6 min read
If you have a weight loss goal, there’s no shortage of social media posts that will overwhelm you with tips, tricks, and trendy products that promise to help you shed pounds in record time. One prime example? Weight loss patches.
In theory, weight loss patches, sometimes also called GLP-1 patches, can be applied to the body part you’re hoping to reduce (such as your belly, arms, or thighs), and they’re typically available through online retailers like Amazon, brands’ websites, and nutrition stores. Some patches also use “transdermal substance absorption,” which means they’re not dependent on the application site, and instead absorb through your skin to assist in general fat burning and accelerated metabolism, explains Dina Peralta-Reich, MD, an obesity medicine specialist and founder of New York Weight Wellness Medicine.
Meet the experts: Dina Peralta-Reich, MD, is an obesity medicine specialist and founder of New York Weight Wellness Medicine. Jorge Moreno, MD, is an internal medicine physician and obesity medicine specialist at Yale Medicine. Charlie Seltzer, MD, is a weight loss physician and exercise physiologist based in Philadelphia.
A sticker that delivers fat-burning or metabolism-boosting ingredients to your skin may sound too good to be true, and it is: In fact, these patches can actually cause adverse side effects, says Jorge Moreno, MD, an internal medicine physician and obesity medicine specialist at Yale Medicine. Plus, they’re not regulated by the FDA, so there’s no way of knowing exactly what is in these products.
I can’t blame you if you’re still curious about them, though. Ahead, here’s everything you need to know about weight loss patches, according to doctors.
How do weight loss patches work?
These patches are intended to work transdermally, which means the active ingredients go directly into the skin, bypassing your digestive system. That’s the key difference between patches and oral supplements you’d ingest, such as in pill or powder form, says Charlie Seltzer, MD, a weight loss physician and exercise physiologist based in Philadelphia.
Common ingredients found in these patches include berberine, green tea extract, and bitter orange extract (more on these in a minute). They also may include essential oils and other moisturizing ingredients for the skin. The instructions generally advise leaving a patch on for six to eight hours and using three to four times per week.
What ingredients are in weight loss patches?
This plant-based substance has been linked with weight loss. One 2022 review of studies in Frontiers in Nutrition on berberine supplementation for adults with cardiovascular disease risk found that supplementing it reduced weight and body mass index (BMI), as well as other metrics like cholesterol and blood pressure. Another 2025 review in the European Journal of Medical Research looked at berberine’s anti-obesity impact and found that several human and animal studies linked the compound with weight loss. However, more research needs to be done.
Cinnamon Extract
Cinnamon extract has similar benefits: In one 2023 study in J, overweight or obese patients either started a mildly hypocaloric diet with cinnamon bark and ashwagandha, or were in the placebo group, for four weeks. The group that took the supplements experienced significant weight loss. Additionally, a 2022 meta-analysis in the Journal of Food Biochemistry of studies on cinnamon as an anti-obesity agent found that cinnamon supplementation significantly decreased body weight. Again, though, more studies need to be conducted.
Green Tea Extract
Some research has suggested that caffeine may contribute to weight loss, and green tea extract supplementation specifically may help reduce body mass, body fat percentage, and BMI, according to a 2023 review of studies in the British Journal of Nutrition on the supp’s effects on body composition, obesity-related hormones, and oxidative stress markers. But it’s not a magic solution. And while green tea extract is generally pretty safe, green tea weight loss supplements have led to liver damage in rare cases, according to LiverTox, a National Institute of Health resource for physicians and patients about the safety of supplements.
Bitter Orange Extract
Bitter orange extract is found in some citrus fruits and contains synephrine, a stimulant with effects similar to ephedrine (a dangerous ingredient banned by the FDA for use in diet and sports supplements because it showed to have serious health risks like heart attack and stroke, resulting in deaths), according to a 2022 review of the safety and efficacy of bitter orange extract in Nutrients. While synephrine has been used to lose weight, the review found that the participants who took it did not experience significant weight loss, so further research is still needed.
Garcinia Cambogia
Garcinia cambogia is derived from the fruit of the Malabar tamarind tree native to Southeastern Asia. It’s typically used as a food preservative and flavoring agent, but garcinia cambogia has increasingly been used in weight loss products due to claims that it can block your body’s ability to produce fat and suppress your appetite in the short term, according to a 2021 study published in Nutrients. But again, more research should be done.
Do weight loss patches work?
Many of the most common active ingredients in these patches do rev heart rate or speed up metabolism—however, these effects tend to be very minimal. And because weight loss patches aren’t regulated by the FDA, it’s not possible to know the full extent of potential risks and side effects when you can’t gauge how much of certain ingredients are in the patch, and what other ingredients its packing.
“Unfortunately, there isn’t substantial research showcasing that the ingredients found in these patches are effective or have any benefit, even if they were delivered through the bloodstream,” says Dr. Seltzer. So no, these patches won’t help you slim down quickly, even if you’re exercising and eating well at the same time.
The main reason people tend to be optimistic about these patches is because of all the claims out there about trendy ingredients helping with weight loss, he explains. But from a physiological standpoint, a single ingredient (and in such small, sporadic amounts) simply can’t have an impactful effect on body fat and metabolism, he notes.
It’s also worth noting that the location where you apply the patch does not matter either, says Dr. Moreno. “If a transdermal patch was effective, it would work in any skin area, and location should not matter,” he explains. “If these patches had evidence of working for weight loss, I would be using them in my obesity medicine practice, however, there is no evidence that they work.”
Potential Side Effects Of Weight Loss Patches
Again, the FDA does not regulate dietary or weight loss supplements, including weight loss patches. As a result, adverse side effects such as nausea, headache, increased heart rate (a.k.a tachycardia), and skin irritation near the application site are possible, says Dr. Peralta-Reich.
Plus, because weight loss patches are unregulated, most have not been tested for safety and may contain harmful ingredients. “The key aspect regarding these patches is their assertion of being entirely natural, however, they sometimes contain a mixture of ingredients, including substances that might lead to tachycardia and other adverse effects,” says Dr. Peralta-Reich. “No scientific evidence supports their effectiveness in promoting weight loss, and as a standard practice, I do not usually recommend them.”
Always talk to your doctor if you have a weight loss goal, and especially before trying any type of weight loss patches or other products, says Dr. Seltzer. While patches probably are not harmful in most cases (because, again, they won’t do anything), they could be, and they likely aren’t worth your money at the very least.
At the end of the day, the most effective ways to lose weight are through a combination of exercise that’s fun for you as well as a healthy diet full of fiber and protein, and yes, real GLP-1s. If you are struggling to lose weight, talk with your doctor or a registered dietitian. From there, they can address your needs and come up with a game plan to reach your goals.
Emilia Benton is a Houston-based freelance writer and editor. In addition to Runner’s World, she has contributed health, fitness and wellness content to Women’s Health, SELF, Prevention, Healthline, and the Houston Chronicle, among other publications. She is also an 11-time marathoner, a USATF Level 1-certified running coach, and an avid traveler.
Andi Breitowich is a Chicago-based writer and graduate student at Northwestern Medill. She’s a mass consumer of social media and cares about women’s rights, holistic wellness, and non-stigmatizing reproductive care. As a former collegiate pole vaulter, she has a love for all things fitness and is currently obsessed with Peloton Tread workouts and hot yoga.
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