The ideals of beauty have moved more towards the thin and extra-thin, so there is growing interest in losing weight and if possible, doing so without any significant changes to your lifestyle in terms of eating habits or exercising. Obesity is not only about looks, but also about health: obesity causes a number of health problems, such as heart disease, dysfunctional blood circulation, respiratory disorders and organ failures, and is an indirect cause of death. Not to mention the effects it has on your self-confidence and self-esteem. According to September 2016 data, adult obesity rates now exceed 35% in four states, 30% in 25 states and are above 20% in all other states. The highest adult obesity rate at 36.2% was recorded in Louisiana and the lowest at 20.2% in Colorado.
No wonder losing weight is a growing concern for both physical and mental health and appearance reasons. This is where health supplements such as Forskolin come in to give you a fitter and slimmer body. Forskolin is a 100% natural supplement which claims to help you lose the extra pounds, prevent weight gain, build lean muscle mass, increase energy levels and boost metabolism – and all this with little effort on your part: you don’t need to go on a diet or exercise. It sounds too good to be true. Marketing usually plays on the consumer’s dreams and aspirations but also on their insecurities and frustrations. Can these marketing claims be trusted? There are many diet supplements out there so it is important to make an informed decision.
What is Forskolin?
The substance is extracted from the roots of a plant of the mint family called Coleus forskohlii which grows on the slopes of mountain sides in India, Thailand, Burma, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Its benefits have long been known to traditional Ayurvedic medicine in the treatment of heart, skin, digestive and respiratory problems. In 1974, researchers managed to isolate a chemical called forskolin that helped decrease blood pressure and lose weight. Forskolin became hugely popular when it was featured on various TV shows such as Dr. Oz Show in May 2014 as the go-to solution for weight loss. Dr. Oz called it the ‘belly melt’ or ‘lightning in a bottle’ and everyone wanted to purchase the wonder product to shed those extra pounds and get a tighter abdomen. Sales skyrocketed.
The Manufacturer of Ultra Trim 350 Forskolin
Trying to find the official website of Ultra Trim 350 Forskolin or even the right product you read reviews about can turn to be a mission in itself. More often than not you will end up on a supplement review website that directs you to purchase the product, but the links are sometimes broken or take you to spam websites. Many products include forskolin, so are you actually buying the right one that you read about when no company claims it explicitly? You might land on various websites which seem to be the official one, but when you want to buy the product, you realize you are ordering Forskolin Fuel and the bottle looks entirely different from the one on the home page or on the review websites. If you are not a chromatic person and did not realize that the three bottles had different colors (pink, purple and golden brown) and different branding and product name weren’t enough to trigger an alarm, then the fitness program you’re suddenly promised to be enrolled in will. Although all reviews claimed that no exercise was needed to ensure weight loss and sympathized with users who abhor the idea of having to adopt a fitness lifestyle, Forskolin now comes with a free comprehensive online diet and exercise program. When you order your first shipment of Forskolin Fuel, you will get automatic free membership access to the online fitness program at no extra charge. The program includes various customized fitness programs and tracking systems, diet plans, and much more. Certain users would be thrilled by this especially that some specialists believe that weight loss can only be achieved if diet, exercise and supplements all work together. Now that is not what you were hoping to pay for when you read the reviews: you wanted to lose weight without putting in the extra effort.
On the official website you are promised to get rid of even the most stubborn fat and get that lean body you have been dreaming about. There is also this sense of urgency that shipping is fast and free for a limited time, so when you decide to order you click on Rush my order. As you scroll down, real-life examples of people who have already got where you only dared to dream are displayed. Then you see examples of media coverage showing the product kept them buzzing and detailed explanations (although rather repetitive) of how the product actually works. The last argument to win you over is that it is made in the USA in a ‘state-of-the-art’ FDA registered laboratory.
When you read the T&Cs, you are puzzled: is this yet another contractor called Premium Health, LLC? After digging for more information online, you find out Forskolin Ultra Trim 350 is made by a company named Emerging Nutrition, LLC, based in Ohio and that there is very little information about that company online.
Free Trial and Availability
The product is not available in stores, only online through a large network of affiliates. The available packages on what we believe to be the official website are: 1 bottle for $47, 2 bottles for $97 plus 1 free bottle, or 3 bottles for $147 plus 2 free bottles.
Like many other weight loss supplements, you can test it out for free and only pay for shipping and handling. Please note that the 30-day trial period starts when you place the order rather than when you receive the product. Depending on which shipping option you go for, you might only receive the product in 7 to 10 days. There is no shipping during weekends, but your order date remains the same. There is also no customer support during weekends, so you will not be able to obtain your return number. Because the bottle needs to be returned and results take longer to be seen, users have complained that the trial period is not really useful: after all, you might be able to test the product only for a few days before having to return it. Unlike many other supplements, the nice thing is that you are promised not to be enrolled in ‘any type of continuity program by ordering from this website’, so in theory you do not need to worry about your card being charged. However, since the product can be purchased from various websites, best to check the terms and conditions for each. Reviews complain that customer service isn’t incredibly helpful or readily available, so the last thing you want is to spend hours trying to reach them or argue on the phone.
How Does it Work?
The enzymes in our bodies convert unused energy or glucose into stored fat tissues for later use. If weight gain isn’t controlled, we can become overweight or even obese and will not be able to perform activities with the same ease as before. The root extract increases the levels of an enzyme that controls how fast we burn fat. When taking forskolin, the production of molecule cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) is higher and thus our metabolism is faster. You will not only lose weight, but also not gain any extra pounds. cAMP also activates protein kinase and enzyme lipase, which are what ultimately breaks down fat cells also known as triglycerides.
In addition to breaking down fat, this supplement also helps grow lean muscle tissue by raising thyroid hormone and testosterone levels. The manufacturers of Ultra Trim 350 claim it boosts metabolism by increasing thermogenesis. Your body will start burning fat faster and you will get a toner body.
Known Side Effects
Unlike other weight loss supplements, this one does not have any known adverse side effects to date as a result of being 100% natural. It is made with 20% forskolin extract and it is manufactured in the US in a cGMP Certified Laboratory, but its actual ingredients are part of a mystery recipe that the manufacturer does not want to disclose. Although no side effects have been reported, our bodies are different and might react differently. Please keep in mind the product is not recommended for pregnant women, nursing mothers, underage people or people already taking medication for thinning blood. Best to check any medication interaction with your health practitioner before using this product.
Does it Actually Work?
Surprisingly, for a product that claims to be this popular, there are very few customer reviews online and you cannot be sure of their authenticity. Since the product is sold through affiliates, it is not unlikely that they paid for some of the reviews. Some of the users complain about not seeing any results during the trial period, but, as explained above, results are usually seen in the long term rather than immediately so this is no surprise. Another complaint is around poor customer service: not getting through or not receiving a refund. Since there are quite a few forskolin-based products, it is not sure sometimes which product the customers actually used and are reviewing.
The company refuses to disclose the actual list of ingredients, but charges more than other supplements for weight loss. The FDA does not actually regulate supplements and only intervenes when too many complaints have piled up. Although Ultra Trim is manufactured in an FDA-registered laboratory, it is not approved by the FDA. According to a factsheet on dietary supplements for weight loss produced by the National Institutes of Health, forskolin hasn’t been studied much and it doesn’t seem to have any effect on appetite or body weight. At the same time, no side effects have been recorded to date.
Many reviews state that many studies have confirmed the effectiveness of the product in obesity management, but do not link or quote them. The official website claims that the weight loss product keeps not only the media, but also the scientists buzzing. However, the only study of note also referenced under Terms and conditions on the website was done in 2005. In this study, 30 obese men were supplemented with forskolin twice a day for 12 weeks. This study was designed to examine the effect of forskolin on body composition, metabolism, testosterone, and blood pressure in overweight and obese men. Their body composition improved following ingestion of 250mg of 10% forskolin extract twice a day: body fat was reduced by 11.23% compared to 1.73% in the placebo group and it increased bone mass and serum free testosterone levels. The study concludes that forskolin is ‘a possible therapeutic agent for the management and treatment of obesity’. Although the study shows that the body composition of the participants was altered, the participants did not lose any weight after taking forskolin. Moreover, the study was conducted on a very small sample of only 30 participants.
If you read the Terms and Conditions of purchase, you would have seen that there was a disclaimer noting that ‘the results on all products are not typical and not everyone will experience these results’. Is it a risk worth taking in the absence of precise clinical evidence of results, authentic customer reviews and disclosure of actual ingredients?
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