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Garcinia Max Slim Review

Garcinia Max Slim Review
2.2 Total Score
Reading Time: 5 minutesAnd another Garcinia cambogia scam brand rears it’s head. This one can’t even decide which website it’s going to send you to on any given day you click the URL. When I first wrote this review it went to the brand in the title of this review, Garcinia Max Slim. But when I went back over the article two days later, it took me to an offer “for Australian residents only.” So I suspect this one is simply on a rotating schedule: US, Australia, New Zealand—it may be Canadian the next time anyone clicks it, who knows? Even the brand changes—Garcinia Max Slim became Ultimate Slim Pure Select, and tomorrow it will be something else. [1]

And another Garcinia cambogia scam brand rears it’s head.

But the scam is the same: wild miracle-pill claims, a trial offer, order now because supplies are limited…and then they nail you with a negative-option marketing scam where you discover you’ve unknowingly signed up for an auto ship program that will start 14 days after you ordered, not received, your trial bottle. The autoship will send you a new 30-day supply every 30 days until you call and cancel, and suck about $90 out of your bank account or credit card each month as well. And if you manage to get a live human being at the other end of the phone line, be aware they’ll charge you ten dollars per item to put the bottles you didn’t want in the first place back on their shelves. [2] [3]  Company Contact Information: Again, this changes with the day. But I do find it interesting that the offer for Australian residents only lists the following as their contact info: Ultimate Slim Pure Select, 7565 Commercial Way, Unit E, Henderson, NV (Nevada) 89011, USA. The information when I wrote the first draft of this review was: Garcinia Cambogia Max Slim C/O GLF, 41 Canal Street, Lewiston, ME (Maine) 04240.

Garcinia Max Slim Claims

Even though the brand and the offer change daily on this one, the claims are pretty much the same. Garcinia is supposedly the new wonder food, miracle pill, super-duper blah blah blah that’ll eliminate the need for diet or exercise, because really, who needs to work that hard when you can just take these little pills and watch the fat melt away.

“…most of the side effects associated with G. Cambogia supplements are in multi-ingredient formulas.”

Well, as nice as all that sounds, it’s not accurate. That Garcinia cambogia contains a substance called hydroxycitric acid (HCA), which is extracted from the rind of the fruit, is true. That HCA seems to have some benefits is true. But as we’ll see in the science below, it’s not nearly the Shangri-la, Fountain-of-Skinniness marketers make it out to be.   At least this ad offers a little caution along with the hype:

People with the following conditions should contact a Doctor before consuming any product: high blood pressure, heart, liver, kidney or thyroid disease, diabetes, anemia, depression, anxiety, other psychiatric conditions, a family history of these or other medical conditions, or if taking any prescription, Over The Counter (“OTC”) and/or other herbal medications. [1]

Note: as we’ll see in the science, the culprit behind those warnings may not be HCA itself. This is a multi-ingredient supplement, no matter they only tout the G. cambogia, and most of the side effects associated with G. Cambogia supplements are in multi-ingredient formulas.

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Garcinia Max Slim Ingredients

Garcinia Max Slim was nice enough to list their ingredients, but this Ultra Slim Pure Select doesn’t. So we’ll just assume it’s all the same formula with a new label slapped on the bottle each time.

From a scientific standpoint, G. cambogia isn’t a miracle pill.

Serving Size 1 Capsule. Servings Per Container: 90  Proprietary Blend, 450mg: Calcium, Potassium, Garcinia Cambogia Extract standardized to 50 [percent] Hydroxycitric Acid (HCA)  Other Ingredients: Vegetable capsules [1]

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The Science (or Lack Thereof) Behind Garcinia Max Slim

From a scientific standpoint, G. cambogia isn’t a miracle pill. It’s not a fat melter. It’s not speed for your metabolism. But it’s not entirely useless, either. Garcinia Max Slim gives no science to back up their frankly overblown claims, but there is science out there for one specific issue.

“…None of the studies have shown whether these effects persist beyond 12 weeks of intervention.”

What G. cambogia does seem to be is a mild-to-moderate appetite suppressant as a result of HCA’s ability to stimulate production and release of serotonin, a neurotransmitter in our brains usually associated with “feeling good.” Serotonin can also send messages to our brains that we’re “full.”   A meta-study (review of all current literature for the purpose of a summary) published in the 2011 Journal of Obesity states

HCA is usually marketed as a weight loss supplement either alone or in combination with other supplements. Some authors have suggested that HCA causes weight loss by competitively inhibiting the enzyme adenosine triphosphates-citrate-lyase. HCA has also been reported to increase the release or availability of serotonin in the brain, thereby leading to appetite suppression. [4]

What many of the studies compiling this meta-review also found is a short-term effect for appetite suppression and some help with weight loss—though more as result of appetite suppression and not so much as a fat burner in its own right.  It might be called a fat inhibitor,though. In several studies HCA has been shown to inhibit an enzyme—ATP citrate lyase—whose primary purpose is to convert carbohydrates into fat. If I understand the science correctly, this is the result: by inhibiting this enzyme, the carbs apparently stay carbs and get burned before any stored fat gets burned (the body always burns carbs first). So while that does nothing for weight loss—you still have to reach the point where the body has no carbs left to burn before it starts burning fat—it might help in preventing further weight gain[5]  But even this conclusion has a few issues left to resolve.

None of [the studies reviewed] have shown whether these effects persist beyond 12 weeks of intervention. Therefore, there is still little evidence to support the potential effectiveness and long-term benefits of G. Cambogia extracts. [5] (emphasis added)

To be frank, there isn’t any. Probably because this is a scam.

G. cambogia did come under fire in 2009 when the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) identified the consumption ofan HCA-containing supplement as a possible cause of liver damage. But several studies have indicated that HCA itself, and thus G. cambogia, may not be the culprit. Dr. Sidney J. Stohs, Pharmacy PhD from the University of Nebraska, and colleagues reported that while some cases of toxicity and specifically liver damage had been associated to the consumption of this brand of products, it was premature to blame HCA for that damage; mainly because some of the products tested did not contain HCA, but did contain up to 20 other ingredients. So while HCA might be involved, there was no conclusive evidence of such. [6] [7] [8]  Other studies, by Dr. Stohs and others, suggest that a moderate dosage of G. cambogia (HCA) by itself—with no other added ingredients—is safe, barring other pre-existing health problems: the maximum daily safe dosage was determined as 2800 mg/day (I assume 60 percent concentration, the most common concentration used in supplements, but the abstract didn’t specify). Of course, research is ongoing. [8] [9] [10]

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Word On The Street About Garcinia Max Slim

To be frank, there isn’t any. Probably because this is a scam. But I didn’t even find any mentions on sites like PissedOffConsumer.com, so either this is a relatively new version of the scam, or maybe this one just hasn’t pulled unsuspecting folks in yet.

“…most of the side effects people experience are from multi-ingredient supplements”

But in general G. cambogia supplements have mediocre reviews, because their effects are fairly mild. We’d all dearly love for there to be a miracle pill, but unfortunately there just isn’t. Healthy eating, regular exercise, stress relief in whatever way works for you—these are the tried-and-trues, for good reason. They work. G. cambogia supplements might give you a little extra help, but they’re not going to carry you.  And as noted in the science section, most of the side effects people experience are from multi-ingredient supplements, combining G. cambogia with things like potassium, calcium, chromium, magnesium, green tea extract, and/or green coffee extract. So it’s probably best to find a single-ingredient supplement with the 60 percent HCA (some can go as high as 95% concentration), and stick to that maximum safe dosage of 2800 mg per day.  Every supplement affects every individual differently. Gender, age, genetics, pre-existing medical conditions, and individual body chemistry—as unique as a fingerprint—can affect how a supplement works on you. That’s why supplements always add that “individual results may vary” disclaimer, and it’s why reviews for a drug or supplement can be all over the spectrum. Only you and your doctor can figure out how it works for you, so always be forthcoming and transparent with your doctor about side effects you experience, as well as if the substance doesn’t seem to be doing anything for you.

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The Bottom Line: Is Garcinia Max Slim Worth A Try?

Definitely not. Any time you see one of these “trial offer” ads—and they all look remarkably similar, right down to the same model in a white bikini—just close the tab. You can walk into Walgreens and pick up a hundred-count, single-ingredient, 60 percent G. cambogia supplement for under $20. All these trial offer scams do is suck your wallet dry.

2.2 Total Score
Garcinia Max Slim Scorecard

Quality
2.5
Value
2.5
Satisfaction
1.5
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