A new probiotic supplement that can also fight the flab has been introduced to the weight loss market. ProVen Probiotics say that ShapeLine can help you lose weight and improve gut health. What do we think? Read our review.
ShapeLine Summary: A probiotic supplement containing 50 billion live strains of good bacteria. Can improve gut flora, digestion and immune system.
The current marketing tactic appears to be aimed at the weight loss market. Advertorial content is circulating with headlines such as “Can ShapeLine fight your flab?”
It possibly can, as weight loss can be a byproduct of a healthy gut.
Recommended: If you want my advice then look closely at PhenQ – a natural diet supplement that offers multiple weight loss benefits.
Table of Contents
What is ShapeLine?
ShapeLine is one of several probiotic supplements distributed by Pro-Ven Probiotics.
The company was founded in 2012 by Dr Nigel Plummer. At the time he had more than a decade of research under his belt.
To this day, Dr Plummer continues to be considered one of the leading experts in the field of probiotics.
Pro-Ven Probiotics offers quite a diverse range of probiotic products. It’s the only kind of supplement it does.
The company even has specialized probiotic supplements for kids.
However, if you reading this article it’s probably ShapeLine you are most interested in learning about.
Thanks to the results of a study published in a respected scientific journal and the subsequent press coverage, a lot of people are wanting to know what ShapeLine is and what it can do.
Probiotics are popular. There’s no getting away from that.
Many people include probiotic yogurts and similar dairy products in their diet.
Probiotic supplements tend to be a less popular option, but plenty of people still buy them and interest in this type of supplement is steadily increasing.
Although probiotics are associated with many health benefits such as relief from eczema and improvements in mental health, people are making a noise about ShapeLine for a less likely reason.
Perhaps you already know it. ShapeLine is marketed with the promise that the probiotic bacteria strains it provides will help you to lose weight.
ShapeLine and Weight Loss: How Good Is It?
Perhaps you’ve already read the Daily Mail article about ShapeLine. If you have that may be the reason you ended up here.
The article reads more like an advertorial than a serious attempt at journalism.
It contains enough information to arouse curiosity but it’s hard to take it seriously when it appears to be giving you the hard sell.
The Daily Mail article states ShapeLine is the first probiotic to offer proven weight loss to people.
It also hints it may help you shed pounds without the need for calorie-counting or exercise.
After a push like that, it’s no wonder people are wanting to know more.
So what’s the truth about ShapeLine? Does it really work?
The truth is, research suggests this pill-type probiotic may help some people to lose weight. It may lower cholesterol and provide other desirable benefits too.
Don’t jump and down with joy too quickly though. All of the studies to date have been conducted by Dr Plummer and his team. That means there could be some bias there.
If you really take some time to examine the research and let the results sink into your brain, you will realize ShapeLine is not a particularly powerful product.
Although it helped one person to lose 11 pounds, the majority of test participants only lost 3 pounds and it took them six months to do it.
No worries there. Any and all weight loss is good but by Dr Plummer’s admission: “If you are expecting to lose a stone in two months, this is not going to happen.”
He also states the amount of weight people lose with ShapeLine can decrease after they’ve been taking it for six months.
A Look at the Scientific Evidence
Plummer and his team did the first study in 2018 and the results of a more recent one appeared in the journal Scientific Reports.
ShapeLine faired very well in all the studies. It did what it’s supposed to do in as much as it helped people to lose weight. However, though interesting, the results were anything but staggering.
One of the studies had 440 participants. It’s apparently the largest study of its kind. Half got a placebo, the rest got the probiotic treatment.
The important thing to be aware of is none of the participants modified their normal diet or tried to eat less.
Nor did they attempt to exercise any more than normal. All they did was pop the pills they were given and hope for the best.
Not a lot happened with the placebo group. None of them lost weight. However, the probiotic group lost an average of three pounds.
That sounds great and it would be great for a one-week study but Plummer’s study had a duration of six months.
However, apart from losing weight, the probiotic group also showed a reduction in cholesterol. There was also a 30 percent reduction in headaches and fewer problems with chest infections.
Don’t take this too lightly because of the lack of weight loss. The study shows ShapeLine may offer additional benefits for the health.
It’s also worth noting the study results suggest ShapeLine may offer extra value if you are over 50-years old. Although the average weight loss was only three pounds, some of the participants who were aged 50+ lost up to seven.
Of course, if some of the participants lost seven pounds against an average of three, that means some of them must have lost less than three pounds during their six probiotic months.
More than Bacteria: The ShapeLine Ingredients
ShapeLine provides 50 billion live bacteria per capsule. The main ingredient is Lab4. It’s a proprietary blend of probiotic bacteria created by Dr Plummer. He uses it in many of his other products.
The formulation also contains an additional bacteria. It’s called Lactobacillus plantarum. Plummer combined it Lab4 because he wanted to create high-strength, multi-strain product.
The other three ingredients are zinc, Vitamin C, and Vitamin D. All three can boost immune function and invigorate the body.
The Role of Probiotic Bacteria (Why You Need It)
Some people call it probiotic bacteria flora. Others refer to its a “good bacteria.” It lives in the gut alongside other strains of less desirable bacteria.
There’s an ongoing battle between these two opposing bacterial forces. If the bad bacteria gets the upper hand the health can suffer.
One of the things the bad bacteria can do is slow your metabolism. If this happens you may struggle with your weight.
When you top-up your levels of good bacteria, the bad bacteria has an extra fight on its hands and its numbers decrease. This can benefit the health in many ways and may set you on the right track for becoming slim.
Plummer and his team believe ShapeLine may offer additional benefits by boosting bile production. So far this sounds more like speculation than fact but bile does help your body to burn fat.
Some experts say topping up your probiotic bacteria may also help with eczema and allergy symptoms.
Other benefits may include:
- Protection against type 2 diabetes
- Improvements in mood
- A healthy heart
The Risks You Need to Know About
Most good things in life have a flip life. Probiotic bacteria is no different. The first thing to know is it’s unwise to take probiotics if you are using antibiotics.
Doing so will only give your medicine extra bacteria to fight. This may render it less effective for tackling the problem your doctor prescribed it for.
Consuming probiotic bacteria is also unwise if you have immune deficiency, or any other condition that interferes with immune function.
Good bacteria is still bacteria. If you are in a weakened state it may make you ill.
It’s not just diseases though. Certain treatments, such as chemotherapy can weaken your immune system.
If you have health issues the best course of action is to seek medical advice before using ShapeLine.
The same goes for alternative probiotic products. And yes, that includes yogurts too.
Even if your health is relatively good, it’s not unusual to have problems with gas, diarrhea, bloating, or other stomach issues when you first begin a probiotic treatment.
Fortunately, such problems tend to diminish as your body adapts to the presence of extra bacteria.
ShapeLine: Some Additional Considerations
A product like ShapeLine can get a lot of attention for all the wrong reasons. Some people may find it attractive because they believe it may help them to lose weight without modifying the habits that made them overweight in the first place.
Although the test group lost weight without making dietary changes, that doesn’t guarantee other people will do it too. Losing weight needs to begin with the right mindset. A healthy diet should always come first. Skip it at your own peril.
It’s also worth considering how much weight the study participants would have lost if they’d taken the supplement alongside diet and exercise. It seems probable it would have been more.
Consultant gastroenterologist and a professor of medicine Peter Whorwell, has very definite feelings on the subject.
He says ShapeLine may work but people shouldn’t see it as a carte blanche to “stuff themselves.” Whorwell, who works at Manchester University NHS Trust, also points out ShapeLine is unlikely to work for all.
