Doctor Reviews: LeanBean

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LeanBean is a branded combination supplement being marketed for weight loss specifically for women. But does it work? And is it safe to use?

Let’s comprehensively review LeanBean, see what cheaper alternatives exist, and find out why it’s worthless for weight loss.

Ingredients of LeanBean

The recommended dosing is 2 capsules with at least 1 to 2 glasses of water, 3 times per day, 30 minutes before Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. So a total of 6 caps per day.

There’s quite a few ingredients here, so let’s analyze the ingredients one at a time.

Vitamin B6 and B12

The B vitamins, particularly B6 or B12, are essential vitamins used by the body for fat metabolism.

Vitamin B6 can be found in nearly all foods, from vegetables to fruits, to meats to whole grains, and Vitamin B12 is usually found in animal protein, like meat, milk, or eggs.

Supplementing vitamin B12 is a good recommendation for vegetarians or vegans, since they tend to be deficient.

Deficiencies in these vitamins can lead to impaired fat metabolism.

However, the doses of B6 and B12 provided by LeanBean are so minuscule that most children’s multivitamin gummies have more B vitamins than them.

They do use methylcobalamin for their form of B12, which is better absorbed than the cheaper cyanocobalamin form of B12 so I’ll give them that, but again, the dose is too small to make a difference here.

If you were deficient in B6 or B12, I would recommend just taking a regular B6 or B12 supplement.

Chromium

Research that looks at chromium for weight loss is not clear.

It might be helpful for those with insulin resistance issues, like those with diabetes or PCOS, but even in those cases, the amount of weight lost is modest at best, with around 1 pound lost over a few months.

Unfortunately, those studies use around 200 mcg per day. LeanBean provides 35 mcg. So we’re about 5-6 times too short.

Zinc

Zinc is another essential mineral used by the body for fat metabolism and blood insulin regulation.

It’s found in a lot of animal proteins, as well as whole grains, nuts, and beans.

Like vitamin B12, supplementation is sometimes recommended for vegetarians or vegans, and deficiencies in this mineral can lead to impaired fat metabolism.

Deficient individuals are typically recommended to supplement around a hundred milligrams per day.

Again, LeanBean provides only 11 milligrams per day, so would not even be sufficient to supplement deficient individuals.

Potassium

I’m not sure why this is here. The amounts are absolutely minuscule, and potassium has no known effects on weight.

Glucomannan

This is likely the most “effective” part of the supplement.

Glucomannan or konjac fiber is a type of soluble fiber. It absorbs water and bulks out the stomach, making it useful for helping to reduce overeating and managing appetite.

Here, the dose used is actually sufficient. Most studies use 1-3 grams with each meal, and LeanBean provides 1 gram with meals.

So I would expect LeanBean to work much like any generic glucomannan supplement, and help to manage hunger when taken with meals.

Choline

Choline is a nutrient most associated with nerve health and cognition.

It’s associated with fat metabolism, but there is no evidence that supplementing it into your diet is going to increase weight loss.

Choline is found in many types of meat, fish, dairy, and eggs, so deficiency in North America is rare.

Also, the recommended intake is 400-500 mg per day. The dose in LeanBean is 82.5 mg.

Garcinia cambogia extract

Garcinia cambogia is a herbal product that may have some small effects on weight based on a number of small studies, by helping to control appetite.

The evidence is somewhat contradictory, with some studies showing no effects

However, this might not matter much, since you need around 1000 – 5000 mg per day for it to be effective.

LeanBean provides a measly 100 mg, so you’re getting 10 times less.

The Garcinia is likely not doing much in this formulation.

I will give props to the fact that their extract is standardized, meaning it does have some of the active compounds. They just didn’t put nearly enough.

Green coffee bean extract

Green coffee extracts contain chlorogenic acids. Studies seem to suggest that supplementation of these compounds may have some small effects on weight.

The studies used doses anywhere from 90-1000 mg of green coffee extract.

LeanBean provides only 50 mg, so I’m not sure if it would be helpful. Again, props for standardizing the extract, but there’s probably too little to be useful.

Turmeric

There is some weak evidence to suggest that turmeric might help with weight loss.

However the effective doses used in those trials were 1000 mg per day or above. The 50 mg per day LeanBean provides is just not going to cut it.

Acai berry extract

There is no good evidence to suggest that acai berry or its extracts are useful for weight loss, especially at a tiny dose of 20 mg.

BioPerine©

BioPerine© is a patented extract of piperine, a compound found in pepper that’s responsible for its peppery flavor.

There is some belief that piperine can in some way help with weight loss by stimulating metabolism.

Unfortunately, the research doesn’t appear to reflect this, so based on what we know its effects on weight are likely insignificant.

Piperine is also sometimes used in combination supplements to help improve the absorption of other components within the supplement, such as turmeric.

So it might be to help improve the absorption of the 50 mg of turmeric, although 50 mg is still far too little to have any effects on weight.

LeanBean Side Effects and Concerns

From the listed ingredients, the ingredient that’s most likely to cause people problems would be the glucomannan.

As a soluble fiber, it can be quite thick, and cause some people constipation if they don’t drink enough water. So I would definitely follow the dosing instructions to take it with 1-2 glasses of water.

Most soluble fibers are relatively safe to take, although glucomannan might cause some people minor gastrointestinal upsets like gas, bloating, or mild abdominal pain.

Gastrointestinal obstructions and blockages are possible when taking a soluble fiber supplement, so if you have medical issues that put you at risk of an obstruction, like abdominal surgeries or crohn’s disease, make sure you check with your doctor before you try it.

Is LeanBean effective?

It appears the primary way LeanBean would work, if it did at all, would be as a soluble fiber.

Glucomannan can help bulk out your stomach before a meal, helping you to eat less and controlling overeating.

Some of the other ingredients might have had some use in weight loss, unfortunately the doses in LeanBean fall far short of their effective doses, meaning they likely won’t have the intended or additional effects on weight loss.

In my opinion, LeanBean is essentially an overpriced glucomannan supplement, with traces of a few B vitamins and minerals.

Like any glucomannan supplements, if you find that having a fuller stomach helps you to eat less, this supplement might be somewhat useful.

But if you stress eat or are prone to emotional eating, these types of supplements are not likely going to help.

Overall review: LeanBean

Reviewing LeanBean by effectiveness for weight loss, I’m giving it a C. It works as a soluble fiber to help manage hunger, and taking it without already reducing your food intake is not likely going to have any effects on weight whatsoever.

Reviewing LeanBean by cost, I’m giving it a D. A monthly cost of $70 CAD is a little steep, and it can be essentially replicated by getting individual ingredients at a cost many times less.

Reviewing LeanBean for safety, I’m giving it a B. Glucomannan at the doses that LeanBean provides is relatively safe to use, provided you have it with enough water.

Overall review, I’m giving LeanBean a D. I would not recommend it at all.

Top alternatives to LeanBean

LeanBean attempts to combine a few supplements that might be of additional help to individuals trying to lose weight. However, the doses that it uses effectively limit it to just a glucomannan soluble fiber supplement.

Also despite the marketing, nothing in this supplement makes it specifically focused towards women. There doesn’t seem to be anything in it that would be extra beneficial for women, or make it unsuitable for men.

If you’re looking to achieve similar effects, but better than those of LeanBean, I would combine a quality soluble fiber + garcinia cambogia + chromium.

• Chromium nicotinate (GTF) – 1 to 5 caps / day
• Chromium picolinate – 1 to 5 caps / day
• Garcinia Cambogia – 1 to 5 caps / day
• Glucomannan (caps) – 1 to 3 caps w/ meals
• Glucomannan (PGX caps) – 1 to 3 caps w/ meals
• Glucomannan (PGX powder) – 0.5 to 1 scoop w/ meals
• Glucomannan (powder) – 0.25 to 1 tsp w/ meals
• Psyllium husk (caps) – 3 to 12 caps w/ meals
• Psyllium husk (Metamucil) – 1 scoop w/ meals
• Psyllium husk (powder) – 1 to 3 tsp w/ meals

Learn more about

• Glucomannan for weight loss
• 6 Things To Look For On Supplements
• 5 Things to Know Before Buying Weight Loss Supplements

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