Green Coffee Extract…the New Weight Loss Wonder?

I was recently asked by a coworker for my thoughts on Green Coffee Extract as a weight loss supplement.  I had never heard of it so my curiosity was peaked, mainly because I find the entire “latest and greatest” supplement talks to be amusing more often than they are effective.  So where did the buzz about Green Coffee Extract begin?

In 2012, an episode of the Dr. Oz Show introduced a new substance to the world, billed as the latest and greatest weapon in the war of weight loss, Green Coffee Extract.  With great enthusiasm Dr. Oz proclaimed this to be the “Holy Grail of Weight Loss.”  He announced it with the same gusto that comes with any new weight loss supplement: no exercise, no diet, and no effort.  If you want to see the video segments I am referring to click the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FpS8FnoZwQ .  For those of you not interested in taking the time to watch the video I will summarize the key highlights.

The video opens with Dr. Oz talking about new magic weight loss cure and the “staggering, new study” showing it can help a person lose up to seventeen pounds in twenty-two weeks without any changes in diet or exercise.  The video includes testimonial from Dr. Lindsey Duncan a naturopathic doctor and certified nutritionist to verify the claims.  According to Dr. Duncan, the participants did nothing to encourage weight loss other than take Green Coffee Extract pills; no dietary changes, no exercise.  The study participants consumed 2400 calories per day while burning only 400 calories per day.  By doing this they managed to lose 10% of total body weight and 16% of the total fat on the body in a total of twelve weeks of supplementation.  The study keys in on a chemical compound called cholorogenic acid found in green coffee beans.  Dr. Oz’s guest claims that cholorogenic acid is a “triple threat” that causes weight loss through three different actions: it burns glucose and stored body fat, slows the release of sugar into the blood stream, preventing body fat from forming.  Finally, it is natural and “safe.”  Now that the science is explained, enter two Dr. Oz fans that used this supplement for a period of five days.  The first woman lost two pounds while the second lost a total of six pounds.  This all sounds fantastic doesn’t it?

But this begs the question, “what is green coffee and where does it come from?”  But more importantly does it actually work?  In addition to this, I ask, “If it’s so effective, why is only one study referenced by Dr. Oz?”  Prior to the question from a coworker, I had not heard of Green Coffee Extract, I began my research with an information source accessible to everyone; www.WebMD.com .   Before going any further, let me clarify that while Dr. Oz’s show references one study, the website for WebMD lists sixty-six studies as being referenced in providing the information that I am about to discuss.  Keep that in mind.

Green Coffee Extract comes from regular coffee beans.  The importance difference is not the source, but the process.  Most people who are familiar with coffee know of it in its roasted form.  According to the claims on the Dr. Oz show this is an important distinction because the levels of the cholorogenic acid are reduced in the process of roasting the coffee beans.  Green Coffee beans have simply not been roasted.

According to WebMD, the most obvious benefit of green coffee extract has nothing to do with weight loss.  Instead, there may be a link between green coffee and lower blood pressure after a minimum of 28 days use at a dose of 93-185mg per day.  The little evidence of weight loss that exists suggests that a minimum dose of 80-200mg per day is necessary.  However, this research is not substantive and warrants a classification of “possibly ineffective.”  WebMD further states that research regarding green coffee extract as a weight loss supplement is “preliminary and poor quality.”  The few studies that showed a positive relationship between green coffee extract and weight loss required daily doses between 700-1050mg per day.  To put that in terms that may be a little easier to understand, that is like drinking seven to ten cups of coffee per day.  That is roughly 560-800mg of caffeine per day.

Time for a face-off, DR. Oz versus WebMD, and I am acting as the official; there are two contenders in the ring and both are regarded as medical experts.  So how does the average person filter through all of the talk and come to an educated, well-informed opinion?  If you have read my post about supplements you may remember a brief discuss on evaluating the quality of research.  We will begin there.

·         RESEARCH: Dr. Oz, and his guest, Dr. Lindsey reference one research study while WebMD references sixty-six studies

·         LINGO: Dr. Oz uses words like “staggering, new study” and “Holy Grail of Weight Loss.”  A lot of flash and pomp designed to draw your attention.  WebMD says “preliminary and poor quality,” boring and scientific sounding.  Boring and scientific is almost always more accurate.

Now, I am going to add some of my own thoughts based upon my knowledge and experience, regarding the study referenced during the Dr. Oz show by his guest, Dr. Lindsey.

·         Claim: Study participants ate 2400 calories per day, without diet and exercise burned 400 calories per day and lost an average of seventeen pounds in twenty-two weeks

o   My thoughts: 2400 calories per day is what I eat to maintain my body weight and I exercise an hour per day 4-5 days per week.  So people ate as much as I do, did not exercise or change their diet and lost weight?  So Green Coffee Extract was responsible for these people burning up to 400 calories per day?

o   This only happens one way: These study participants were so overweight that cutting caloric intake to 2400 calories caused the weight lost. 

o   Losing 17lbs in Twenty-Two weeks equals 3/4lbs a pound per week which is a weekly calorie deficit of 2695 calories or 385 calories per day.  Translation: if 2400 calorie intake resulted in weight loss than these study participants were so overweight that they needed an average of 2785 calories per day to maintain body weight.  That is not necessary unless you weigh about 350lbs.

·         Claim: Participants lost 10% on their body weight and 16% of total fat

o   My thoughts: If the average person lost 10% of their total body weight and the average person lost 17lbs then the average person, at the beginning of the study weighed 170lbs.  According to my math the average participant in the study should have started at around 350lbs not 170lbs.

o   A 170lb person needs about 1900 calories per day to maintain body weight if they do not exercise.  Such a person is not going to lose 3/4lb per week eating 2400 calories per day while not exercising

o   Let’s clarify this, after doing the math, the 170lb study participant ate an average 500 calories per day more than needed (2400 vs. 1900) and still lost 3/4lb per week.  If this is true it means that Green Coffee Extract is responsible for creating a calorie deficit of about 885 calories per day.  Do you want to burn that many calories through exercise?  Go run nine miles.  Exercise science tells us that it takes most people 100 calories of energy to go one mile.  So Green Coffee Extract burned the equivalent calories of a nine mile run, does that not seem a little far-fetched?

·         Claim: Testimonials

o   One lady lost two pounds in five days, no exercise, and no dietary changes.  The human body can fluctuate in weight, five to six pounds over the course of a single day.  It comes down to a simple combination of hydration and food intake along with time in the bathroom.  Eat and drink a lot without a bowel movement and the body weight could go up as much as five pounds.  In reality, two pounds can be lost in one trip to the toilet.

o   The second lady claims to have lost six pounds in six days, no exercise, no diet, and no scientific explanation unless severe dehydration techniques, similar to what a boxer or wrestler may use to make weight before a fight, were employed.  I am skeptical and here is why: one pound of a fat has roughly 3500 calories in it.  So if this lady lost six pounds in six days then Green Coffee Extract was responsible for her burning 21000 calories in six days. I don’t think so.

In my opinion, the hype of Green Coffee Extract does not live up to the claims.  But I have another concern; since green coffee extract, like coffee from the pot, contains caffeine and requires such high dosage levels this leads into a concern about the dangers of consuming excessive amounts of caffeine.  Some of the side effects from excessive caffeine include increased heart rate, breathing rate, nervousness, restlessness, nausea, IBS and vomiting.  While most people who regularly consume can develop a higher tolerance to caffeine, it is not at all uncommon for symptoms to begin after consuming 100 mg of caffeine, the amount of a normal cup of coffee.  For this reason I would not recommend green coffee extract or excessive caffeine to the following populations who may be more sensitive; pregnant or breast-feeding women, people with anxiety disorders, bleeding disorders, diabetes, glaucoma, high blood pressure, or osteoporosis.

My verdict: do not waste your time or money on this.