ageLOC® R² (R2) (Australia)

ageLOC R² is Nu Skin's day-and-night anti-ageing supplement system — two distinct formulas (R² Day and R² Night) designed around the body's circadian rhythm. R² Day targets cellular energy production for the active hours, while R² Night supports the liver's overnight detoxification and cellular purification. The combined box ships a full 30-day supply of both formulas at AU$155, which works out around AU$21 cheaper than buying R² Day (AU$87.99) and R² Night (AU$88) as standalone units. It's built for adults who want to address ageing at the cellular level rather than rely on a single antioxidant.

What's Included

• ageLOC R² Day — daytime cellular energy capsules. Cordyceps sinensis Cs-4, pomegranate extract, and chokeberry extract for mitochondrial ATP production. 30-day supply.
• ageLOC R² Night — overnight cellular purification capsules. Milk thistle (silymarin), broccoli seed extract (sulforaphane precursor), and curcumin for liver phase II detoxification and Nrf2 antioxidant pathway support. 30-day supply.

How the R² System Works

Most energy-and-detox supplements treat daytime vitality and overnight recovery as one problem and dose everything at breakfast. R² doesn't. The system splits its actives into two formulas because the underlying biology splits that way too — circadian research has consistently shown that mitochondrial ATP demand peaks during waking hours, while liver phase II detoxification enzymes are most active overnight. Dumping silymarin into a morning tablet is wasteful; the liver's detox machinery is largely idle at 8am. R² aligns delivery to the time-of-day when each ingredient does the most work.

Underneath that is Nu Skin's ageLOC platform — gene expression research that identified clusters of genes whose activity shifts with age. R²'s formulas target two of those clusters specifically: the ones that govern cellular energy output (which begins declining from around age 30) and the ones that regulate detoxification enzyme efficiency in the liver. Nu Skin has published gene expression data on R²'s effect on these clusters, though it's worth being honest that gene expression changes don't automatically translate to dramatic clinical outcomes for every individual — they shift the underlying biological substrate, which is what long-term anti-ageing work depends on.

R² has been in Nu Skin's lineup since around 2012, which is unusual for a supplement category where reformulations are constant. The two-phase design has held up because the circadian premise is sound, not because of marketing.

Key Ingredients

Cordyceps sinensis Cs-4 (R² Day) — A standardised cultured strain used in traditional Chinese medicine but now backed by modern research. A 2010 trial in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (Chen S, et al., 2010;16(5):585–590) found Cs-4 supplementation improved exercise performance and oxygen utilisation in older adults over 12 weeks. The mechanism centres on mitochondrial ATP production — Cs-4 is the anchor of the Day formula because energy is what the daytime body actually needs.

Pomegranate Extract (R² Day) — Standardised for punicalagins and ellagic acid. Provides daytime antioxidant cover when oxidative stress from UV, pollution, and metabolic activity is highest. Standardisation matters: not all pomegranate supplements deliver an equivalent polyphenol load, and unstandardised extracts vary significantly batch to batch.

Milk Thistle / Silymarin (R² Night) — One of the most extensively studied botanical hepatoprotectants. A comprehensive review by Abenavoli L, et al. in Phytotherapy Research (2010;24(10):1423–1432) confirmed silymarin's hepatoprotective effects, including support for glutathione production — one of the body's primary detoxification molecules. Sits in the Night formula because the liver does most of its detox work while you sleep.

Broccoli Seed Extract (R² Night) — Rich in sulforaphane, which activates the Nrf2 pathway — essentially the master switch for endogenous antioxidant defence. Nrf2 activation upregulates phase II detoxification enzymes. Pairing this with silymarin gives R² Night a two-pronged approach: silymarin supports liver-specific detox while sulforaphane activates broader cellular defence mechanisms.

How It Compares

Dimension	ageLOC R²	Swisse Anti-Ageing + CoQ10	Blackmores Bio C
Approach	Day + Night dual system targeting circadian-aligned gene expression	Single-product anti-ageing antioxidant blend	High-dose vitamin C antioxidant
Active formulation	Cordyceps Cs-4, pomegranate, milk thistle, broccoli seed extract — split AM/PM	CoQ10 + resveratrol + grape seed	Ascorbic acid + bioflavonoids
Pathways targeted	Mitochondrial ATP (day) + Nrf2 + liver phase II detox (night)	Mitochondrial energy + general antioxidant	Single antioxidant pathway
Circadian-aligned dosing	Yes — split formulas	No — single dose	No — single dose
Ecosystem integration	Designed to stack with Y-Span, LifePak, Meta, TRMe	Standalone	Standalone
Approx. AU price (30-day)	AU$155	~AU$25–40	~AU$15–25

Comparison information based on publicly available product specifications as of April 2026. Competitor pricing approximate.

R² costs more than pharmacy anti-ageing supplements because it's a two-formula system targeting day-versus-night biology with botanical actives that are individually expensive to standardise — Cordyceps Cs-4, broccoli seed extract for sulforaphane, and standardised silymarin all carry ingredient costs an over-the-counter antioxidant blend doesn't. If you want budget basic antioxidant cover, Swisse or Blackmores will do that job. If you want a system that aligns delivery to circadian biology and integrates with the broader ageLOC range, R² is built for that brief.

R² Combined Box vs Buying Day + Night Separately

The R² combined box is AU$155 for a 30-day supply of both formulas. Bought as standalone units, R² Day is AU$87.99 and R² Night is AU$88, totalling AU$175.99 — so the combined box saves around AU$21 per cycle. If you intend to use the full system long-term, the combined box is the obvious purchase. The standalone pages exist for customers who want to restock just one half (you typically run through Day first), or who want to trial one formula before committing to the full system.

Who It's For

✅ Best suited for: Adults over 30 who've noticed energy doesn't sustain through the afternoon the way it used to, who want structured cellular-level support — both daytime vitality and overnight recovery — beyond what a multivitamin or single antioxidant provides.

⚠️ Less suited for: Anyone looking for a stimulant-style energy boost — R² isn't caffeine-based and doesn't work on that timescale. Also not appropriate for under-15s, or anyone pregnant or breastfeeding without medical advice. If your nutritional foundations aren't in place, consider LifePak first and add R² later.

💡 Pairs well with: ageLOC Y-Span for broad-spectrum gene expression coverage, LifePak as the nutritional foundation, or the bundled Y-Span & R² Kit for the most comprehensive ageLOC anti-ageing stack.

How Australians Are Using It

The standard protocol is straightforward: R² Day capsules with breakfast, R² Night capsules with the evening meal or before bed. Each box covers a full 30 days of both formulas. Most users notice sustained-energy changes — fewer afternoon crashes — within the first 2–3 weeks. The cellular purification benefits from the Night formula are subtler and tend to accumulate over 6–8 weeks of consistent use, which is consistent with how botanical hepatoprotectants generally work.

In Australian conditions, the R² system has practical relevance. UV index in Sydney, Brisbane, and Perth regularly hits 11–14 in summer; air conditioning cycling, urban pollution, and longer working hours all stack oxidative load. The Day formula's antioxidant cover and the Night formula's detox pathway activation are aimed squarely at that reality. R² works best as a daily habit rather than something taken intermittently — Nu Skin's gene expression data was generated under sustained-use protocols, not occasional dosing.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is ageLOC R²?
ageLOC R² is Nu Skin's day-and-night anti-ageing supplement system. It ships as two formulas — R² Day for cellular energy production and R² Night for overnight cellular purification — designed around the body's circadian rhythm. The combined box delivers a 30-day supply of both at AU$155.

What's the difference between R² Day and R² Night?
R² Day uses Cordyceps Cs-4, pomegranate, and chokeberry extract to support mitochondrial ATP production during the active hours of the day. R² Night uses milk thistle (silymarin), broccoli seed extract (sulforaphane), and curcumin to support the liver's phase II detoxification and the Nrf2 antioxidant pathway, both of which are most active overnight. They're complementary, not interchangeable.

Can I take just R² Day or just R² Night on its own?
Yes. R² Day and R² Night are sold separately for restocks and standalone trials. Each works independently for the half of the protocol it covers, but you'll only get the full circadian benefit by running both together — which is what the combined box is for.

Is R² the same as Reserve and Renew?
No. The Australian product is ageLOC R² (R-squared), a two-formula day-and-night system. Reserve and Renew were earlier Pharmanex products with different formulations and aren't the same SKU. If you've heard of those names from older Nu Skin material, R² is the current product.

How do I take it?
R² Day capsules with breakfast, R² Night capsules with the evening meal or roughly 30 minutes before bed. Take with food — the formulas contain fat-soluble actives (carotenoids in Day, curcumin in Night) whose absorption improves significantly with a small amount of dietary fat.

Is the combined box cheaper than buying Day and Night separately?
Yes. The combined R² box is AU$155 for a 30-day supply of both formulas. Bought separately, R² Day (AU$87.99) + R² Night (AU$88) totals AU$175.99 — so the combined box saves around AU$21 per cycle.

Can I take R² with LifePak, Y-Span, or Meta?
Yes — R² is designed to stack with the broader ageLOC range. LifePak provides the nutritional foundation, Y-Span covers broad-spectrum gene expression across six pathways, and Meta targets metabolic health. There's no meaningful ingredient overlap that would cause concern when combining these.

How long before I notice a difference?
Most users report sustained-energy changes within 2–3 weeks, though it's not a stimulant so the effect is subtler than caffeine. The cellular purification benefits from R² Night are more gradual — typically becoming apparent over 6–8 weeks of consistent use. Anti-ageing supplementation works on biological timescales, not pharmaceutical ones; consistency matters more than dose.

Are there any side effects?
R² is generally well tolerated. Some people experience mild gastric discomfort if they take Cordyceps on an empty stomach — taking with food resolves this. Silymarin can mildly affect the metabolism of certain medications via cytochrome P450 pathways; if you take prescription medication, particularly anticoagulants or immunosuppressants, consult your healthcare professional before starting R².

Is R² suitable for vegetarians?
The capsule shells are gelatin-based, so R² isn't suitable for strict vegetarians or vegans. It's fine for pescatarians and omnivores. If you need a vegetarian-friendly option, look at the broader LifePak range and check capsule composition.

Works With

ageLOC Y-Span

Y-Span targets Youth Gene Clusters across six broad pathways — cardiovascular, brain, immune, metabolism, cellular defence, and DNA repair. R² is more focused: cellular energy and overnight purification. Stacking the two means you're addressing both the macro ageing landscape (Y-Span) and the cellular energy engine (R²) at once. The bundled Y-Span & R² Kit packages both at AU$335, around AU$9 cheaper than buying separately.

LifePak

LifePak is the comprehensive vitamin/mineral foundation — 58+ nutrients including chelated minerals, nano-encapsulated CoQ10, and a marine omega capsule. Think of LifePak as the nutritional substrate your cells need to function and R² as the targeted performance layer built on top. R² assumes your basic micronutrient intake is in order; LifePak guarantees it.

ageLOC Meta

Meta targets metabolic health and gut metabolome through a different gene expression pathway than R². Where R² handles energy and detox, Meta addresses how efficiently the body processes and utilises nutrients. The pair covers two distinct pillars of cellular ageing without ingredient redundancy.

ageLOC TRMe Kits

If body composition is also on your radar, the TRMe kits combine appetite-management and metabolic-support products with the ageLOC platform. The TRMe & R² 90-Day Kit bundles R² into the long-form TRMe protocol for users running both programmes simultaneously.

Important Information

Always read the label and follow the directions for use. Supplements should not replace a balanced diet. If symptoms persist, consult your healthcare professional. Not suitable for children under 15 years unless advised by a healthcare practitioner. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or taking prescription medication (particularly anticoagulants, immunosuppressants, or medications metabolised through cytochrome P450 pathways), consult your doctor before use. This information is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Individual results may vary.

NuBest Skin is an Independent Nu Skin Brand Affiliate. This website is independently operated and is not produced, endorsed, or approved by Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc.

Sources & References

• Chen S, et al. "Effect of Cs-4 (Cordyceps sinensis) on exercise performance in healthy older subjects." Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 2010;16(5):585–590. PubMed 20804368.
• Abenavoli L, et al. "Milk thistle in liver diseases: past, present, future." Phytotherapy Research. 2010;24(10):1423–1432. PubMed 20564545.
• Therapeutic Goods Administration (Australia) — listed medicine guidelines for complementary medicines, tga.gov.au. Used for compliance framing.
• Nu Skin Enterprises — official ageLOC R² product specification and gene expression research documentation.
• Product information reviewed by the NuBest Skin Editorial Team. Last updated April 2026.