WEIGHT loss jabs are big business, but what if we told you there were people slimming down just taking a supplement instead?
Despite seeming like the magic fix, fat jabs can have nasty side effects, fail to work for everyone, and there’s the risk of piling the lost weight back on after stopping.
Could you really lose weight just by adding a supplement into your diet? That’s what these companies claim[/caption]
Jules Brown, 59, who once struggled to get into a car or tie her shoelaces due to her weight, lost 15st with the help of a blackcurrant extract supplement[/caption]
They’re also costly, with Mounjaro increasing in price dramatically this week.
The good news is, there is an alternative – several, actually. And here we ask the experts for the supplements which really work, without costing a fortune.
For her part, 55 year old journalist Lisa Byrne says she lost 6-7lbs in 2-3 weeks on ‘magic tablet’ Lyma, without changing anything else.
She tells Sun Health: “Once I started taking Lyma, I did start losing weight without even realising I was losing weight.”
And married mum-of-one Jules Brown, 59, says she is now a healthy 11st 3lb and wears size 10 jeans after using New Zealand blackcurrant extract, CurraNZ.
She claims to have dropped a staggering 15st 7lb by overhauling her lifestyle over five years – an average of 3st per year – with the help of “little miracle capsules”.
Here, Lauren’s Lauren Johnson-Reynolds, a registered nutritional therapist also known as LONDON WELLNESS COACH, gives her verdict on some of the key products on the market right now which claim to bust fat…
1. Lyma
£199 for 30 days of capsules (£6.60 per day)
Lyma is pricey, at £6 a day, and contains 11 ingredients that may help with various aspects of health, from sleep to immune health[/caption]
AT £6-per-day this supplement certainly isn’t a bargain, but it packs in 11 ingredients targeting all areas of health, from sleep and stress to skin and immune health.
It’s not formulated for weight loss specifically, but contains some ingredients that can offer the body a little leg-up to make lifestyle changes easier.
Lauren says: “It contains turmeric which has anti-inflammatory properties and may reduce the appearance of bloat around the middle.
“Lyma also contains ashwagandha, an adaptogen that helps the body manage stress.
“We know that raised stress hormones such as cortisol can have an impact on sleep, blood sugar balance, appetite and even how the body stores fat so this could perhaps support weight loss.”
Lisa, who lost half a stone just by adding Lyma to her diet, says: “I wasn’t happy with my weight. I had a big round middle. That area of fat is what doctors are hugely worried about in terms of health.
“Maybe I was being healthier because I had this magic tablet. Maybe it changed my outlook a bit.
“I’d take four a day, two in the morning and two in the evening and after the evening ones I’d always have a really good herbal tea rather than a cup of tea and a sandwich. It just made me more aware of what I was doing to myself.”
Lisa decided to take Lyma after stopping breast cancer treatment that she believes had a knock-on effect on her weight.
Lyma was giving me more energy, which was helping me burn off calories, but the energy actually made me want to be doing things.
Lisa Byrne
She says: “After suffering from aggressive breast cancer in my early forties, I was immediately put on Tamoxifen, a hormone-blocking therapy designed to prevent cancer from returning by stopping oestrogen from fuelling the growth of any remaining cancer cells.
“I was flung into an early menopause. And I definitely started putting weight on.
“I remember the oncologist saying to me, ‘Normal menopause is like a drip drip effect, whereas if you go on Tamoxifen, it’s like a waterfall of hormones rushing out of your body’.”
Lisa Byrne, 55, a journalist from York says she lost 6-7lbs in a fortnight with Lyma, without changing anything else[/caption]
Lisa was on Tamoxifen for 10 years until coming off in 2024.
“Towards the end of taking Tamoxifen, I started taking Lyma and it absolutely helped,” she says.
“Lyma was giving me more energy, which was helping me burn off calories, but the energy actually made me want to be doing things.
“I wanted to get out and about. I also sleep really well for eight hours now, and my sleep before was just horrendous.
“Lots of people have said that I look like I’m glowing a lot more, and I’m sure that’s a lot to do with how it’s making me feel internally.”
2. Anti-Spike Formula (Glucose Goddess)
£49.14 for 30 servings (1.60 per day)
Jessie Inchauspé is the face behind the Glucose Goddess brand[/caption]
KEEPING your blood sugar levels stable is one way to help with managing your weight.
Lauren says: “Some supplements, especially those focused on supporting blood sugar levels, could definitely support weight loss.”
When blood sugar is kept steady, it can reduce cravings, prevent energy crashes and make it easier to maintain a calorie deficit, which is the best way to lose weight.
In fact, research in StatPearls, an online medical reference book, has shown that improved blood sugar control is linked to reduced body weight and waist circumference, even without drastic calorie restriction.
These capsules, when taken just before your highest-carb meal of the day (think pasta, rice, potatoes or bread), reduce your meal’s glucose spike by up to 40 per cent, according to the creator Jessie Inchauspé, a French biochemist and founder of the popular Glucose Goddess movement.
“White mulberry leaf found in this product is thought to reduce the speed at which carbohydrates (AKA sugars) are absorbed into the blood stream,” says Lauren.
“This helps to minimise blood sugar spikes and keep blood sugar levels stable, lessening the chance of symptoms like carbohydrate and sugar cravings and extreme hunger, which are all associated with imbalanced blood sugar levels.”
Lauren adds: “It also contains cinnamon bark which, in the long term, can support blood sugar control and lower levels of the hormone insulin.
“Excess insulin signals to the body to store more fat so this is beneficial for weight loss.”
According to the product’s website, the Anti-Spike Formula also increases levels of GLP-1, which reduces your appetite and slows how quickly your stomach empties, by up to 22 per cent.
Lauren says: “According to the website, the research is still only on the individual ingredients and not on the product as a whole, which is a tad misleading.
“That being said, the studies done on the ingredients are double-blind clinical trials which are the gold standard in research and the product has nearly 4.5k reviews.
“It’s not unusual for companies to make claims about the efficacy of a supplement based on the therapeutic effect of the individual ingredients and in this case, I feel the ingredients and the reviews speak for themselves.”
3. CurraNz New Zealand Blackcurrant Extract
£21.75 for a pack of 30 capsules (80p per day)
AT a bargain price of just £1.45 per day (two capsules daily), CurraNZ, made using New Zealand blackcurrants, could help with weight loss.
Earlier this year, The Sun exclusively shared research of these berries which revealed their fat-burning potential.
A study, carried out at the University of Worcester, looked at the blackcurrant extract from New Zealand and its effects on exercise and recovery in a small group of volunteers.
Half of the 22 people in the study took two capsules of blackcurrant extract (600mg) a day over a week and half took a dummy (placebo) pill.
Researchers found that taking the extract for a week boosted a person’s fat-burning potential during exercise, according to findings published in the journal International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism.
In fact, the berry supplement was found to accelerate fat burning in 90 per cent of the group compared to their baseline level.
CurraNZ has been so helpful for many reasons. One of those is muscle soreness after exercise and I have no issues after my gruelling workouts.
Jules
Dr Matthew Cook, a senior lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science and lead author of the study, explained that New Zealand blackcurrants are particularly rich in anthocyanin, the pigment which gives this berry its dark purple colour.
“These compounds confer health benefits through their anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and blood flow-promoting effects, which alter fat metabolism and cardiovascular function,” he says.
But, supplementation needs to be paired with exercise to see the benefits of increased fat oxidation.
Lauren adds: “Polyphenols can also support the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut which can help to regulate appetite and satiety.”
Jules believes CurraNZ turbocharged her weight loss. Before, she says pain after exercise that lasted for days put her off trying to get fit.
The pharmacy support worker, from Milton Keynes, says: “CurraNZ has been so helpful for many reasons. One of those is muscle soreness after exercise and I have no issues after my gruelling workouts.
“Before, I couldn’t climb stairs without being out of breath. Getting out of my chair, tying my shoelaces and getting into the car were so difficult previously.
“Now I’m running and lifting weights – they really are little miracle capsules.”
4. Artah Metabolic Fix
£32 for 30 days (£1.06 per day)
THIS supplement has a long list of weight-loss-friendly ingredients you may have heard of before; berberine, alpha-lipoic acid, inositol, chromium, green tea extract and cinnamon.
This combo, Artah says, can help you banish cravings and stay energised.
And Lauren agrees, saying: “This is what I would consider to be truly supportive of weight loss as it contains a number of blood sugar regulating ingredients which have a huge impact on.
“Berberine is well researched and shown to decrease insulin resistance and slow down the breakdown of carbohydrates in the gut, leading to more stable blood sugar levels.”
Berberine is often described as ‘nature’s Ozempic’ – and was what Arsenal Fan TV host and founder Robbie Lyle credited for his incredible body transformation.
Lauren continues: “L-carnitine is another ingredient known to help the body burn fat and it has been effective in studies at aiding weight loss and increasing muscle mass.
“Chromium is another ingredient known to help support blood sugar balance.”
In a study led by Artah, 87 per cent of the 112 participants said they noticed an improvement in appetite regulation after just one week of taking the capsules and 94 per cent noticed a reduction in sugar cravings.
Research in the journal Clinical Nutrition also found that 12 weeks of treatment with high-dose green tea extract resulted in significant weight loss and reduced waist circumference.
5. Feel Pro Metabolic
£64.94 for 30 sachets (£2.16 per day)
A PROMISE that you’ll be naturally snacking less in just 90 days, is pretty appealing – and that’s exactly what Feel claim they can do.
These sachets naturally stimulate your body’s own GLP-1 production to regulate your appetite, ‘without injections or extreme dieting’, the company claims.
The prebiotics in the gel help to fire up the gut in the first month of taking, assisting with regular bowel movements and reducing bloating.
At six months, vitamin B6 will keep energy levels up and black tea might help “enhance fat oxidation which overtime can result in noticeable fat loss”, the website says.
Lauren’s verdict? She says: “If it does what it says on the tin, Feel’s Pro Metabolic could help to control appetite over time.
“There seems to be a combination of ingredients that may support gut health by providing fibre and some beneficial bacteria.
“They (Feel) claim that it will naturally boost GLP-1 secretion which is beneficial for appetite control but I personally wouldn’t recommend this to a client for the sole purpose of weight loss.
“There are weight loss supplements with a combination of other blood sugar balancing and weight loss enhancing ingredients that I feel would be more beneficial than those in Feel.”
6. Elcella
£199 for 30 days worth of capsules (£6.30 per day)
WEIGHT control without side effects is apparently what Elcella offers.
This science-backed supplement contains three key ingredients – coconut oil, MCT Oil and flaxseed oil.
According to the Elcella site, taking eight of these capsules each day, leads to a seven per cent average weight loss in 12 weeks.
But Lauren says it may be too good to be true.
Lauren says: “Elcella contains linseed oil which is high in omega-3 and therefore may help to regulate hunger hormones.
“It also contains MCT oil which studies suggest could reduce hunger – but I would be sceptical about how effective this would be.
“Elcella claims to deliver the gut-supporting ingredients directly to the part of the gut that regulates hunger hormones and seems to have scientific research behind it.
“Any supplement supportive of the gut will make weight loss easier but I would be realistic about results as a consumer.”
Lauren says that while Elcella might be supportive of weight loss, it needs to be used alongside diet, exercise and lifestyle changes.
How to blast belly fat WITHOUT going to the gym or dieting
Chew your food
This mindfulness trick is used to focus your brain on the food you are eating – how it tastes and feels – rather than scoffing it in a hurry. If the brain does not register that you have eaten, you’ll soon crave more food.
Avocado a day
Eating avocado every day can fight visceral fat in women, which collects around the organs in the stomach and can lead to diabetes, heart attack, and some cancers, according to a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign study of 105 people.
Avoid fizzy drinks
Losing belly “fat” may just be a case of preventing bloating, which can be onset by fizzy soft drinks. Instead, keep hydrated with water.
Reduce alcohol
Alcohol does no favours at all for our health or figures. It is ’empty calories’, meaning it contributes to your calorie intake without giving any nutritional benefit.
Hangovers can also lead you to eat more fatty foods, while putting you off exercising.
Sleep more
Various studies have shown that if you’re not sleeping well, it can cause weight gain.
People are more likely to crave junk food when they are sleep deprived because, not only are they in need of an energy boost, but their appetite hormones are all over the place.
Reduce stress
Stress causes an imbalance of hormones, particularly cortisol. This hormone has been linked with obesity and excess belly fat.
Find ways to reduce your stress to avoid the so-called ‘stress belly’.