Steroids Source Talk | Anabolic Steroid Forum - View Single Post - The Scientific Truth on 10 Popular Fat Burners

Cornish_Celt · #2 (**permalink**) 04-10-2013, 04:43 PM

Caffeine
The Claim: Caffeine is supposed to increase your metabolism. This lets your body use your fat reserves for energy, which means less fat stored.
The Reality: Caffeine is a potent stimulant, and does indeed increase your metabolism.
But just like green tea, caffeine only works if you are not used to it. As you become a regular user, its stimulant effects wear off, and so does the boost to your metabolism. For caffeine to be effective, you need to cycle its usage.
It should be noted that potent is relative – yes caffeine burns fat, but the bulk of your fat loss will be through your diet. Since you become used to caffeine, it is not an effective everyday fat burner. It can help, but it’s not something you can rely on every day.
Other Notables: Caffeine is a stimulant, and you have to be careful not to abuse it. It increases your blood pressure, and can also negatively impact your sleep if you take it too close to bed time.
The two main dietary sources of caffeine (tea and coffee) have a host of health benefits themselves (we covered green tea above). With that in mind, caffeine is a cool supplement because it has a slight effect on a lot of things: adrenaline, testosterone, workout ability, reaction time and more. Two other interesting sources are yerba mate and guarana.

Conjugated Linoleic Acid, aka CLA
The Claim: CLA is supposed to interact with the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (PPAR) system in your body, which is related to fat metabolism inside your body.
The Reality: A common theme emerges – what works in rats does not work in humans. CLA barely interacts with the PPAR system, rendering it unreliable. The end result? No fat burning.
Other Notables: CLA was one of the first promising fat burners, and thus there is a lot of research conducted on it: over 20 human studies! Alas, while most of the other supplements listed here have some other interesting tidbit, CLA seems to be a very uninteresting and boring molecule.
7-keto, related to DHEA
The Claim: Stimulates your thyroid to increase your body’s metabolism. This means less fat is stored.
The Reality: 7-keto is one of three oxygenated metabolites of DHEA, a naturally occurring hormone in your body. Studies do seem to indicate that 7-keto can increase your metabolism, but the quality of research is extremely iffy (due to conflicts of interest). At this time no statement can be made as to whether 7-keto works or doesn’t.
Other Notables: While its parent, DHEA, is a hormone, 7-keto itself is not hormonal (which means less potential side effects).

White Kidney Bean Extract, aka Phase 2
The Claim: Prevents the breakdown of carbs into simple sugars, so they are not absorbed by your body. As a result, complex carbs pass through your digestive system unabsorbed.
The Reality: White kidney bean extract does seem to reduce the absorption of carbohydrates, but its potency is so weak that it has little overall effect. It’s as effective as having a few less bites of food.
Other Notables: You may think that white kidney bean extract sounds like fibre, but they are not the same. Fibre still helps in digestion, and it also interacts with intestinal bacteria. For better or worse, white kidney bean extract makes you poop sugar and starch.
L-Carnitine, aka ALCAR (Acetyl-L-Carnitine)
The Claim: L-Carnitine helps shuttle fats into your mitochondria (the “powerhouse” of a cell), where they get burned off.
The Reality: Another supplement which works in theory, but does not work in reality. Supplementation only works in burning fat if you are deficient (which is common only in very elderly people); taking more carnitine than your body needs results in no extra fat burning. This is likely due to your body’s regulatory facilities.
Other Notables: L-Carnitine is used as a brain booster, increasing alertness and neuronal support. It can even help alleviate side effects of aging (neurological, fatigue) for those in a weakened state.