Last fall, the The Dr. Oz Show touted a “revolutionary” weight-loss supplementderived from an Indonesian plant call garcinia cambogia. And although the medical science community is still uncertain about the “breakthrough” diet claims, the over-the-counter supplement’s popularity has since exploded. But a new report shows that the majority of garcinia cambogia pills sold online or in stores contain only a fraction of the key plant compound listed on their labels.
ConsumerLab.com—an independent company that tests the quality and safety of health products—examined 11 of the most popular garcinia cambogia supplements, including several whose packaging untruthfully claimed endorsements from the The Dr. Oz Show. Six of those supplements contained far less hydroxycitric acid (HCA)—the plant’s alleged weight-loss component—than was listed on the bottle. In fact, one garcinia cambogia supplement contained just 16% of its advertised HCA. “Most [garcinia] products on the market don’t actually deliver what’s listed on their labels,” says Tod Cooperman, MD, president of ConsumerLab.com (see their full study here).
Several teams of researchers have tried to identify whether the HCA in garcinia cambogia can actually help people lose weight. One 12-week study from Purdue University found overweight women who swallowed 1,200 mg of HCA daily lost about 55% more weight—8.2 pounds compared to 5.3 pounds—than women who did not take the garcinia cambogia supplement. But several other research efforts have failed to turn up similar benefits.
While the jury’s still out on whether garcinia cambogia-derived HCA can really help you lose weight, there are garcinia cambogia supplement options that will at least give you what you pay for. Puritan’s Pride ($22, puritan.com) and the Vitamin Shoppe ($14, vitaminshoppe.com) offer the least-expensive options that passed ConsumerLab.com’s tests. (Or go the natural route with these 25 best weight loss tips of all time.)
Kim Kardashian and Melissa McCarthy are known as celebrity weight loss winners. Kardashian and McCarthy shed a combined 145 pounds on ketogenic diets and maintained their weight loss success, as the Inquisitr reported. But the two apparently have something in common beyond those keto diets.
To boost her metabolism, Melissa used a diet supplement. McCarthy consumed garcinia cambogia with each meal, according to Foods For Better Health. Melissa used the supplement with each meal on her high fat, low carb ketogenic diet.
Kim Kardashian Hypes Diet Shakes For Weight Loss
This week, Kardashian revealed that she uses a product containing the same diet supplement. Turning to Instagram, Kim shared that she has faced challenges staying on her diet and exercising during the holiday season, reported Allure.
“These meal replacement shakes are so good and it’s helping me get my tummy back to flat in the new year.”
Nutritionist Keri Gans talked with the magazine about whether paying $71.20 for the shake’s four-week program is worth it. Dieters on the program are instructed to replace one to two meals a day with the Shake It Baby drinks hyped by Kardashian.
What’s in those shakes that make them so expensive? Each product provides 20 grams of plant-based protein, along with an ingredient called Super CitriMax. The company claims that the ingredient is the key to the Shake It Baby program touted by Kim, making the shakes three times “more effective than diet and exercise alone.”
The main ingredient in Super CitriMax is garcinia cambogia, used by McCarthy to help her lose 75 pounds. This fruit contains hydroxycitric acid (HCA).
“HCA fans say the compound boosts fat-burning and reduces appetite.”
As to how effective garcinia cambogia actually is when compared to a placebo, the publication warns that no large-scale trials exist to prove or disprove the benefits for weight loss. However, there has been some research.
Diet Supplement Research On Fat-Burning Benefits
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health is cautious about the claims that the diet supplements boost weight loss.
“There’s no convincing evidence that garcinia cambogia will help you lose weight or control cholesterol,” states the center.
However, a Georgetown University study of 60 people indicated that garcinia cambogia might help with weight loss. Gans contends that the study, along with other research, is still in the preliminary stages.
“Perhaps there is preliminary research that suggests effectiveness, but not conclusive evidence.”
With that warning, Gans also acknowledges that dieters who use products such as the Kardashian-recommended Shake It Baby can lose weight. But the nutritionist believes that weight loss resulting from such programs is more apt to be due to factors other than the garcinia cambogia used by Melissa McCarthy, as well as Kim.
Melissa McCarthy lost 75 pounds using a ketogenic diet and a weight loss supplement.Featured image credit: Chris PizzelloInvision/AP Images
Diet Supplements Won’t Cancel Out Pizza, Fries, And Cheeseburgers
Gans feels that it all comes down to the familiar advice to dieters to eat less, exercise more to lose weight. Although the ingredients listed in Kim’s shake product don’t seem to be harmful, the nutritionist warned dieters that eating all they want and then drinking a shake won’t work for weight loss.
“It’s not like somebody can continue eating a cheeseburger, and fries, and pizza…[then] pop this [diet supplement] and expect to lose weight.”
As to why diet shakes can work for weight loss, Gans points out that the calories typically add up to less than dieters normally eat. One of Kardashian’s meal replacement shakes contains only 130 calories.
Best Diet For Weight Loss
Medscape reported on an analysis of nine clinical trials studying garcinia extract (HCA) for weight loss. It offered some hope, although more research remains to be done to determine if the weight loss lasts and is safe.
“The meta-analysis revealed a small yet statistically significant difference in weight loss in favor of HCA over placebo.”
However, the researchers cautioned that there is not enough research to recommend these products for weight loss at this time. Some dieters have experienced adverse effects.
In terms of which diet is the best for weight loss, a recent study showed that the ketogenic diets used by McCarthy and Kardashian burn fat 10 times faster. Searches for keto weight loss plans quadrupled in the past year, as the Inquisitr reported.
Gans recommends taking a long-term approach to weight loss with the focus on developing healthy eating habits. She advises against spending money on products that promise quick results.
“People should save their money for fruits and vegetables. It really is that simple,” summed up the nutritionist.
As for Kim Kardashian’s meal replacement shake and Melissa McCarthy’s diet supplement, Gans suggests that dieters put the focus on eating unprocessed foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. She urges dieters to consume foods “needed for a healthy body” to feel “great.”
However, experts on the ketogenic diet used by Kim and Melissa recommend a different approach. As the Inquisitr reported, following Kardashian’s and McCarthy’s keto weight loss plan requires boosting fat intake, cutting carbohydrates and eating a moderate amount of protein. The body then goes into a state of metabolic ketosis that boosts fat-burning. Beyonce used this diet to lose 30 pounds in three weeks.
Dr Mehmet Oz is under fire once again for promoting a weight loss supplement on his television show that ‘all credible scientific evidence’ proves doesn’t work, a new class action lawsuit claims.
The supplement in question contains Garcinia Cambogia, a tropical fruit that has been claimed to aid weight loss by burning fat quicker and curbing appetite.
Dr Oz first promoted supplements containing Garcinia Cambogia in a 2013 show in which it was called a ‘revolutionary fat buster’ and the ‘most exciting breakthrough in natural weight loss today’.
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Dr Mehmet Oz (pictured here during a 2014 congressional hearing) is under fire once again for promoting weight loss supplement Garcinia Cambogia, which a new class action lawsuit claims ‘all credible scientific evidence’ proves doesn’t work
Dr Oz first promoted supplements containing Garcinia Cambogia in a 2013 show in which it was called a ‘revolutionary fat buster’ and the ‘most exciting breakthrough in natural weight loss today’ (file photo)
Garcinia Cambogia was touted as a pill that could help you shed pounds with ‘no exercise, no diet and no effort’, and Oz brought on a woman who said it helped her lose 10lb in four months.
Oz did not advertise a specific supplement brand on the episode, but the suit claims that his promotion caused sales of Garcinia Cambogia to skyrocket, according to TMZ.
The lawsuit has specifically singled out supplement seller Labrada, as well as Dr. Oz and Harpo Productions, and is seeking refunds for consumers as well as damages.
Labrada advertises Garcinia Cambogia as a ‘fat loss aid’, explaining that the Hydroxycitric Acid isolated from the fruit helps control cravings and prevents body fat from being made.
Although the site does not specifically advertise Dr Oz’s endorsement, a number of the reviews mention that they decided to try the product after it was mentioned on his show.
A representative for The Dr Oz Show has since said the lawsuit is an attack on free speech.
‘As we have always explained to our viewers, The Dr Oz Show does not sell these products nor does he have any financial ties to these companies,’ they told TMZ.
This isn’t the first time Garcinia Cambogia has landed Dr Oz in hot water.
Garcinia Cambogia is a tropical fruit that has been claimed to aid weight loss by burning fat quicker and curbing appetite thanks to the Hydroxycitric Acid that is isolated from the fruit (pictured)
Although Dr Oz has never specifically advertised a specific supplement brand, his image is often used to help sales and the lawsuit claims sales of supplements containing Garcinia Cambogia skyrocketed after his show
In 2014 Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon whose television career first began on The Oprah Winfrey Show, appeared before a congressional hearing for praising Garcinia Cambogia, green coffee extract and raspberry ketone as weight-loss aids.
Democratic Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, the chairman of the Senate’s consumer protection panel, scolded Oz for promoting magic pills.
‘I get that you do a lot of good on your show,’ she said during the hearing. ‘But I don’t get why you need to say this stuff because you know it’s not true. When you have this amazing megaphone, why would you cheapen your show?’
‘The scientific community is almost monolithic against you in terms of the efficacy of the three products you called miracles,’ she continued.
Multiple studies have concluded that Garcinia Cambioga did not noticeably help people lose weight any more than a placebo pill.
Oz agreed that his language about the supplements had been ‘flowery’ but said he believes the products can be short-term crutches and that he even gives them to his family.
Last year a group of ten doctors sent a letter to Columbia University urging that Oz lose his faculty institution at the prestigious Ivy League university, citing his promotion of ‘miracle’ weight-loss aids on his show
‘I recognize they don’t have the scientific muster to present as fact but nevertheless I would give my audience the advice I give my family all the time,’ he said.
Oz reiterated that he never endorsed specific supplements and said he would publish a list of specific products he believed would help Americans lose weight.
Last year a group of ten doctors sent a letter to Columbia University urging that Oz lose his faculty institution at the prestigious Ivy League university, citing his promotion of ‘miracle’ weight-loss aids.
‘Dr. Oz has repeatedly shown disdain for science and for evidence-based medicine,’ the letter read.
It added that Oz had ‘misled and endangered’ the public by ‘promoting quack treatments and cures in the interest of personal financial gain’.
The university responded that it upheld Oz’s right to ‘freedom of expression’ and that he would not be removed from the faculty.
