Disclaimer: None of the information in this article constitutes medical advice. All statements are merely the opinion of the writer(s). We recommend that patients follow their doctor’s guidance in regard to weight loss.
The VibroSculpt is a device sold by a company called B2C Response that's used to burn fat through vibration applied to the skin. The device rotates at a speed of 2,600 revolutions per minute (RPM), and the brand claims this can provide benefits ranging from reduced waist circumference to flatter abs to minimized cellulite.
But is VibroSculpt proven in clinical studies to work? Is the underlying technology clinically proven to cause fat loss? Is it better or worse than similar treatments like CoolSculpting? And why do we take issues with some claims on the brand's website?
In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we explain whether or not VibroSculpt is proven to work, and document whether or not the underlying technology is proven to work.
We'll also share our concerns about some of the health claims on the VibroSculpt website, and compare VibroSculpt to other popular fat loss therapies like CoolSculpting to pick our winners (and losers).
Key takeaways:
- Unproven health claims on brand's website
- CoolSculpting has better research backing in our opinion
- We do not currently recommend VibroSculpt
Questionable Claims on Brand's Website
As shown below, there are a variety of questionable health and functional claims on VibroSculpt's website at the time of updating this article:
Among other things, the brand claims that their device "Tightens Figure" and "Increases Circulation," while failing to provide proof from a clinical trial for any of these claims at the time of updating this article.
We find this lack of medical citations to be a red flag about the company, and we recommend that consumers avoid products making bold health or aesthetic claims without making any attempt to prove those claims.
Most medical device brands for skincare that we've reviewed, like the SolaWave, at least link to a few clinical trials on their website suggesting how or why the product should work.
Do Massage Guns Burn Fat?
In the previous section we shared our concern about the lack of clinical trials on VibroSculpt, but it’s worthwhile to investigate whether there are any existing studies on the underlying technology.
VibroSculpt is described as a “micro-vibration” and “micro-compression” device on the product’s homepage. We searched PubMed, which is one of the largest databases of medical trials, for both terms and found no relevant results.
A 2009 clinical trial suggests that vibration plate machines found in gyms may be effective for fat loss.
A 2022 clinical trial found that a vibration device improved circulation in women with cellulite.
However, these studies used different vibration devices than VibroSculpt, so we can't infer that the VibroSculpt is likely to support these same outcomes.
We consider the underlying technology potentially effective for supporting fat loss and aesthetic improvements, but until VibroSculpt funds a clinical trial showing their device to be effective, we consider it to be a waste of money.
Research-Backed Fat Loss Therapies
For consumers intent on using a physical device to support fat loss, there are two medical treatments we've reviewed on Illuminate Health with significant clinical backing.
We recently reviewed a treatment called CoolSculpting which has impressive research backing it.
This treatment destroys fat cells by exposing them to extreme cold temperatures via a handheld device, which is administered by a healthcare professional (CoolSculpting can't be used at home like VibroSculpt).
We don’t recommend CoolSculpting (yet) because we’d like to see more long-term safety data, but there have been several clinical trials and research reviews published in peer-reviewed medical journals showing the efficacy of this treatment for weight loss and fat loss.
No major side effects were noted in the trials.
Liposuction treatments like Sonobello are also proven to be effective for cosmetic fat loss, but these treatments come with more health risks than CoolSculpting or VibroSculpt.
The above-linked review we published highlights some of the clinical trials on liposuction for fat removal and the potential side effects.
We want to be clear that we don’t recommend either CoolSculpting or Sonobello, and we only recommend lifestyle changes for weight loss.
We actually consider VibroSculpt to be superior to these two options from a safety perspective given that its mechanism of action is topical rather than systemic; we just don't consider it likely to be effective so we wanted to highlight these two options from an efficacy perspective.
Our Clean Weight Loss Picks
Ceylon cinnamon was described as "an effective anti-obesity agent" in a 2022 meta-analysis. The study authors concluded that effects were greater at doses at or over 3 grams daily.
Illuminate Labs Ceylon Cinnamon Extract is our standardized Ceylon cinnamon supplement which is third-party tested to ensure purity and potency.
Dietary fiber was shown in a medical review published in The Journal of Nutrition to cause 16 pounds of weight loss in 6 months when combined with moderate caloric restriction (750 calories per day below baseline).
MBG Organic Fiber Potency+ is our top fiber pick because it's certified organic, provides 7 g of fiber per serving and costs under $1.85 per serving at the time of updating this article.
Both of the products mentioned in this section are free of ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.
VibroSculpt Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Non-invasive
- May support aesthetic improvements
- Unlikely to cause side effects
- Safer than surgical weight loss treatments
- Relatively affordable
Cons:
- Doesn't appear to be clinically studied
- Brand website has questionable health claims
- Brand website has questionable aesthetic claims
- Questionable mechanism of action
- Brand website doesn't sell VibroSculpt in isolation
