Losing weight is a struggle. You might stick with a tough diet and exercise plan and finally start seeing results. But before you know it, the weight comes back.
If you’re tired of this cycle, it might be time to try something new. There’s a unique way that might help you lose weight, and it’s not a pill or powder.
It’s Thrive® Patch.
How Do Weight Patches Like Thrive® Patch Work?
Weight loss patches work by having your skin absorb the contents instead of taking them orally. You can put on a patch and then go about your regular business.
Patches are popular because they’re easy. You don’t need to worry about taking your supplement with you–or remember to take it at the right time. Because the ingredients in a patch go through your skin, you won’t experience digestive or stomach upset the way you might with pills or supplements.
Weight loss patches use natural ingredients and nutrients as a way to encourage weight loss. Some of them contain a natural stimulant like green coffee bean extract, which has been shown in several studies to be associated with weight loss.
Other ingredients are intended to speed up your metabolism, which encourages your body to burn calories faster.
Patches can also work by including appetite suppressants.
For instance, garcinia cambogia is a popular natural ingredient that may help lower your appetite. It may also prevent carbohydrates from turning into fat.
What is Thrive® Patch?
Thrive® Patch is manufactured by the company Le-Vel.
In addition to the original Thrive® patch, Le-Vel produces two other patch products: Thrive DFT Ultra and Black Label DFT.
The Ultra version has an 82 percent larger surface area than previous versions and a slightly different formula. Black Label DFT is a newer patch product designed to work well in combination with other Thrive products.
In this review, we’ll focus on the original Thrive® patch.
The patch line is called Thrive® DFT, which stands for Derma Fusion Technology.
Thrive® DFT has the following natural ingredients:
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Green Coffee Bean Extract
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Garcinia Cambogia
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CoQ10
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White Willow Bark
It also includes two patented ingredients:
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ForsLean®
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Cosmoperine®
The Science Behind Thrive® Patch
Thrive Patch uses a mixture of commercial and natural ingredients.
ForsLean®
ForsLean® is a proprietary blend of Forskolin root extract or Coleus forskohlii. It is a registered trademark of Sabinsa Corporation.
ForsLean® offers coleus forskohlii extracts in concentrations of 1, 20, 40, 95, and 98 percent. They also create soft extracts in 10 and 20 percent for soft-gel products.
The manufacturers of Thrive® Patch don’t disclose which concentration is present in their product. However, it’s likely that they use a soft-gel variety.
Coleus forskohlii extract contains Adenylate cyclase enzymes, which are present in many varieties throughout the body. This enzyme is important in regulating cells.
Several studies have been conducted on ForsLean® for weight loss. The pilot study studied six overweight women who received 50 mg a day with 10% forskolin.
While maintaining their regular physical exercise routines and eating habits, the women experienced decreases in body weight and fat content.
They also saw an increase in lean body mass.
Other studies on ForsLean® reveal similar results. Participants see decreased fat, body weight, and BMI.
Cosmoperine®
Cosmoperine is another product from the Sabinsa Corporation and is part of the Thrive DFT formula. It’s created from piperine, a molecule in black pepper that protects cells from harmful enzymes.
Piperine improves bioavailability, increasing the body’s capacity to absorb drugs and nutrients through the skin. This quality makes it useful for a weight loss patch.
The patent for Cosmoperine® cites studies that indicate its effectiveness. One study tested how well the product helped participants absorb an anti-inflammatory drug. Cosmoperine® decreased the time it took for the drug to diffuse by 20 minutes.
Another study on bioavailability found that the supplement improved the absorption of forskolin, making Cosmoperine® a well-suited complement for ForsLean®.
Green Coffee Bean Extract
Green coffee beans are simply raw coffee beans that haven’t yet been roasted. Since they haven’t gone through the roasting process, they contain a high amount of chlorogenic acid.
Chlorogenic acid has health benefits that make it ideal for weight loss products. A study on rats revealed that taking chlorogenic acid increased the ability to burn fat and resulted in weight loss.
In mice, chlorogenic acid improved the rodents’ fat metabolism. It was also effective at reducing overall obesity.
Green coffee bean extract has thermogenic properties. It raises your body temperature and metabolism. The effect is that your body burns fat calories more efficiently and at a faster rate.
A human study on chlorogenic acid tested different types of coffee. Researchers used regular instant coffee, decaf, and chlorogenic acid-enriched coffee.
The coffee with chlorogenic acid produced changes in the way the body absorbed glucose or sugars. Researchers concluded that over time, these changes could reduce body mass and body fat.
Green coffee bean extract is a stimulant, but the amount of caffeine present is lower than what you’d find in a cup of coffee. It’s enough to provide a small boost but isn’t overpowering for people sensitive to caffeine.
Garcinia cambogia
Thrive® Patch also contains garcinia cambogia, a fruit found in tropical regions. The extract has effects that can contribute to weight loss.
The main active ingredient in Garcinia cambogia is hydroxy citric acid.
Garcinia cambogia acts as an appetite suppressant by increasing feelings of fullness. It’s safe and has no serious adverse effects. One study concludes that humans can safely take 2800 mg daily.
Although Garcinia cambogia can suppress your appetite, studies are conflicted on whether the supplement can help you lose weight.
Participants in one study found that overweight participants did not lose weight after taking Garcinia cambogia for two weeks.
CoQ10
CoQ10, or coenzyme Q10, is a naturally occurring molecule in the body that turns calories into energy. Sometimes CoQ10 is also listed as ubiquinone.
CoQ10 is good for heart health. It can help in preventing blood clots and also has antioxidant properties to protect the body from free radical damage.
Studies suggest that CoQ10 may also improve exercise performance. A 14-day study looked at the effects of CoQ10 supplementation on physical activity and performance.
The study tested both trained and untrained participants or those who followed a regular fitness routine and those who did not. For both groups, a coenzyme Q10 supplement allowed the participants to exercise longer before they reached exhaustion.
White Willow Bark
Since ancient times, human beings have used white willow bark to relieve pain, inflammation, and fever. Today some of the reasons people use this supplement are to treat headaches, back pain, and osteoporosis.
Willow bark is valuable in athletic performance and weight loss supplements primarily because it relieves pain, allowing for more intense and prolonged exercise, and anti-inflammation. The role it plays in Thrive Patch is not made clear.
Researchers examined the effectiveness and safety of using a white willow bark supplement. They found no significant side effects in the study’s participants.
The greatest risk posed was to individuals who might be allergic. Most people sensitive to salicylate, a compound present in the bark, should avoid taking this supplement.
Reviews: What People Are Saying About Thrive® Patch
Reviews on Thrive® Patch are mixed. There seems to be a roughly even split between those who benefitted from the product and those who experience no effect or mild but unpleasant side effects.
Most users agree that the patch gives them an energy boost, allowing for more physical activity and exercise. This alone, may help burn calories and lead to weight loss.
Others also note that the product helps relieve pain, especially when related to inflammation, as is the case with arthritis pain. We attribute this to the willow bark.
Here’s one user’s positive experience with the Thrive® patch:
Among the users who dislike the product, a few individuals experienced what appear to be allergic reactions, including itchiness and rashes.
“I’ve been on the patch, shake and pills for five days. The first two days I feel a huge difference in my energy! I felt unstoppable. But the last three days I have been getting significantly dizzy and nauseous. I don’t have much of an appetite at all and when I do eat I just want throw it up.”
–Diet Spotlight
“I have seen great results. I have lost 10 pounds in 12 weeks and I can walk down stairs without having to hold on the railing. This might not seem much, but if you have severe arthritis you will understand.”
-Healthy Compare
“Unfortunately, I have tried everything I can think of, including thorough cleansing before application, and I continue to get a raw square that takes 7 days to heal, so I am giving up on the patch. I should mention my first two weeks, I never had an issue, but after that, it has not been good, lots of itching, lots of weeping, irritated skin –tried multiple locations on all four appendages over the past four weeks. I have never been allergic to anything.”
–Supplement Geek
What Can You Expect from Thrive® Patch?
The primary benefit of Thrive® Patch is weight loss and weight maintenance. The nutrients in Thrive® Patch also have other positive claims such as:
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Increased mental concentration and sharpness
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Greater ease in managing appetite
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Higher energy
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Improved circulation
While most users don’t experience any serious side effects, there are some minor effects you may notice.
Even though there isn’t much caffeine content, some users report feeling jittery and unable to sit still. Representatives of the company typically attribute this to a “detoxifying” process, but it is more likely related to the caffeine in the product.
The most serious risk is for people who may have an allergic reaction to the product.
Since the product is a patch, a few users find it irritating on their skin. Sometimes this problem can be resolved by thoroughly cleaning the application site before applying the patch.
Using Thrive® Patch
Place the Thrive® Patch on a lean area of the body. Examples include the inside or outside of the bicep, shoulders, forearm, or the top of the buttocks.
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Before applying a Thrive® Patch, clean the area to remove any dirt or dead skin cells.
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Remove the backing on the patch and place the adhesive side onto your skin.
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You can leave the Thrive® Patch on your skin for up to 24 hours. However, make sure to replace your patch every day.
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Apply the patch to a different area of the body every day or every other day. Rotating your patch placement will help your skin remain healthy and reduce the likelihood of a rash or irritation.
Thrive® Patch should produce results on its own. However, you should eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly to maximize weight loss.
The company recommends using Thrive® DFT every day, alongside other products in the Thrive® line for best results.
Published Studies
There are no studies on the Thrive® Patch product. So we’ll examine the effectiveness of ForsLean®, green coffee bean extract, and Garcinia cambogia.
A Study on ForsLean® (Forskolin) For Overweight and Obese Men
This study examined how forskolin could affect body composition and hormonal changes. Scientists recruited 30 overweight and obese men.
For 12 weeks, they took a 250 mg of ForsLean® dose twice a day. The results revealed that ForsLean® supplements significantly increased lean body mass and decreased body fat.
Studies on Green Coffee Bean Extract for Weight Loss
A meta-analysis on green coffee bean extract and weight loss reviewed clinical studies on the topic that met their established criteria. All the studies analyzed were randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled.
The studies revealed that green coffee bean extract supplements were able to decrease BMI, fatty deposits, overall fat mass, and body mass in overweight or obese participants.
Despite positive effects on weight loss, researchers recommend more studies into this area to further establish the supplement’s effectiveness.
Garcinia Cambogia (Hydroxycitric Acid) as a Potential Anti-Obesity Agent
Scientists in this study looked into whether Garcinia Cambogia and its active ingredient hydroxycitric acid could be an effective treatment for obesity.
The study included a total of 135 participants who were either obese or overweight. Over a period of 12 weeks, the test group took a daily dose of 1500 mg of hydroxy citric acid.
Both the placebo and test groups lost weight. The group who took hydroxy citric acid didn’t lose significantly more weight or body mass than participants in the placebo group.
The study could not conclude that Garcinia cambogia would be an effective treatment for obesity.
Critical remarks
Thrive® Patch has no clinical studies or evidence to prove that the product is effective. Studies on the ingredients show mixed results.
Companies like Le-Vel aren’t required to have FDA approval, but they do need to report cases of adverse health effects related to their product.
Since the company started in 2013, there have been 16 cases that resulted in serious adverse effects on users’ health.
One of these cases involved hospitalization, while two required an emergency room visit.
Some of the issues that arose were abdominal pain, headaches, and high blood pressure.