WHAT IS IT?
It seems like every day a company comes up with another way to deliver their wares faster and meaner. Instead of smoking, you can chew nicotine gum. Instead of chewing gum, you can slap a patch on your arm. Instead of wearing the patch, you can vape to mimic the experience of smoking. And the world of noots is no different.
For those who are looking for a fast-acting performance drug, there is now Thrive Patch, a weight loss product that has been the subject of much debate among the noot community. They call it The Thrive Experience, an eight-week “lifestyle plan” for achieving “peak physical and mental levels.”
WHAT’S IN IT?
The Thrive Premium Lifestyle DFT, aka Thrive Patch is purported to unlock a time-released and consistent stream of ingredients into your body. The company goes the extra mile to make the bold statement that their formula is “greatly superior to that of any consumable product.” The problem is, many of the ingredients contained within Thrive Patch may not be able to penetrate the skin.
To wit: DFT is an abbreviation of Dermal Fusion Technology, the technology Le-Vel, the company responsible for Thrive, is using in order to deliver their ingredients to you. But does it really work?
The ingredients contained in Le-Vel’s Premium DFT patch are as follows:
Le-Vel does not disclose how much of each of these ingredients are present in each of their patches.
Apparently, Cosmoperine is just another name for THP (Tetrahydropiperine), a derivative of piperine, that increases other drugs’ ability to absorb when they are administered transdermally. The presence of Cosmoperine suggests that Thrive’s other ingredients can, in theory, penetrate your skin and go to work, but it is important to note that this evidence is based on studies using rat skin and not human skin.
As with Cormoperine, Forslean is just a rebranded name for Forskolin (itself another name for coleus forskohlii), another drug that enables drugs to go through the skin.
Green Coffee Bean Extract is considered one of the world’s most popular weight loss supplements due to its cholinergic properties and has been linked to excess energy, but it has a number of adverse side effects including ringing in the ears, vomiting, nervousness, insomnia, nausea, restlessness and stomach upset. Although folks like Dr. Oz have raved about GCBE in the past (in 2012, to be exact), it has proven ineffective in insufficient doses. Seeing as how we have no way of knowing how much GCBE is present in Thrive, there is inadequate evidence to show that it will be effective as part of the Thrive 8-Week Experience.
COQ10 is another substance that is dubious at best; as of the time of this writing, there is little evidence to support the idea that COQ10 can actually help you lose weight. It is yet another compound that was rumored to help burn fat and the Internet ran with the story. A natural enzyme, COQ10 exhibits antioxidant properties, ones that help the body to produce energy. However, a study of more than 15,000 participants showed that COQ10 possessed no substantial capacity for weight maintenance.
Garcinia Cambogia is a tropical fruit which has been hyped as a fat burner, but the overwhelming evidence points to it being bogus. Thus far, studies into the potential weight loss benefits of Garcinia Cambogia have been divided.
Yes, some have found that it may have the ability to aid in this area, but there are two key factors one should consider before taking it: a) Garcinia Cambogia’s weight loss component is called HCA and there are fourteen disparate HCA-containing products being peddled to people as “Garcinia Cambogia” at the moment, and b) Experts have found that Garcinia Cambogia can cause liver damage or even liver failure. Its manifold side effects include fatigue, anxiety, digestive problems, and dizziness.
Finally, White Willow Bark is yet another compound which has not been proven to be effective in any way for the purpose of weight loss. While studies have confirmed that it has anti-inflammatory properties, White Willow Bark was not shown to have any fat burning or weight management efficacy.
The only way in which White Willow Bark could, in eventuality, help in the weight loss process would be via its ability to intensify the fat-burning effects of other, more legitimate weight loss ingredients, particularly those that are thermogenic in nature.
Considering what we have learned about the aforementioned ingredients, not to mention the poor rating Le-Vel holds with the Better Business Bureau, we strongly advise our readers against purchasing Thrive Patch. While some top nootropic websites have given this one a good review, there is simply too much that makes this one precarious at best and potentially dangerous at worst.
Be safe and be smart and always research supplements before taking them. Consult with a physician prior to taking Thrive or any other nootropic blend.
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