Weight loss pills can help you to drop weight in different ways: they can work with the body to increase your resting metabolic rate, suppress appetite so you are less likely to overindulge, and some can even block or limit the food absorption that you are eating.
When diet and exercise are seeming to not be getting you to your dream body, a weight loss pill can make up the difference.
It’s important to do your research when it comes to any supplement and in this case weight loss pills. They have been considered safe but there have been issues with some products and so it’s crucial to purchase from a trusted source.
There are a few important things to know about weight loss pills…
- Every weight loss pill should be made up of scientifically proven ingredients and should work to tackle one of three weight-loss pathways: motivation, appetite suppression, or energy expenditure for it to be work.
- Weight loss pills should only have a small to moderate quantity of stimulants in order to avoid complications and side effects.
- Weight loss pills should be used in conjunction with a healthy diet and exercise regimen; not to be used instead of.
Below, you will find food4me.org’s top weight loss pill recommendations, ranked and reviewed by our expert health panel.
Our Winners
Best overall weight loss pill: LeanBean
Best weight loss pill for men: PhenGold
Best weight loss pill for women: LeanBean
Best natural weight loss pill: LeanBean
Rankings
1. LeanBean
LeanBean’s top-rated weight loss supplement uses a blend of all-natural ingredients to give you amazing fat-burning results. This product is simple but packs a punch to get you to your dream body.
By reducing your appetite with glucomannan, kickstarting your metabolism with a blend of natural thermogenic ingredients, and boosting your energy and focus levels with a unique vitamin complex, you get the best bottled up in tiny capsules.
For these reasons, LeanBean takes food4me.org’s #1 spot.
2. PhenGold
PhenGold keeps your metabolism high and your hunger low to truly enhance your body’s ability to burn fat.
This capsule is full of clinically proven fat-burning ingredients to help you lose weight and shred fat safely and effectively.
3. Legion Phoenix Stim-free Fat Burner
Legion Athletics has created Phoenix to work on fat loss in three different ways: increasing your natural metabolic rate, suppressing hunger and craving, and enhancing fat burning.
Made with 100% all-natural ingredients, you won’t have to worry you aren’t getting the best from this supplement. It also has the benefit of being totally caffeine-free so you won’t feel any jitters after taking this supplement.
4. Burn-XT Thermogenic Fat Burner
Burn XT by Jacked Factory is made to burn fat by increasing your metabolism and suppress appetite.
It uses key ingredients like green tea and even their specialized Capsimax and BioPerine to maximize fat loss. Everything is scientifically formulated and made locally in America so you know you’re getting a good product.
5. Envy Nutrition Nighttime Fat Burner
This weight loss supplement by Envy Nutrition is unique in that it works to give you fat-burning effects while you rest. They use vitamin D3 in addition to their proprietary night-time fat burn blend to work with your body.
This product contains some sleep-supporting products like melatonin and lemon balm to help support a restful sleep so you don’t miss out on a good night’s rest.
6. alli Weight Loss Diet Pills
Alli gives you the benefit of a doctor-approved product without the need for a prescription. This over-the-counter supplement works to block the absorption of fat in the gut.
Several studies have proven that it works to support moderate but consistent weight loss. The only downside is that this product tends to work better if you have a high-fat diet and it may give you some gastrointestinal side effects.
7. Nobi Nutrition Green Tea Fat Burner
Along with a proprietary blend of fat-burning ingredients, this green tea extract fat burner by Nobi Nutrition supports weight loss and boosts energy.
This product also contains polyphenols which can help with abdominal bloating.
8. Old School Labs Vintage Burn
Old School Vintage burn is a great fat burner with 9 fat-burning ingredients to promote optimal weight loss.
These 100% vegetarian, gluten-free and non-GMO capsules are great to support a healthy metabolism, mental focus in and out of the gym, and preserve muscle.
9. NutriFlair Apple Cider Vinegar Capsules
Apple cider vinegar (ACV) has been proven over and over to be beneficial to health in more than one way. NutriFlair’s ACV supplement with the mother only supports this overall health venture further.
This is a very potent product that supports weight management by allowing the natural cleansing effects of ACV to take place to get rid of impurities in the body.
10. Animal Cuts Fat Burner Supplement
Animal Cuts gives you a pack of 9 pills to provide the ultimate fat-burning concoction.
All the ingredients together provide you with increased energy, increased metabolism, decreased appetite, natural diuretic, and a thyroid complex to fully support your weight loss goals.
Best Weight Loss Pill for Women
1. LeanBean
LeanBean is specifically tailored towards women and their needs and metabolism to help support safe weight loss.
It has the number one spot for women due to its clean formula that actually works without the use of harmful stimulants.
Best Weight Loss Pill for Men
1. PhenGold
PhenGold has created a well-balanced fat burning capsule that has gotten them the spot as the top weight loss pill for men.
The ingredients help to support fat burning, healthy metabolic function and it even has some nootropics to help boost brain power and focus.
Best Natural Weight Loss Pill
1. LeanBean
LeanBean takes another top spot for the best overall natural weight loss pill. It contains 100% all-natural ingredients with no synthetic stimulants or fillers.
They’ve chosen a blend to help support general health with additional vitamins and minerals alongside the fat burning ingredients to provide the ultimate end product.
Who Should Take Weight Loss Pills?
Weight loss pills should only be used by individuals looking to lose weight. A doctor can recommend weight loss pills in particular situations, such as if someone has a BMI (body mass index) of over 30 or if someone’s BMI is above 27 and they have other medical issues related to their obesity.
Don’t be fooled, these products are called ‘weight loss pills’ but that doesn’t mean that you can or should omit regular exercise and a balanced healthy diet. These supplements will give you the best results when you pair them with a diet and exercise regime. They can help you lose weight by getting your body over sticking points like a sluggish thyroid or genetic factors.
Although there are a ton of them out there and have been deemed safe, it’s always important to do research before purchasing to ensure you are getting a clean product.
Pregnant women, nursing women, diabetics, and children should stay away from these products. If you are someone who is sensitive to stimulants, be mindful of the products you use as many of them contain a fair amount of caffeine or other stimulants.
Methodology
To create this ranking, we made sure that each of these products worked towards shedding weight by abiding by the primary pathways of weight loss: energy expenditure, appetite suppressant, and motivation. Some generic products did not make the cut as they didn’t contain as many fat burning ingredients with other benefits as the products on this list. The supplements on this list will help you get over those weight loss plateaus with ease and help you in reaching your weight loss goal.
Calorie torching ingredients: The majority of a weight loss attempt is allocated to burning calories. Although exercise and a caloric deficit will cause this to happen, a weight loss pill can increase your metabolism and cause you to burn more calories at rest. This is why many of these products contain stimulants such as caffeine.
Other natural ingredients can also provide you with the same boost such as yohimbine. These products, like caffeine, work to increase adrenaline in mobility and help to mobilize the fat to be burned. Products like Phoenix, which combined these ingredients, can be found at the top of our list.
Appetite suppressants: Another big factor in losing weight is actually consuming fewer calories (energy). This is where appetite suppressants fit in. They can help you feel more full for longer, curbing the sensation that you’re hungry and need to eat.
Seratonin is your body’s natural appetite suppressant. This powerful hormone curbs cravings and crushes the feeling of hunger. Stimulating the production of this hormone is beneficial in a weight loss pill as it works with your body’s natural hormones to lose weight.
Seratonin production is supported through 5-HTP, which is an ingredient found in some weight loss supplements. This is one of the reasons why LeanBean ranked so highly as it contains the 5-HTP to support this process.
Mood enhancers: Embarking on a weight loss journey can feel like a never-ending uphill battle. Some days you feel great, others you want to stay in bed and just eat pizza and cookies. It can feel like a very restricting time in many ways and ultimately cause a decrease in your mood.
Weight loss pills that contained ingredients to help overcome this issue were ranked highly to help alleviate some of these feelings. It can provide you with some support that can improve your outlook and keep you focused for the long haul.
Clean formula: Whenever purchasing a supplement, one of your top priorities is to ensure that the product is made of clean ingredients and was manufactured in facilities that hold these standards as well. There have been issues in the past with fat-burning pills that contained dangerous ingredients like ephedrine, which belongs to the same family as crystal meth and can cause very serious side effects.
All products in this list have scientifically research ingredients and have been created in GMP and FDA-approved facilities. Extra points were given to companies that included 3rd party lab testing on their products.
Benefits
Weight loss pills can help to inhibit fat-producing enzymes. Only discovered recently, Garcinia Cambogia is a perfect example of an ingredient to inhibit fat producing enzymes. It works by inhibiting this enzyme and can have an effect on increasing serotonin in the body.
This can provide you with two benefits; one, increased serotonin means fewer food cravings and results in eating fewer calories. Two, because the fat-producing enzyme is being inhibited, this prevents you from gaining fat as much as before.
Studies have shown that Garcinia Cambogia has had a positive weight loss effect on both humans and rats. Both test subjects showed a reduction in weight gain when taking the supplement (1).
Weight loss pills may contribute to an increased metabolic rate and improve energy. Caffeine, which is found in most weight loss pills, works to stave off fatigue while also working to boost metabolism. This can have a dual effect of shredding through fat and giving you the extra energy to get through your workout.
Research has proven that in both lean and obese individuals, a single dose of caffeine can increase metabolic rate for two hours or more. It can also improve the effects dieting has on the body in post-obese participants (2).
Another study found that participants who had high caffeine intake showed an increase in weight loss. The women showed a positive effect on their weight through fat oxidation and thermogenesis even without a change in their lifestyles (3). Although the results showed improvements without exercise or diet changes, the researchers still emphasized the importance of both of those factors in weight loss.
They simply concluded that caffeine is a great supplement for enhancing weight loss when paired with a good exercise and diet regime.
Weight loss pills can help reduce systemic inflammation. Our world and our food are full of chemicals and agents that can inflammation throughout the body. In addition to food and other chemicals, increased fat also adds to inflammation in the body.
By taking weight loss pills, geared to burning excess fat, you are providing a helping hand to your body to reduce overall inflammation. This will help the body start to come back to homeostasis.
Weight loss pills can block the absorption of fat. Orlistat is a very well-known and used ingredient to promote weight loss rather than focusing on burning fat. It does this by changing hormone levels and suppressing appetite. It can also decrease the amount of fat you absorb, essentially helping you poop it out.
Another possible benefit of Orlistat is its effect on high blood pressure. Although decreasing blood pressure is not necessarily directly correlated with weight loss, many overweight or obese individuals also have high blood pressure. The more compounding positive health effects we can pile on, the better.
Weight loss pills help enhance ketone levels. Ketones are naturally made in the body and happen if the body enters ketosis. This occurs when you deplete yourself of carbohydrates and your body is forced into using fat for fuel instead. This is the entire idea behind the keto diet, and taking weight loss pills can aid that process.
Once your body enters the state of ketosis, you have full reign to burn fat. Along with exercise and keeping your nutrition up to par, weight loss supplements will help you continue to shred while following keto.
Weight loss pills improve satiety. Glucomannan is a popular ingredient in weight loss supplements as it’s a natural fiber to help you feel full. It absorbs water and becomes a gel-like substance. Think about cooking rice or making a loaf of bread; both of these start small and expand. Due to these properties, glucomannan can make you feel more full than you actually are and in turn allow you to not overeat.
Some studies have shown that when supplementing with glucomannan and incorporating exercise and a healthy diet, you can lose up to 8 to 10 pounds in one month. This can be true for many fiber supplements however, glucomannan is uniquely beneficial for weight loss (4).
In addition to weight loss, glucomannan has been proven to help positive bacteria growth occur in the gut. A healthy gut biome can help curb cravings for foods you should be staying away from (5).
Weight loss pills can increase metabolism and decrease hunger. Another ingredient very commonly found in weight loss supplements is something called Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA). It has been known to boost metabolism and banish hunger along with aiding the body in breaking down fat. It works to support three different methods to lose weight and is one of the most versatile weight loss ingredients currently on the market.
A 2009 study looking at CLA found that it was responsible for anti-obesity effects in both animal and human test subjects. The study also mentioned that the degree to which the CLA functioned varied depending on different factors such as age, dosage, and species. Simply put, CLA may work better for some and not others (6).
Weight loss pills that are stimulant-free can improve sleep. Many weight loss pills contain stimulants like caffeine because they’re some of the best ingredients to have when trying to stimulate the metabolism. Weight loss pills in general have ingredients to help support sleep, one being ingredients that make you feel full.
The feeling of fullness from the supplement helps with sleep because it signals the body to enter relaxation and switch to the parasympathetic system also known as the rest and digest system.
Another major thief of sleep is sleep apnea. If you suffer from sleep apnea, this causes you to essentially stop breathing and suffocate for short periods of time over and over in your sleep. It drastically decreases the amount of oxygen coming into your body and inhibits you from getting proper rest.
A huge contributor to sleep apnea is being overweight, and research shows that sleep apnea can be reduced or even eliminated with a small amount of weight loss (7).
Weight loss pills can decrease the replication rate of fat cells. Meratrim, a newly discovered ingredient in weight loss pills, may work to decrease the amount that fat cells are replication and spread around in your body.
The exact effects aren’t particularly known, but it’s thought that Meratrim can make it easier for the body to burn fat stores and limit the body’s ability to create new fat cells as efficiently as before.
In 2012, a study performed on obese participants tested the efficacy of Meratrim by giving the control group a placebo pill and the test group Meratrim. Over the course of 8 weeks, the Meratrim group saw significantly better weight loss and improvements in other health factors like decreased cholesterol and blood sugar (8).
Weight loss pills improve cardiovascular health. When you are overweight, you are not just carrying a few extra lbs. Your body is being forced into a corner and is needed to work overtime all the time to perform the same bodily functions. Naturally, your heart will have to work twice as hard (or more) to circulate blood, oxygen and rid toxins of the body. Tasks like walking, going up the stairs, and even sitting put increased stress on your heart to keep you going.
Increased cholesterol, triglycerides, cardiovascular strain, and abnormal blood pressure are all things that will accompany an excess amount of weight. Luckily, our bodies are extremely efficient, and even with just a 5-10% decrease in weight, you will see a decrease in these negative consequences, and have better overall health (9).
Weight loss pills improve levels of serotonin. Serotonin is the feel-good hormone responsible for the stabilization of mood, the feeling of happiness, and well-being. Certain ingredients in weight loss pills can stimulate an area of the hypothalamus, in the brain, that’s responsible for reducing the feelings of hunger.
By stimulating these neurochemicals in the brain to release serotonin, weight loss pills can help suppress the feelings of cravings and hunger you may be feeling. This can benefit you long-term as it often helps people eat less and have fewer cravings, ultimately leading to greater and sustained weight loss.
One study looking at the prescription medication Contrave found that the participants taking the medication saw 4 times more weight loss than with just exercise or diet (10).
Weight loss pills improve bowel movements and digestive health. Many weight loss pills contain a sort of fiber to ensure you are regular and also to suppress appetite by making you feel more full.
Fiber, amongst other benefits, also acts as a prebiotic helping to populate the gut with healthy bacteria (11). This helps your gut to work more efficiently at eliminating toxins and absorbing more vitamins and minerals from the food you are eating.
Prebiotics has been shown to help alleviate symptoms of chronic bowel disorders such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This is because the fiber helps the gut stabilize and causes a reduction of inflammation that may be in the bowels which in turn helps alleviate digestive issues and discomfort (12).
Weight loss pills speed up the rate at which you lose weight. We are all born with baseline metabolic function, genetic predisposition to fat storage or weight gain, and many more genetic factors we simply do not have control over.
Sometimes you can work so hard to try and lose weight, however, if you have a sluggish metabolism or thyroid, this task can seem near impossible. Weight loss pills may be able to help you get over your genetic hurdle stopping you from reaching your goal.
The ingredients in weight loss pills can work with your body to increase baseline levels of metabolism and fat stores to burn more, faster. When paired with a healthy diet and exercise, you can expedite your weight loss and shed fat at a much faster rate than otherwise, you would not be able to do. These supplements are not magic pills and they do require you to move and eat well for their full effects to be realized.
Recap
Weight loss pills can help you stick to your diet more efficiently and lose weight to see better results over time.
Different weight loss pills can focus on different things. The main factors in most of them are to increase satiety, increase energy expenditure, decrease overeating, improve sleep and recovery to ultimately see better weight loss results.
Although weight loss pills are not mandatory for losing weight, they can give you the extra edge you’ve been missing to finally reach the physique goals you’ve been striving towards for years.
For food4me.org’s #1 weight loss pill recommendation, click here.