{"id":448523,"date":"2026-02-02T04:46:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T04:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/448523\/"},"modified":"2026-02-02T04:46:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T04:46:15","slug":"popular-weight-loss-supplement-no-good-at-busting-belly-fat-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/448523\/","title":{"rendered":"Popular weight loss supplement no good at busting belly fat: study"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a tough pill to swallow.<\/p>\n

There are countless supplements and pantry staples out there that swear to help people slim down, from apple cider vinegar shots<\/a> to \u201cnature\u2019s Ozempic\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But one popular pill may not live up to its claims of shedding pounds and busting belly fat, according to a new study.<\/p>\n

\"WomanWhile many claim a popular herbal supplement can cause weight loss, new research says it doesn\u2019t bust belly fat. ryanking999 \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n

Those online have long touted the benefits of berberine<\/a>, a plant-derived compound that may have anti-inflammatory properties, inhibit the growth of certain cancer cells and lower cholesterol and blood pressure.<\/p>\n

And several TikTokkers have even shared their success stories of dropping weight, claiming the herbal hack mimics blockbuster GLP-1 drugs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

However, a clinical trial<\/a> provides new evidence that six months of berberine supplementation had no effect on visceral fat, or fat stored inside the abdomen around organs.<\/p>\n

Published last month, the study looked at the effects of berberine for reducing visceral fat<\/a> \u2014 too much of which is dangerous and linked to type 2 diabetes and other metabolic conditions \u2014 and liver fat in those with obesity.<\/p>\n

\"YellowA recent study found that berberine supplements had no effect on visceral or liver fat compared to a placebo. Anna Hoychuk \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n

With half the group of more than 330 participants taking the supplement and the other half taking a placebo, the researchers saw no difference in the amount of fat.<\/p>\n

There was also no difference in liver fat<\/a>, which is often associated with excess weight or metabolic conditions such as diabetes.<\/p>\n

Many believe the popular plant supplement is the closest thing to GLP-1 weight loss drugs in helping curb appetite while managing blood sugar levels, at a much lower price point.<\/p>\n

Previous research<\/a> even reported that a berberine supplement reduced body weight, BMI, fasting blood glucose and LDL (or \u201cbad\u201d) cholesterol.<\/p>\n

But these findings may be too good to be true, as medical experts have stated that the herbal medicine alone won\u2019t cause drastic weight loss.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is diet culture,\u201d registered dietitian Jenna Werner previously told The Post<\/a>. \u201cIt is an herb \u2014\u00a0herbs can counteract with other medications, supplements and cause harm in quite a few populations.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also added that those advocating for the supplement are providing \u201cvery little context as to what else they are doing\u201d to lose weight and promoting it to desperate people.<\/p>\n

While berberine is considered safe, the FDA doesn\u2019t regulate supplements<\/a> the same way as approved drugs, like Ozempic or Wegovy.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of this is connected directly to weight loss with no true regard for what it means to someone\u2019s health,\u201d Werner said. \u201cWeight loss and health outcomes [and] improvements are not the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s a tough pill to swallow. There are countless supplements and pantry staples out there that swear to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":448524,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[49,48,84,395,2095,14592,7340,1059,953],"class_list":["post-448523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nutrition","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health","tag-nutrition","tag-ozempic","tag-study-says","tag-supplements","tag-tiktok","tag-weight-loss"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=448523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/448524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=448523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=448523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=448523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}