- Yerba Mate: Also known as Brazilian tea, yerba mate is an herbal extract from the dried leaves of Ilex paraguariensis, a South American evergreen shrub [4].
- Damiana: The extract damiana comes from Turnera diffusa, a small shrub that grows in North and South America.
- Guarana: The Latin name for guarana is Paullinia cupana, a fruit-bearing plant that hails from the Amazon basin.
- Caffeine: This stimulant is the most popular psychoactive drug in the world. It occurs in various natural substances and can be manufactured synthetically too [5].
- Vitamins B3 and B6: These micronutrients occur naturally within different foods (e.g., fish, leafy green veggies, dairy, etc.) [6].
Yerba Mate
Ilex paraguariensis or matė often features in weight loss supplements, and for a good reason. It enhances metabolism, satiety, and mood, especially when combined with exercise [7].
Yerba Mate reduces food intake through appetite suppression [8].Other advantages include lowered cholesterol and blood sugar. I was considered pre-diabetic before I lost weight. My sugar levels decreased significantly after a couple of weeks on Zotrim.
At a cellular level, this plant extract reduces inflammation [9]. It can also positively influence your insulin response, which plays a major role in weight gain. Yerba Mate is also a very potent antioxidant [10].
It’s proven effective as an anti-obesity agent, too. One study revealed participants supplementing with yerba for 12 weeks lost significantly more fat than those who didn’t [11].
Damiana
Damiana is traditionally known as an herbal aphrodisiac — but that’s not why it’s in Zotrim. This plant extract can leave you feeling fuller for longer, especially alongside guarana and maté.
Overweight individuals taking an herbal preparation, including damiana, lost roughly 11lbs within less than two months. The mixture significantly slowed gastric emptying, or how much time it takes for food to pass from your stomach to your small intestine [12].
Rapid gastric emptying can make you feel hungrier quicker, which is why herbs like damiana are accomplished appetite suppressants [13].
Damiana can also inhibit aromatase, an enzyme that relates to estrogen production. In both men and women, aromatase inhibition can aid with weight loss [14][15][16].
Guarana
This Brazilian herb revs up metabolism, promoting weight loss. It also has anti-adipogenic properties — meaning it can prevent fat cells from forming in the first place [17]. Guarana is also a stimulant, roughly four times stronger than caffeine. Matė contains between 19 to 28 grams of caffeine, depending on the extract.
Guarana, taken for decades by natives in the Amazon region, could also promote longevity [18]. The extract contains antioxidants that encourage certain anti-aging processes in the body [19]. As obesity can shorten your life, this feature appeals to a formerly overweight person like myself [20].
Caffeine
Caffeine is our go-to remedy for plummeting energy, and Zotrim boasts 75 milligrams per serving.
It can increase energy expenditure while decreasing energy intake (how much food you eat), which translates to weight loss. Caffeine is also thermogenic and promotes fat burning [21][22]. It also suppresses leptin, the hormone responsible for hunger.
Research shows that doubling up on your consumption could lower weight, torch body fat, and lower body mass index (BMI) twofold [23]. Continued caffeine consumption can also help with weight maintenance; this means keeping off the pounds you lose [24].
A dose of caffeine before a long session at the gym could enhance your endurance [25]. A few days on Zotrim and the paralyzing lethargy that discouraged me from exercising began to improve, and I didn’t feel as wiped out after a workout as I used to.
Vitamins B3 and B6
The eight types of vitamin B work to support crucial processes, like red blood cells’ development and how your body turns food into energy [26].
Chronic fatigue is a potential warning that you’re missing these important micronutrients [27]. Since B vitamins regulate how your body amasses energy, too little can cause an energy slump. Vitamin B deficiency also correlates with a higher body mass index (BMI) [28].