Meticore is a dietary supplement used for weight loss. The supplement's manufacturer suggests that this product increases core body temperature, which in turn increases metabolic rate, which can cause weight loss.
But does Meticore contain ingredients shown in research studies to cause weight loss? Does it contain any questionable additive ingredients? Which retailer sells Meticore for the best price? And how do real users rate and describe the effects of Meticore?
In this article we'll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in Meticore based on clinical studies to give our take on whether or not the supplement is likely to cause weight loss.
We'll share our thoughts on why buying Meticore on Amazon may be a bad idea, highlight some questionable health claims on Meticore's website, and feature unsponsored customer reviews.
UPDATE: At the time of updating this article, Meticore may be off the market.
Ingredient Analysis
The ingredients in Meticore are shown above.
It's important to note that several different companies sell supplements called "Meticore," but this ingredient list comes from the website that we determined to be the official manufacturer at the time of initially publishing this article.
Vitamin B12 deficiency was shown to be associated with weight gain in a 2019 medical review, but we can't find any evidence that B12 supplementation benefits overweight individuals who aren't deficient in the vitamin.
Chromium is a mineral that's often included in weight loss supplements, however as we documented in our Plexus Slim reviews article, a medical review that analyzed data from 19 clinical trials on chromium and weight loss found the results to be inconclusive.
The remaining active ingredients are included in a proprietary (prop) blend called Meticore Formula Blend, with a total dose of 250 milligrams (mg), which equates to an average ingredient dose of 42 mg.
Turmeric may cause weight loss at an appropriate dose, given that one of the phytochemicals in turmeric called curcumin is clinically shown to cause weight loss at or above a 500 mg dose.
However, that dose is more than 10x higher than the average ingredient dose in Meticore's prop blend, suggesting this ingredient may be underdosed.
African mango seed was shown in a 2011 clinical trial to cause weight loss, but a more concentrated, extracted version was used than the raw African mango seed in Meticore.
Further, the dose used in the trial was 150 mg, or more than 300% of the average ingredient dose in Meticore's prop blend.
Ginger was shown to be effective for weight loss in a 2018 meta-study that analyzed data from 14 clinical trials.
However, the lowest dose used in any of the trials was 200 mg daily, or more than 4x the average ingredient dose in Meticore's blend.
Moringa leaf and citrus bioflavonoids have been shown in animal studies to cause weight loss at high doses, but we can't find any human studies showing similar.
Fucoxanthin is an compound derived from brown algae.
A clinical trial published in the Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism journal found that fucoxanthin caused weight loss when combined with pomegranate seed oil, but pomegranate seed oil is not included in Meticore so we can't necessarily assume similar effects.
One good thing about Meticore is that its inactive ingredients (shown in the "Other Ingredients" tab at the bottom of the Supplement Facts label) should be safe and non-toxic.
Overall, we consider Meticore potentially effective for weight loss given that it contains some research-backed active ingredients.
However, we're unable to identify one active ingredient in this formulation that we consider to be effectively dosed, and we find this formulation to be unimpressive on the whole.
Real Person Tries Meticore
A YouTube page called "Wendy's World" has the only review of Meticore that we find likely to be unsponsored:
Questionable Health Claims
The above health claim is sourced from what we considered to be the official Meticore website, which is down at the time of updating this article.
At the time of initially writing this article, Meticore’s site had several health claims that we strongly disagreed with. The website claimed that Meticore was “safer than your daily multivitamin” without any medical citation.
Multivitamins have been studied extensively and are conclusively safe for long-term use. We found this statement to be highly questionable given that Meticore doesn't appear to have been studied in any clinical trials.
The website also claimed that “doctors researching these natural ingredients recommend you take Meticore for at least 90 days to 180 days to ensure you reach your desired weight.”
There was no reference to which doctors were making these claims, and this claim may be misleading to consumers.
Meticore later updated the language on their website, possibly due to our comments. The first statement was removed, and the second statement was changed to a more standard marketing claim that we take no issue with:
"For optimal results, consumers should take the pills regularly for at least 90-180 days."
Questionable Marketing Practices
Meticore’s website included logos from various medical institutions right under their product pictures, which suggested that these institutions recommended the supplement.
We very strongly disagree with this marketing practice because it may confuse consumers.
The logos of the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), International Journal of Obesity, American Clinical Laboratory Association (ACLA), and the Journal of Applied Physiology were shown.
It’s unclear why these associations were highlighted, but it’s likely because some of the ingredients used in Meticore were referenced by these associations. That does not infer a recommendation of Meticore by any of these associations.
If a supplement company uses vitamin C in their formulations, it doesn't mean they can claim that the Council for Responsible Nutrition backs their product just because that organization has studied vitamin C.
Where to Buy Meticore
As referenced earlier in this article, the official Meticore website appears to have been shut down since our initial publication of this article.
Even affiliate sites seem to have shut down, so perhaps this product was taken off the market.
There are still some Amazon sellers promoting weight loss supplements with the "Meticore" trade name, but these supplements contain different ingredients than the formulation we analyzed, and which seemed to be the official Meticore formulation.
At the time of updating this article, there doesn't appear to be an official distributor of Meticore anymore.
We recommend that consumers be extremely wary of purchasing supplements branded "Meticore" on Amazon, because these do not appear to be using the official formulation.
Our Clean Weight Loss Picks
There are food-based nutrients which have been shown in medical studies to be effective for weight loss.
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.
MCT oil was shown in a meta-study to cause more than one pound of weight loss over 10 weeks. This equates to potential annualized weight loss of 6 pounds per year with less than one tablespoon's worth of MCT oil per day.
Performance Lab MCT Oil is our top MCT oil pick because it's certified organic.
Ginger intake "significantly decreased body weight" according to a 2019 meta-study on ginger and weight loss that analyzed data from 14 clinical trials.
Pique La Ginger is our top ginger product, because it's an organic tea in convenient crystallized form, and all that's needed is to pour the powder into a glass and add hot water.
All three of the products mentioned in this section are entirely free of additive ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.
Pros and Cons of Meticore
Here are the pros and cons of Meticore in our opinion:
Pros:
- Safe inactive ingredients
Cons:
- Supplement appears to have been taken off market
- Doesn't appear to have been clinically tested
- Manufacturer website included uncited health claims
- Manufacturer website included unproven marketing claims
- Unimpressive formulation
- We're unable to identify any effectively dosed active ingredients
- Unclear official manufacturer/distributor
- Hard to find unsponsored customer reviews
