Exipure is a weight loss supplement that claims to have found the “tropical secret” for weight loss. The company claims that their supplement targets low brown adipose tissue levels, which they claim to be the root cause of weight loss.
But is this claim accurate or is it just marketing? Are the ingredients in Exipure actually proven effective for weight loss based on medical studies?
In this article we’ll seek to answer these questions by analyzing every ingredient in Exipure, as well as some health claims the brand makes that we find to be questionable. We'll also explain to consumers why we recommend avoiding all ClickBank products (of which Exipure is one).
Is Brown Adipose Tissue The Cause of Weight Loss?
Exipure’s value rests on the idea that a certain type of body fat is the key to weight loss.
They state that a medical study from 2022 documented that low brown adipose tissue levels were associated with obesity.
We found the study Exipure is referring to. It was published in January of 2021, not 2022. We find it to be deceptive and unethical that Exipure misstates the publish date to make the study seem more recent.
The study itself is interesting, and documents how brown fat cells dissipate energy as heat, while white fat cells store excess energy. The researchers behind the study did find an association between brown fat levels as a percentage of overall body fat and weight. Patients with higher percentages of brown fat had lower body weight on average.
However this does not mean that increasing brown fat necessarily increases weight loss. That is yet unproven, and we find Exipure’s marketing about the study to be entirely misleading. The term “weight loss” is not found once in the entire study, and we need further research to determine whether brown fat can be modulated with supplements to promote weight loss, or whether brown fat percentage is mostly determined by genetics.
We strongly disagree with Exipure's health claims about brown fat tissue, as the study they appear to cite only explains the differences between brown fat and white fat, and does not prove that taking herbal supplements increases brown fat percentage or causes weight loss.
Ingredient Review
Exipure claims that all of their active ingredients are “clinically-proven” to increase brown fat levels.
The first active ingredient is a plant called Perilla frutescens, more commonly known as Beefsteak plant. Exipure references one medical study on their website about this ingredient, which doesn’t actually study the ingredient itself. It studies a chemical compound which can be isolated from the plant called luteolin.
Just because a derivative of the plant was effective for fat browning doesn't mean the whole plant will be, and the study is a mouse study not a human study. This is a weak basis for health claims and we will consider this ingredient ineffective until there is proof that the whole plant causes fat browning or weight loss.
Kudzu is the second active ingredient. Exipure cites another animal study to prove this ingredient is effective. The study found that an extract of Kudzu increased brown tissue in mice, but extracts are more concentrated than raw herbs, and Exipure doesn't mention using an extract, so we will assume that this ingredient is ineffective.
Holy Basil is the third-listed ingredient in Exipure. Again, the company references a medical study which didn’t study their actual ingredient inclusion.
The linked study proved that one specific isolated compound of the holy basil plant, called ursolic acid, at a dietary concentration of 0.14%, increased brown fat in mice.
This is not the same as stating that holy basil with an unknown concentration of ursolic acid increases brown fat in humans, so we will again conclude this ingredient is ineffective until further research emerges.
Panax ginseng is the next-listed ingredient in Exipure. The medical trial that Exipure cites to prove the efficacy of ginseng is again on one synthetically-isolated derivative compound rather than the whole plant.
In the above-linked in vitro (test tube) study, ginsenoside Rb1 promoted fat cell browning, but that does not prove that panax ginseng promotes fat cell browning in human subjects.
For the sake of brevity, we will conclude the individual ingredient review here, because the theme is clear: Exipure cites medical research on anything related to the ingredients they use, which doesn’t prove that the ingredients they chose are effective for fat cell browning in humans.
We are unable to identify one single ingredient in Exipure that's proven to be effective for weight loss in human research so we will consider this supplement likely ineffective.
PhD Discusses White Fat and Brown Fat
For a more thorough and medically accurate explanation of white fat and brown fat than that provided by Exipure, we recommend the below video published by a channel called "HCPLive" where a PhD explains the difference between white fat and brown fat and what you can do to shift the ratio:
Failure to Publish Full Ingredients List and Dosage
Exipure’s website has an Ingredients section but it only highlights their 8 active ingredients. All herbal supplements are composed of both active ingredients (like the botanical compounds which have health effects) and inactive ingredients (like the capsule, any fillers and sweeteners, etc).
When a company fails to publish the entire ingredients list it’s a sign of a low-quality brand that doesn’t care about the health or safety of their consumers. People taking a supplement have a right to know the full set of ingredients, because they may have allergies to or medication interactions with any of the ingredients.
This is why the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S. requires supplement manufacturers to publish a Supplement Facts label detailing every ingredient, which Exipure does not appear to do.
Exipure also fails to publish ingredient doses on their website's product page, which is an even bigger safety risk in our opinion. Herbal ingredients can be safe at one dose and unsafe at another, and without dosage information consumers are unable to make an informed purchase decision for their health.
We strongly recommend avoiding all dietary supplements that fail to transparently publish a full ingredients list and dosage information for every active ingredient.
ClickBank Product Risks
Exipure is a product promoted on ClickBank, which is an affiliate marketplace. The disclosure in the footer of Exipure's website, shown above, details that “ClickBank is the retailer of products on this site.”
Brands sign up on ClickBank and allow third-party website owners and marketers to sell their products and receive a cut of earnings.
We’ve noticed a trend in previous Illuminate Health reviews that ClickBank products tend to be low-quality, and the marketing of these products tends to be extremely aggressive and misleading in our opinion. This trend holds true with Exipure.
Because anyone approved by ClickBank can make an anonymous website and promote this product and receive a cut of earnings, the risk of misleading health claims is higher than with traditional affiliate marketing in our opinion.
One red flag to look out for in identifying a ClickBank product is when you search for reviews of the product in search engines like Google, most of the results are from local news publications set up to market products, such as Bellevue Reporter, LAMag and Gazette Tribune.
These companies appear to be local news organizations to the average consumer, but drive a lot of their traffic by writing favorable reviews of products and services that they make money recommending. There is no listed author or editor on these articles; they’re just set up to sell you Exipure.
If you see a review from some local newspaper ranking in the top results on Google for a weight loss product, we strongly recommend avoiding that review as we believe it's likely to contain misinformation. These reviews almost always recommend the product, and thus are biased.
We have never found one of these affiliate marketing news organizations to have medical experts involved with their content, nor have we ever reviewed a supplement promoted on ClickBank that we found to have an effective formulation, so we recommend avoiding ClickBank products entirely.
Exipure Amazon Issues
Consumers are often curious if Exipure is on Amazon. There are products called "Exipure" on Amazon but they do not appear to be sold by the official manufacturer. Always be sure to check the "store" or "brand" name at the top of an Amazon listing. If it doesn't match the official brand or manufacturer name, we recommend avoiding the product as the risk of a fraudulent product is much higher.
We do not recommend buying Exipure at all, but consumers intent on doing so should buy from the official manufacturer website and not Amazon.
Exipure Complaints
There are a number of concerning consumer complaints on Exipure’s Better Business Bureau (BBB) page.
Several consumers state that Exipure is not honoring their money-back guarantee. Here’s an example: “I purchesed the 6 month suply of exipure. Since it was 100 % money back guareentee no questions asked.. after 4 months and no results i emailed and asked for a refund. They want all bottles shipped back. I didnt keep the empties and that was never stated anywhere.. i feel ripped off twice”.
Some of the Exipure bad reviews involve allergic reactions, which is exactly why they need to publish the full Supplement Facts panel of their product for consumer safety: “Took 1 capsule as directed on 12/22/21 had allergic reaction starting minutes after taking the 1 capsule. Spent 2 days so far taking Benadryl full doses every 4 hours.”
It’s notable that Exipure hasn’t bothered to respond to any of the complaints on their BBB page, another sign of a low-quality brand that doesn’t prioritize consumer safety.
Does Exipure Cause Side Effects?
While the eight active ingredients on Exipure's website appear safe and well-studied on an individual basis, Exipure itself has never been studied in a legitimate medical trial proving safety. So it may cause side effects but there's no way to know for certain without medical research on the supplement.
We believe the risk of side effects is higher given that Exipure doesn't publish the full set of ingredients. There may be inactive ingredients that cause side effects, but it's impossible to tell at this point.
Our Weight Loss Supplement Recommendations
There exist several weight loss supplements with significant clinical backing in terms of both efficacy and safety. Neither are herbs.
We recommend dietary fiber as a safe and effective weight loss supplement, especially when combined with caloric restriction.
A landmark medical study found that moderate caloric restriction (750 calories per day below baseline) combined with dietary fiber intake (a minimum of 20 grams per day) caused an average weight loss of 16.03 pounds over 6 months. That’s a pace of 32 pounds per year of weight loss in overweight individuals simply by adding fiber to a moderately-restricted-calorie diet.
The fiber supplement we recommend is SuperGut Fiber Mix. It contains a clean and effective formulation: a blend of three different types of unflavored dietary fiber and zero additive ingredients. It can be mixed into liquids or foods. Interested consumers can buy SuperGut fiber at this link.
We recommend using two fiber mixes per day, which provides 16 grams (g) of total fiber. Diet should provide the remaining fiber necessary to meet the 20 g minimum threshold.
Medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil is another dietary supplement which has been shown in clinical trials to cause weight loss.
MCT oil is quickly absorbed by the body and increases metabolic rate, which causes fat loss. A meta-study on MCT oil documented weight loss of 1.12 pounds over 10 weeks. This equates to a potential annualized weight loss of 5.84 pounds with MCT oil supplementation.
We recommend Bulletproof MCT Oil as our top MCT oil product, because it has a clean and effective formulation. The only ingredient is MCT oil derived from coconuts, and the product has no questionable additives. Interested consumers can buy Bulletproof MCT Oil at this link.
The effective dose range of MCT oil for weight loss (based on the medical review) is 1.7 g to 10 g per day. Bulletproof's MCT oil provides 14 g in one tablespoon, so around two-thirds of one tablespoon should be a maximally-effective dosage.
Exipure Pros and Cons
We believe it’s important to quickly summarize some of the pros and cons of a health product, even when we don’t recommend the product overall as is the case with Exipure.
Pros:
- Active ingredients appear to be safe when taken short-term
- Free of stimulants
- Cheaper than most weight loss supplements when purchased in bulk
Cons:
- No direct proof that this formulation induces weight loss
- No public team
- ClickBank product
- Misleading health claims
- Negative consumer reviews
Where to Buy Exipure
Consumers should be aware that the only place to buy Exipure is through their website, which is accessible at the following link: https://exipure.com/
We cannot identify any other channels like Amazon and Walmart that are approved by the manufacturer, so it seems like purchasing this supplement (for those intent on doing so) from the above-linked website is the best bet.
Exipure FAQ
Does Exipure Really Work?
It may be effective for some patients, but there is no clinical research proving this formulation to work. We do not believe Exipure is likely to cause weight loss.
Is Exipure a Scam?
We don’t believe it’s an outright scam, because the company does appear to legitimately manufacture and ship products. However we do believe it’s an unethical business that doesn’t highly regard the health and safety of their consumers.
Is Exipure Approved by the FDA?
Supplements aren’t approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); only pharmaceutical medications are. Supplement manufacturers are allowed to go directly to market in the U.S. without any pre-approval process.
This means that Exipure isn’t approved by the FDA technically, but neither is any other supplement company.
Is Exipure Safe?
There is no proof that Exipure is safe, because the company hasn’t published any medical research. We don’t believe this product is safe to take, because the company fails to publish a Supplement Facts label which discloses all ingredients.
Ultra Proven Vs. Exipure?
We don’t recommend either of these products. We find the formulation of both to be ineffective, and there are no legitimate scientists or medical researchers behind either product.
Both of these products have a significant number of negative reviews from real consumers.
