Seeking evidence-based appraisal of BioTechUSA “fat burner” formulations (e.g., Black Burn, Thermo Drine, Super Fat Burner) across EU markets. I am interested in mechanistic plausibility, real-world effectiveness, and safety signals beyond what would be expected from caffeine alone.
Key questions for discussion:
- Ingredient transparency and lot variability: Have users or labs quantified actual actives (caffeine, catechins/EGCG, capsaicinoids, synephrine absence/presence, L-carnitine, CLA, chromium, choline/inositol, L-tyrosine, iodine) via third-party assays (HPLC/LC-MS)? Any notable reformulations by country or year?
- Incremental efficacy over caffeine: In controlled or quasi-controlled settings, do these products produce materially greater thermogenesis, lipolysis, or fat-mass reduction than a matched caffeine dose? Effect sizes observed in RCTs or well-logged n-of-1 trials?
- Chronopharmacology and wearable-derived endpoints: How do timing and co-ingestion (fasted vs fed, pre-exercise vs rest days) influence outcomes and tolerability (sleep disruption, HRV suppression, resting HR, blood pressure)? Any reproducible patterns from Oura/WHOOP/Garmin data streams?
- Gene-x-supplement interactions: Differences by CYP1A2 (caffeine metabolism) or COMT (catechol clearance) genotypes; interactions with smoking status, oral contraceptives, SSRIs/SNRIs, or thyroid medications? Any clinician-observed cases to inform risk stratification?
- Appetite and energy-expenditure pathways: Evidence that non-caffeine constituents (e.g., EGCG, capsaicin, carnitine, HCA/garcinia, chromium) materially affect satiety, NEAT, or substrate utilization in free-living conditions?
- Hepatic and cardiometabolic safety: Any liver enzyme elevations temporally associated with green tea extracts within these formulas; tachyarrhythmias or hypertension with thermogenic blends; electrolyte disturbances with paired diuretic products (e.g., “Desert”) that could confound “weight loss” via fluid shifts?
- Thyroid axis considerations: Do any current SKUs include iodine/kelp or high-dose tyrosine, and have users with subclinical hyper-/hypothyroidism noted thyroid function test perturbations?
- Measurement rigor: For those reporting success, how was body composition assessed (DEXA, multi-frequency BIA with controlled hydration, skinfolds) and over what timeframe? How were confounders (dietary deficit, training load, glycogen status, diuresis) controlled?
- Regulatory and quality: Alignment of label claims with EFSA-authorized health claims; adherence to EU guidance on green tea catechin exposure. Any Certificates of Analysis or contaminant screens (PDEs, pesticide residues, adulterants)? WADA/anti-doping considerations for tested athletes.
Requests to the community:
- Post lot-specific ingredient panels and, if available, third-party lab reports.
- Share adverse events and objective data (vitals, LFTs, HRV) with timing relative to ingestion.
- Point to peer-reviewed studies or robust preprints examining these or compositionally similar blends, especially head-to-head versus caffeine-only comparators.
The goal is to determine whether any BioTechUSA fat burner delivers clinically meaningful, reproducible fat-mass reduction with an acceptable safety margin, and to identify subgroups or usage patterns (if any) where risk-benefit is favorable.