Listen to this article on Spotify, or watch it on YouTube.
Exipure is a heavily marketed supplement that apparently spawned a bunch of knockoffs. With so much sponsored content around Exipure and copies of them lying around, is this supplement any good?
Well I’m not sponsored by them, so let’s comprehensively review Exipure to see if it’s worth your money, see if we can replicate it with a cheaper alternative, and give it an overall rating.
Ingredients of Exipure
Let’s first take a look at the ingredients. Here are the doses per capsule. The recommended dosing is one per day. By the way, I’m just referring to the “original” copy of Exipure if there was such a thing.
Right off the bat, a huge problem with this supplement is that all of its ingredients combined into a “proprietary blend”.
Supplement companies just need to list the ingredients inside a proprietary blend, they don’t need to list the exact doses inside. So what Exipure has done here is to list the ingredients within the blend, but not the doses of each ingredient.
You need to be very cautious about proprietary blends. It displays a lack of transparency on the part of the supplement.
They can list an effective ingredient, but only have tiny of it and you wouldn’t be able to tell since the dose isn’t listed.
Exipure could be using their proprietary blend to hide very low doses within their ingredient list, and if they’re hiding the actual dose from you, it’s much more difficult to determine whether you’re getting an effective dose.
With that in mind, let’s try to analyze what we do know. Whenever supplements add any ingredients into their product, there are three very common issues:
- The doses they use are way too small to be effective
- They aren’t using the active compounds
- The ingredient itself has not reliably shown any beneficial effect in humans.
When we analyze these ingredients, we’re going to see which of these issues they have.
Leaf and Olive extract
Olive oil is full of polyunsaturated fats, which may be beneficial for cardiovascular and metabolic health.
Taking olive oil supplements seems kind of silly to me since you could just buy regular extra virgin olive oil from the supermarket far cheaper and just take that, like by drizzling some olive oil onto your salad.
Furthermore, the research studies that find health benefits from taking olive oil were from people using it in their diet, not taking olive oil supplements.
The likely reason for this is dosage. People who regularly use olive oil and gain benefit from it are taking many grams of olive oil per day, not a few hundred milligrams.
Even if the entire 300 mg proprietary mix of Exipure was olive oil extract, it likely still wouldn’t do anything for you.
Holy Basil
Holy Basil is a traditional Ayurvedic herb used to help with inflammation. It doesn’t have any evidence for weight loss, but it has some very weak evidence for helping diabetics control their blood sugar levels.
However the doses used in studies are 500 mg per day. Again, even if the entire 300 mg proprietary mix was Holy Basil, there still wouldn’t be enough.
Bee Propolis
Propolis is a mixture that honey bees produce by mixing their saliva and beeswax with sap, to create a sticky substance used to seal parts of their hive.
Again, there is no evidence for weight loss, but some studies have suggested that propolis might be able to help diabetics control blood sugar levels as well.
But again, dosing in Exipure is a problem, with most studies using almost a 1000 mg per day. There’s no way Exipure has enough to be useful.
Berberine, Kudzu, and Perilla
Berberine, Kudzu, and Perilla are all traditional herbs that are known for their traditional uses to help reduce general inflammation and for various gastrointestinal issues.
Kudzu and Perilla lack much evidence for any of these uses, but there is some evidence that berberine might help improve insulin sensitivity in those with diabetes or PCOS, but the doses they use in those studies range from 1-2 grams per day, again totally insufficient in Exipure.
Even when Kudzu and Perilla are used for traditional purposes, herbalists are using many grams of those herbs, not a few hundred milligrams.
Quercetin
Quercetin is a general nutrient found in many fruits and berries, and has some general beneficial effects on health, such as for cardiovascular and metabolic health.
None of them are expected to be helpful for weight loss, however even then, the doses used in the studies are far above what Exipure could possibly provide in a single pill. So the amount of quercetin that’s provided in Exipure is mostly useless.
Korean Ginseng
Korean ginseng, also known as Panax ginseng, is a herb known for its stimulating effects. So people taking panax ginseng might be taking it to help with fatigue or to improve wakefulness, potentially to help them exercise more while losing weight.
There is some evidence that panax ginseng can help improve cognitive function, as well as potentially also help with blood sugar control in those with diabetes.
Unfortunately, studies don’t find that these effects are able to help people lose any actual weight.
Nevertheless, the studies are using anywhere from 200 to almost 1000 mg per day. Will the 300 mg of Exipure’s proprietary blend have enough inside to be useful? Unlikely.
Exipure Side Effects and Concerns
From the listed ingredients, my main concern would be the berberine contained within. We’re not sure exactly how much is in there, but berberine can interfere with other medications, by affecting the way your liver metabolizes certain drugs.
So taking it with other drugs could reduce the effectiveness of the drug, or increase its level in the body to toxic levels. So if you’re taking any medication, you should ask your doctor to see if it’s safe for you to take.
Berberine is also unsafe if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.
Is Exipure effective?
Given everything I’ve seen, this supplement is completely useless.
Exipure appears to be trying to cater itself towards blood sugar control, but only for those with metabolic issues like diabetes.
So if you didn’t have diabetes or blood sugar issues, I’m pretty sure this would do absolutely nothing for you.
Even if you had blood sugar issues, I don’t think this would help at all since nothing is dosed correctly. Everything is dosed far too low.
Overall, Exipure is worthless. It tries to combine a number of herbal products that target blood sugar control, but uses doses that aren’t going to do anything.
Overall review: Exipure
Reviewing Exipure by effectiveness for weight loss, I’m giving it an F. I don’t expect it to do much of anything. And even if you have blood sugar control issues, the doses it uses are so low it likely still wont do anything.
Reviewing Exipure by cost, I’m giving it an F. It’s a pretty expensive supplement that can be completely outdone by just taking berberine at a cost almost 6-12 times less.
Reviewing Exipure for safety, I’m giving it a C. It may not be safe for those taking medications since berberine can interfere with them.
Overall review, I’m giving Exipure an F. I would recommend you stay away from it.
Top alternatives to Exipure
It’s hard to compare it to any other supplement since nothing is useful in Exipure, but if I had to try to replicate the gist of what Exipure was trying to do, I would probably go with a high quality berberine supplement.
If you’re looking to achieve similar effects, but better than those of Exipure, I would combine a quality berberine + Panax ginseng.
- Berberine (dihydro) – 2 to 4 caps / day
- Berberine (generic) – 2 to 3 caps w/ meals
- Berberine (Thorne) – 1 to 2 caps w/ meals
- Panax ginseng – 2 to 6 caps / day
Learn more about
- The Exipure and Alpilean Scam
- Berberine for Weight Loss
- 6 Things To Look For On Supplements
- 5 Things to Know Before Buying Weight Loss Supplements
- Other weight loss supplements
Abdelazim A, Khater S, Ali H, et al. Panax ginseng improves glucose metabolism in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats through 5′ adenosine monophosphate kinase up-regulation. Saudi J Biol Sci. 2019;26(7):1436-1441. doi:10.1016/j.sjbs.2018.06.001
Agrawal P, Rai V, Singh RB. Randomized placebo-controlled, single blind trial of holy basil leaves in patients with noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther 1996;34:406-9.
An Y, Sun Z, Zhang Y, Liu B, Guan Y, Lu M. The use of berberine for women with polycystic ovary syndrome undergoing IVF treatment. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf) 2014;80(3):425-31.
Arentz S, Smith CA, Abbott J, Bensoussan A. Nutritional supplements and herbal medicines for women with polycystic ovary syndrome; a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2017;17(1):500.
Bes-Rastrollo M, Sánchez-Villegas A, de la Fuente C, de Irala J, Martinez JA, Martínez-González MA. Olive oil consumption and weight change: the SUN prospective cohort study. Lipids. 2006;41(3):249-256. doi:10.1007/s11745-006-5094-6
El-Sharkawy HM, Anees MM, Van Dyke TE. Propolis improves periodontal status and glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and chronic periodontitis: A randomized clinical trial. J Periodontol. 2016;87(12):1418-1426.
Geng J, Dong J, Ni H, et al. Ginseng for cognition. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010;(12):CD007769. Published 2010 Dec 8. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD007769.pub2
Guasch-Ferré M, Hu FB, Martínez-González MA, et al. Olive oil intake and risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality in the PREDIMED Study. BMC Med. 2014;12:78. Published 2014 May 13. doi:10.1186/1741-7015-12-78
Guasch-Ferré M, Liu G, Li Y, et al. Olive Oil Consumption and Cardiovascular Risk in U.S. Adults. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2020;75(15):1729-1739. doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2020.02.036
Huang XS, Yang GF, Pan YC. Effect of berberin hydrochloride on blood concentration of cyclosporine A in cardiac transplanted patients. Zhongguo Zhong Xi Yi Jie He Za Zhi 2008;28:702-4.
Jakaria M, Haque ME, Kim J, Cho DY, Kim IS, Choi DK. Active ginseng components in cognitive impairment: Therapeutic potential and prospects for delivery and clinical study. Oncotarget. 2018 Sep 11;9(71):33601-33620. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.26035. PMID: 30323902; PMCID: PMC6173364.
Karimian J, Hadi A, Pourmasoumi M, Najafgholizadeh A, Ghavami A. The efficacy of propolis on markers of glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Phytother Res 2019;33(6):1616-26.
Katsiki N, Pérez-Martínez P, Lopez-Miranda J. Olive Oil Intake and Cardiovascular Disease Prevention: “Seek and You Shall Find”. Curr Cardiol Rep. 2021;23(6):64. Published 2021 May 7. doi:10.1007/s11886-021-01496-1
Knab AM, Shanely RA, Jin F, Austin MD, Sha W, Nieman DC. Quercetin with vitamin C and niacin does not affect body mass or composition. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2011;36(3):331-8.
Lan J, Zhao Y, Dong F, et al. Meta-analysis of the effect and safety of berberine in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus, hyperlipemia and hypertension. J Ethnopharmacol. 2015;161:69-81.
Lee ST, Chu K, Sim JY, Heo JH, Kim M. Panax ginseng enhances cognitive performance in Alzheimer disease. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 2008;22(3):222-226. doi:10.1097/WAD.0b013e31816c92e6
Park KC, Jin H, Zheng R, et al. Cognition enhancing effect of panax ginseng in Korean volunteers with mild cognitive impairment: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Transl Clin Pharmacol. 2019;27(3):92-97. doi:10.12793/tcp.2019.27.3.92
Pérez-Martínez P, García-Ríos A, Delgado-Lista J, Pérez-Jiménez F, López-Miranda J. Mediterranean diet rich in olive oil and obesity, metabolic syndrome and diabetes mellitus. Curr Pharm Des. 2011;17(8):769-777. doi:10.2174/138161211795428948
Reay JL, Kennedy DO, Scholey AB. Effects of Panax ginseng, consumed with and without glucose, on blood glucose levels and cognitive performance during sustained ‘mentally demanding’ tasks. J Psychopharmacol. 2006;20(6):771-781. doi:10.1177/0269881106061516
Reay JL, Kennedy DO, Scholey AB. Single doses of Panax ginseng (G115) reduce blood glucose levels and improve cognitive performance during sustained mental activity. J Psychopharmacol. 2005;19(4):357-365. doi:10.1177/0269881105053286
Samadi N, Mozaffari-Khosravi H, Rahmanian M, Askarishahi M. Effects of bee propolis supplementation on glycemic control, lipid profile and insulin resistance indices in patients with type 2 diabetes: a randomized, double-blind clinical trial. J Integr Med. 2017;15(2):124-134.
Shishtar E, Sievenpiper JL, Djedovic V, et al. The effect of ginseng (the genus panax) on glycemic control: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled clinical trials. PLoS One. 2014;9(9):e107391. Published 2014 Sep 29. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0107391
Somasundaram G, Manimekalai K, Salwe KJ, Pandiamunian J. Evaluation of the antidiabetic effect of Ocimum sanctum in type 2 diabetes patients. Int J Life Sci Pharma Res 2012;2(3):75-81.
Sun W, Frost B, Liu J. Oleuropein, unexpected benefits! Oncotarget. 2017 Mar 14;8(11):17409. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.15538. PMID: 28407695; PMCID: PMC5392257.
Uemura T, Yashiro T, Oda R, et al. Intestinal anti-inflammatory activity of perillaldehyde. J Agric Food Chem. 2018;66(13):3443-3448.
Vuksan V, Sung MK, Sievenpiper JL, et al. Korean red ginseng (Panax ginseng) improves glucose and insulin regulation in well-controlled, type 2 diabetes: results of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of efficacy and safety. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2008;18(1):46-56. doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2006.04.003
Wei, W., Zhao, H., Wang, A., Sui, M., Liang, K., Deng, H., Ma, Y., Zhang, Y., Zhang, H., and Guan, Y. A clinical study on the short-term effect of berberine in comparison to metformin on the metabolic characteristics of women with polycystic ovary syndrome. Eur J Endocrinol. 2012;166(1):99-105.
Wu X, Li Q, Xin H, Yu A, Zhong M. Effects of berberine on the blood concentration of cyclosporin A in renal transplanted recipients: clinical and pharmacokinetic study. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 2005;61:567-72.
Yu H, Qiu JF, Ma LJ, Hu YJ, Li P, Wan JB. Phytochemical and phytopharmacological review of Perilla frutescens L. (Labiatae), a traditional edible-medicinal herb in China. Food Chem Toxicol 2017;108(Pt B):375-91.
Yubero-Serrano EM, Lopez-Moreno J, Gomez-Delgado F, Lopez-Miranda J. Extra virgin olive oil: More than a healthy fat. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2019;72(Suppl 1):8-17. doi:10.1038/s41430-018-0304-x
Zhang Y, Li X, Zou D, et al. Treatment of type 2 diabetes and dyslipidemia with the natural plant alkaloid berberine. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2008;93:2559-65.
Zhang, H., Wei, J., Xue, R., Wu, J. D., Zhao, W., Wang, Z. Z., Wang, S. K., Zhou, Z. X., Song, D. Q., Wang, Y. M., Pan, H. N., Kong, W. J., and Jiang, J. D. Berberine lowers blood glucose in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients through increasing insulin receptor expression. Metabolism 2010;59(2):285-292.
Zhao L, Pu L, Wei J, et al. Brazilian green propolis improves antioxidant function in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2016;13(5). pii: E498.
See also
- Doctor Reviews: BiomaBioma and other generic probiotics may support general gut health but lack specific, research-backed benefits for weight loss.
- Doctor Reviews: LipozemLipozem and similar keto BHB supplements have shown little to no effectiveness in supporting keto, weight loss, or athletic performance.
- Doctor Reviews: Youthful BrainYouthful Brain is unlikely to improve cognitive performance in healthy individuals, as research shows limited benefits for their ingredients.
- Doctor Reviews: Lemme CurbLemme Curb is basically just a high-dose chromium supplement, which hasn’t been proven to help with weight loss or cravings in healthy people.
- Doctor Reviews: Nello SupercalmNello Supercalm is a drink mix with ingredients that may help manage stress and anxiety, though it might not work for everyone.