SkinnyFit is a health brand that makes a variety of products, including collagen supplements, detox teas and superfood blends.
In this article we’ll review the ingredients in of some of the most popular SkinnyFit products based on published medical research to determine whether we consider them likely to be effective, and to highlight any questionable additive ingredients.
We'll review SkinnyFit Super Youth (their collagen supplement), SkinnyFit Detox Tea (their detox supplement) and SkinnyFit Skinny Greens (their green powder supplement).
SkinnyFit Super Youth Review
Super Youth is SkinnyFit’s collagen supplement.
A medical review published in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology found that collagen peptides improved skin elasticity and hydration, and reduced signs of visible skin aging, with a minimally effective dose of 2.5 grams (g) per day.
Two scoops of Super Youth provides 15.6 g of collagen which is an effective dose, and it may be useful to take around 60% of this serving size to save money, because 10 g collagen appears to be the maximally-effective dose based on the above-linked medical review.
Super Youth also contains hyaluronic acid, which is effective for reducing wrinkles when consumed orally, but we believe it's underdosed in this product. Super Youth only provides 50 milligrams (mg) of hyaluronic acid per serving, while most of the medical research we've reviewed on this compound (like this clinical trial) used a dose greater than 100 mg.
Super Youth comes in a variety of flavors, and an unflavored version. We always recommend that consumers select the unflavored version of a supplement when one is available, because natural flavors is a broad descriptor which fails to detail the specific chemical compounds used as flavoring agents, and some of these compounds may be harmful to human health. A medical review detailed potential toxicity concerns of some natural flavors and their metabolites.
This supplement also contains citric acid which is a flavor enhancer and preservative. It's naturally found in citrus fruits, but well over 90% of the citric acid used in manufacturing is sourced from a fungus called Aspergilus niger according to the below-linked review.
As detailed in a medical review from 2018, a small subset of patients appear to experience whole-body inflammation in response to citric acid consumption, which is why we typically recommend avoiding this compound.
Overall we do consider this supplement to be effective for anti-aging because it has an effective dose of collagen, but we don't recommend it due to the citric acid and the relatively high price ($0.23 per gram collagen).
Our collagen powder recommendation is Bulletproof Collagen Powder because its only ingredient is collagen peptides sourced from grass-fed animals. There are no questionable additives, and the price per gram collagen is only $0.08.
Interested consumers can check out Bulletproof Collagen Powder at this link.
One of the most popular reviews of SkinnyFit Super Youth from a real user is published by a YouTube channel called "Just Too Cole." It's achieved over 50,000 views at the time of updating this article and appears unsponsored:
SkinnyFit Detox Tea Review
SkinnyFit sells a line of detox teas. The above ingredient list comes from the "Peach" flavor.
We have not come across any medical evidence that herbal teas provide detoxification benefits, or that consumers need detoxification support from teas (the liver and kidneys are very efficient at detoxifying the body), which is why we recommend avoiding all teas marketed for detox benefits.
A recent medical case report documented that a patient suffered acute liver failure from a different herbal detoxification tea product called "Yogi's Detox Tea."
We don't consider the herbal ingredients in SkinnyFit's tea to be dangerous, but this tea blend also contains natural flavors and citric acid, so we cannot recommend it.
The tea brand we recommend is called Pique, and the brand sells green tea, black tea and a variety of herbal teas such as turmeric, chaga and reishi. The Pique teas linked contain no questionable additive ingredients, and most cost well under $2 per serving, while SkinnyFit Detox Tea costs $2.86 per serving.
A popular YouTube video published by a channel called "Dr. Jen Caudle" features a doctor sharing her opinion on whether detox teas are legitimate or a waste of money:
SkinnyFit Skinny Greens Review
SkinnyFit sells a greens powder called Skinny Greens that contains a large number of fruit and vegetable ingredients such as organic wheat grass powder and spinach leaf powder.
A clinical trial from 2009 found that a powdered fruit and vegetable mix reduced blood pressure in patients with high blood pressure, and an extensive medical review published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that fruit and vegetable supplements improved nutritional status, reduced inflammation and improved immune function.
Green powders can be an effective way to supplement the diet, or a replacement for fresh fruits and vegetables for individuals who are averse to eating fruits and vegetables.
The fruit and vegetable blend (called the "Superfood Blend") in Skinny Greens only has a 3,405 mg total dose, and there are a number of other blends that we consider unnecessary.
We don't understand why a blend of digestive enzymes is included in a green powder product, when we haven't seen any medical evidence that individuals without digestive issues benefit from supplemental digestive enzymes.
We also don't understand the “Waist-Slimming Blend” which totals only 320 mg. We cannot identify any ingredients in this blend that are effective for weight loss at the dose in this blend, nor does SkinnyFit cite any on their product page.
Skinny Greens also has natural flavors and citric acid, which we recommend avoiding as stated in previous sections.
Overall we do not recommend this green powder due to the additive ingredients, and due to the strange choice to include digestive enzymes and low doses of weight loss ingredients that we consider ineffective. In our opinion a green powder should primarily provide powdered fruits and vegetables, but less than 50% of this formulation is is the Superfood Blend.
The green powder product we would recommend instead of Skinny Greens is the Green Superfood Powder sold by Naked Nutrition. This green powder contains no questionable additive ingredients like flavoring agents. The majority of the ingredients are fruits and vegetables like organic kale and organic spirulina. The cost per serving of SkinnyFit's green powder is $3, while the cost per serving of Naked Nutrition's green powder is only $1.28.
Interested consumers can check out Green Superfood Powder at this link.
A YouTube channel called "Ravenlaced" features a Skinny Greens review that appears to be unsponsored:
SkinnyFit Real Customer Reviews
SkinnyFit is sold on Amazon as well as their official website, and we consider Amazon to be a more objective source of customer reviews. The most highly-reviewed SkinnyFit supplement on Amazon is Super Youth Peach Mango Flavor, which has over 3,400 reviews at the time of updating this article, and an average review rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars.
Super Youth only receives a "D" rating from Fakespot, which is a software tool that detects potentially fraudulent Amazon reviews. Fakespot typically issues an "Adjusted Rating," but in this case the tool states that there are "Insufficient reliable reviews" to do so.
The top positive review of Super Youth from a verified purchaser comes from a user named "Megan Hanson" who claims that the product had benefits for skin and was easy to use:
"This collagen fully dissolves! I don't always get a chance to make a smoothy and the other products I've tried are not drinkable unless it's hidden in a smoothy for me. This fully dissolves to a jello water consistency and tastes amazing! A week in and already can feel a difference in my skin. Worth it!"
The top negative review from a verified purchaser is written by a user named "I am Love" who claims that the product caused side effects:
"I started Skinnyfit Wednesday morning, the taste was great and it was so refreshing, BUT, I started itching Wednesday night. By Thursday night (last night), I was itching badly and starting getting welts, even on my scalp."
SkinnyFit Pros and Cons
Here's our take on the pros and cons of SkinnyFit as a brand overall.
Pros:
- Some effective formulations
- No harmful active ingredients
- Collagen supplement provides effective collagen dose
Cons:
- Questionable additive ingredients in all formulations
- Uncited health claims for detox tea
- Expensive
- Questionable Amazon reviews
