Social Media Promoted “Weight Loss” Products You Should Be Wary Of

It’s almost December, and I swear my jeans fit a little tighter. I regret all of that Halloween candy, that extra helping of mashed potatoes, and that second slice of pumpkin pie. I find myself Googling how to drop twenty-five pounds in a month and how to lose weight while sleeping.

There hasn’t been a holiday where I’ve felt particularly good about my body unless I’ve overcompensated for my increased caloric intake by running that extra mile or cutting down on the subsequent meals. In today’s world, the pressure to be thin is emphasized through popular apps like Instagram that boast celebrities and influencers showing off extremely flat stomachs days after some of the most indulgent holidays. It makes viewers of these posts feel worse, and after a few days of pushing yourself physically too quickly, the idea of instant change with minimal effort becomes enticing. The curiosity of these wonder products marks the beginning of a very dangerous spiral.

These “diet secrets” that seem to be quick fixes to post-Thanksgiving bloating are being pushed onto the millions of social media users instantly. It’s almost impossible not to wonder if these things actually work. That curiosity, paired with the desperation to undo the holiday meals, is enough to impulse-buy all of the products that promise quick metabolisms and slim figures. But is it worth it?

FitTea – “A Healthy Lifestyle Drink”

FitTea is comprised of “…a detoxifying tea blend of certified organic herbs which are formulated to enhance your weight management program as part of a healthy diet and exercise regimen.”  Most of the Kar-Jenner clan, along with celebrities like Ashley Benson, Vanessa Hudgens, and Ed Westwick openly endorse the beverage, attributing it to how they shed unwanted pounds. Buyers are given a pouch of tea to be brewed and taken for as long as an individual wants.  

Time to spill the tea: there is no real supporting evidence to show that the ingredients of FitTea aid in weight loss at all. Garcinia cambogia, a tropical fruit in the tea’s ingredient list that is said to suppress appetite and block the body’s ability to make fat, shows no real promise of doing either of those things when put to the test. Award-winning fitness instructor Cassey Ho, better known as blogilates, warned users of unpleasant and potentially life-threatening side effects (electrolyte imbalance, muscle weakness, and heart problems, to name a few), and how any weight loss that occurs during the period of tea intake probably is unrelated to FitTea’s “magical” properties. It could be coincidental that, in conjunction with exercise and portion control, users burn fat and lose weight. Or it could be the caffeine in the tea’s diuretic effect making you lose pure water weight. In any event, most users who did stop taking the tea after noticing sufficient weight loss gained it back almost instantly.

Be kind to your body and skip this teatox or any of the copycats out there promising instant weight loss. You’re better off drinking a cup of regular green tea in moderation, which has no known downsides, has been known for its anxiolytic properties, and has been linked to a lower risk of developing heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

Keto/Bulletproof Coffee – “Awesome Brew. Awesome You.”

Not a fan of tea? Try a cup of coffee with two heaping tablespoons of your choice of grass-fed butter, or ghee. Also known as Keto Coffee, Bulletproof coffee urges you to “…join the thousands of athletes, high-powered CEOs, busy parents, and people just like you on a quest to get more energy and brain power” by reaping the benefits of “clean energy” without the expectation of a caffeine crash. The starter kit comes with special coffee beans and “brain octane oil” that provides energy to the brain. Users are told to replace breakfast with this beverage. This not-so-average cup of joe lists weightloss by way of ketosis as an added benefit, in addition to killing cravings and improving mental clarity.

As a college student, I have to admit that this did sound oddly appealing, specifically when in the need for a physical and mental boost while crunched for time. Plus, hearing that celebrities like Ed Sheeran, Shailene Woodley, Brandon Routh, David Beckham, and Tim Tebow say that it’s improved their life particularly piqued my interest. But like the FitTea, bulletproof coffee is too good to be true. Replacing an entire nutrient-dense meal with something extremely low in essential nutrients isn’t effective for long-term sustainability. Eating such high levels of saturated fat (from the butter or ghee) has not been scientifically evaluated as being beneficial in any way, nor has consuming this regularly been tested as being safe. In some cases, Bulletproof coffee has been shown to increase cholesterol, cause upset stomachs, and overconsumption can attribute to weight gain.

A high-fat coffee meal replacement is not the best way to lose weight, and you can still end up in ketosis without having to splurge on fancy oils or expensive coffee beans so long as you stick to a diet and exercise regimen. Mental clarity can be improved by training your brain to make small changes in your behavior. If you’re still looking for something relatively easy to make and aren’t in the mood for a lavish breakfast, check out these satisfying and nourishing smoothies.   

310 Nutrition – “A Taste of the Good Life”

310 Nutrition claims their powders and supplements, will help you lose stubborn pounds, maintain a healthier weight, enhance your vitality, and even empower you to feel alive (all very big promises coming from various powders and supplements that are to be added to your beverage of choice). Jersey Shore alums JWOWW and Ronnie Magro, Real Housewives stars Teresa Giudice, Kim Zolciak Biermann, and Porsha Williams, and TV personality Todd Chrisley are just a few of the familiar faces who have been caught posing with various 310 products as of lately.

While I can’t attest for 310 shakes being the cure of your pessimism or make you immortal, they do seem the most harmless in this list. A lot of individuals looking to lower their weight chose to replace a meal with a smoothie or shake — I included a list of smoothies as an alternative to butter coffee for a reason. 310 Nutrition even mentions on their own website how drinking weight loss shakes are not necessarily going to help you lose weight just on their own — refreshing honesty that doesn’t necessarily come across in the sponsored ads on Instagram. So like everything else, the key to this being successful in your weight loss/maintenance journey is for it to be paired with exercise and a healthy diet. While the price of a single tub of powder can be upwards of $50, and while some users have complained about the taste and the texture, the 310 Nutrition powders offer a complete amino acid profile that is not often found in other plant-based meal replacement shakes.

It depends on the buyer. If you have dietary restrictions and want to shake up (pun intended) your eating routine, give it a try. It seems to do a better job at curbing cravings compared to other meal replacements out there, but it’s not enough for you to simply kick back and chug one one of these with no real change in your lifestyle to see results.

Waist Gang Society – “For a Slim and Sexy Waist”

If you follow the Kardashians, Amber Rose, or Snooki on social media, you know they have an obsession with using waist trainers, a practice that involves wearing an extremely snug corset to reshape your body into an exaggerated hourglass figure, something that’s been popular since the Victorian era. The effect is semipermanent, which means even after the goal reduction has been achieved, individuals must continue to wear it. While there are many retailers that sell trainers, Waist Gang Society is one of the most endorsed (and one of the most controversial) companies across social media platforms. Waist Gang Society’s website says that with a healthy diet and regular exercise, the trainers can shrink your waist size radically, strengthen your core, and reduce food volume intake. Sign me up, right?

Wrong. Dr. Daniel Maman, a Harvard-trained cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgeon says that “external compression via a waist trainer has absolutely zero permanent effect on fat distribution, intra-abdominal organ positioning, or body contouring.” He states that the only way to physically remove or redistribute fat instantly is through surgery, liposuction, or fat-freezing techniques. More generally, waist training has no scientific proof of efficacy. Weight loss correlated with the product can be attributed to increased sweating (leading to loss of water weight), declination of hunger due to the trainer’s tightness, and a slimmer appearance due to improved posture brought on by the trainer. While there are no benefits of using the product, waist trainers can be dangerous. If worn long-term and are extremely tight, the unwanted pressure placed on your midsection can decrease blood and oxygen flow to vital organs, cause permanent misplacing of your organs, and cause you to pass out.

I’m not particularly a fan of permanently misshaping and damaging organs integral to my functioning, especially if the results are fleeting. If you’re already exercising and monitoring your diet, purchasing a waist trainer is just a waste of money and not work the risk. If you’re hoping to lose some extra inches off your stomach, check out these effective tips on how to safely do so.

The promotion of “healthy” and easy weight loss tips, while seemingly a good idea, can be extremely misleading if one does not read the fine print. If you feel like you want to lose extra weight you may have picked up, consult a dietitian or a medical professional and do your research before trying out something that sounds too good to be true — it probably is, and there’s a large change it’s either hazardous or a waste of time and money. Above all, remember that what you see on Instagram and other websites is never the full story; fix your lifestyle because you want to, not because you feel like you need to in order to fit society’s standards.

• health
• instagram
• social media
• weight loss