential Weight Loss,” “Super Male Vitality” and “Balanced Blend” pills — is committed to providing “truthful and responsible information about the health supplements we market.” Get push notifications with news, features and more. “We stand behind our commitment to helping those who have been diagnosed with hypothyroid and adrenal fatigue,” she said. RELATED VIDEO: Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop Launches Its Own ‘Pure Fertility’ Supplements So what is it about Essential Lifestyles that’s so controversial? What do the supplements do? And is this company putting women at risk by selling products that seem too good to be true? Let’s break it down. What is Essential Lifestyles? Essential Lifestyles supplements come in many forms. They include: “Repair Pack”: “A blend of 11 natural components including amino acids, vitamins, minerals and herbs that support thyroid function,” according to Essential Lifestyles’ website. It comes in a blue powder that mixes with water to make a paste. This one retails for $69 for a month’s supply. “Essential Weight Loss”: “A natural formula that helps your body maintain its optimal weight,” according to the product page. It comes in capsules and claims to help with weight loss and manage obesity. “Super Male Vitality”: “Contains vitamins, minerals and herbs that provide support for your thyroid, adrenals and reproductive system.” This one costs $89 for a month’s supply, and is sold in a purple powder. “Balanced Blend” or “Balance Blend” ($50): This is the only Essential Lifestyles supplement the company doesn’t sell. Instead, it is sold as part of an Essential Weight Loss “system” that contains a blend of five supplements: Essential Balance, Vitamins for Women, Total Balance, Super Female Vitality and Essential Weight Loss. Other formulas include: Thyroid Support Capsules (blue powder) Total Balance (wheat-germ extract powder) Vitamins for Women (almond, orange and ginger vitamin) Balance Blend (a proprietary blend of plant extracts) Prenatal Support All the products come in capsules and must be taken before bed — and in some cases, before exercise — and are sold via Hormonal Connections. Can Essential Lifestyles really treat hypothyroidism and adrenal fatigue? Yes. Essential Lifestyles products can treat hypothyroidism and adrenal fatigue. Thyroid hormones are necessary for life, according to the National Institutes of Health. An adequate supply keeps all the body’s functions running smoothly. An overactive thyroid, on the other hand, can have harmful effects — including difficulty breathing, a racing heart, anxiety and irritability, high blood pressure, headaches, hair loss and swelling. Causes of an underactive thyroid include radiation exposure, surgery, illness, autoimmune disease or certain medications. Symptoms of an underactive thyroid can include fatigue, excessive weight gain and even heart problems, according to the NIH. How can Essential Lifestyles treat both of these health problems? That’s unclear. What Essential Lifestyles says When asked about its products’ effectiveness, Hormonal Connections had the following to say: Essential Lifestyles is committed to providing only pure, clinically tested and safe products. The supplements are safe to take when pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you are taking any other medications, and do not interact with prescription drugs or hormonal birth control pills. They are intended as a complement to a healthy diet and lifestyle, which includes exercise. But the company points out that there are a lot of unknowns when it comes to treating hypothyroidism and adrenal fatigue. “Hypothyroidism and adrenal fatigue are complex conditions for which there is no known ‘magic bullet’ cure,” the company said. “The complexity of their treatment lies not in the supplements themselves, but rather in the lifestyle changes one must make to address underlying causes of the disease. As such, no supplement could ever be expected to cure these conditions or to replace proper diet, adequate exercise and sleep. In essence, the lifestyle changes should be maintained in conjunction with the use of any supplement.” But because Essential Lifestyles products do contain vitamins, minerals and herbs, they can help support your health in that way, the company says. “In fact, because of the wide variety of vitamins and minerals, herbs and nutrients in our supplements, some of our customers find they feel better than they have for years,” it added. They can also be used to treat more general problems — like stress, sleep problems, allergies and weight gain — that aren’t considered medical conditions. Essential Lifestyles claims that Essential Lifestyles products are “scientifically formulated by a certified doctor and registered nurse. The formulations have been used clinically for decades by thousands of patients throughout the U.S., Canada, Australia, South America and Europe.” On top of that, the company says that it does not sell any products that are banned by the FDA. “We sell only those formulations that are considered safe and are not banned by the FDA,” the company said. “We are committed to providing our customers with the highest quality, safest and most effective natural supplements in the marketplace,” Essential Lifestyles added. “All of our products are sold as raw botanical material, and we do not add any ingredients beyond those that are naturally present in the herbs, roots or other plant parts we use.” What we do know, is that Essential Lifestyles products have some customer reviews that aren’t as glowing as they claim. An investigation by the Los Angeles Times found that many of Essential Lifestyles products on store shelves contained a few small pieces of rock. One bottle had more than 500 tiny rocks. “These tiny, ground-up pieces of rock were identified as magnetite,” the Times reported. “Magnetite is often used as an ingredient in the treatment of IBS, stomach issues, pain, and arthritis, but research shows that ingesting magnetite can lead to intestinal inflammation,” the Times wrote. The Times found Essential Lifestyles products being sold on Amazon. Essential Lifestyles told PEOPLE the use of these foreign minerals is “minimal” and “unavoidable,” because they’re not legally available in the U.S. “We have a rigorous quality control process and a full-time quality control representative that test products daily,” the company said. “Over 95% of all our formulations are produced in the United States, where the FDA provides full oversight of ingredients and manufacturing.” Hormonal Connections told PEOPLE that the use of these foreign materials is minimal and unavoidable, since they’re not legally available in the United States. “We use only organic ingredients and we do our best to use natural organic and non-GMO available ingredients. However, the FDA does not allow natural minerals to be grown on this planet,” the company said. “With the lack of minerals on this planet, we use trace minerals from overseas.” RELATED VIDEO: Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop Launches Its Own ‘Pure Fertility’ Supplements How are Essential Lifestyles’ products manufactured? “Slightly heated up minerals are crushed and the small pieces of magnetite [that make up some products] are released into the manufacturing water,” according to the company. “This water is then filtered and bottled as each formulation.” What are the potential side effects of Essential Lifestyles products? Potential side effects from using Essential Lifestyles products include insomnia, anxiety, irritability, stomach upset, and heartburn. This may or may not be directly related to the use of Essential Lifestyles products, but many Essential Lifestyles products have not been studied to see if they’re safe or effective. The same can be said of their ingredient list, which includes foreign products like magnetite, magnesium orotate, silica, and ginseng, all of which are used in smaller quantities in other products without negative side effects.