AtraFen Review: Powerful for Weight Loss or Just a Scam?

AtraFen is the next big weight loss supplement, which claims to balance hormones, boost the metabolism and suppress appetite. There are also thousands of glowing AtraFen testimonials that say it is powerful and effective.

This begs the question, does AtraFen really work? Or, is it just another weight loss supplement that does little at all? After all, positive responses aren’t always what they seem to be.

That's exactly what this AtraFen review aims to find out. 

To answer those questions, we're taking a look at the ingredients and research surrounding AtraFen, along with what the reviews actually mean.

AtraFen is produced by the company Nutratech Health LLC. Nutratech is based in Houston, Texas and mostly sells products online rather than in stores. 

Their site offers a range of information for customers, including a online support form. It is also possible to get in touch with them through social media. 

While the company doesn't have a direct sales program, they do have an affiliate program. This means that some of the reviews you see online may be biased by people trying to make money. That's not a dealbreaker - as many good companies have those programs too. 

Even so, it is a pattern to be aware of. 

The Product Selection

Nutratech sells four main products. These are all fairly similar, relying largely on plant-based extracts and avoiding artificial ingredients or stimulants.

All are easy to buy through Amazon or on the company’s website. The first is the basic weight loss pills, which are shown below.

Another is AtraFen PM, which has a different ingredients selection. The idea here is to promote sleep and melatonin is included for that reason.

The third product is AtraFen Thermodrops. This is a liquid product instead of a pill but the general style and ingredients choice are similar.

Finally, there is Orlistol, which is another supplement. The marketing suggests that this one can help block fat and carb absorption and storage. It’s also promoted as an alternative to Orlistat/Xenical.

I've seen other products from time-to-time as well, including AtraFen Elite, AtraFen Pro-3 and Nutratech Ultra Cleanse. In this review, I’m focusing mostly on the main product – AtraFen. These supplements have become extremely popular recently and many people want to know whether they work.

Even with all these products, many of the conclusions will apply to every item. After all, they’re produced by the same company and use similar types of ingredients. 

What AtraFen Offers

Basically, AtraFen is an herbal supplement and you take one pill per day. Doing so is meant to offer the following three benefits:

To offer these advantages, the supplement contains various plant-based compounds. Most of these relate to weight loss in some way, although the evidence isn’t always great.

The company claims that their products follow ‘real science’ and are based on research and evidence. Yet, despite this, the website doesn’t cite a single scientific paper. Whatever their evidence is, they don’t seem willing to share it.

If there is strong scientific research, why not link to them? By not citing research, the company just ends up looking suspicious.

What You Can Expect

So, assuming it works, what does the supplement offer?

The site suggests that women lose 7 to 12 pounds in their first month, while men lose 10 to 15 pounds. But, you have to follow ‘a basic diet and exercise regimen’.

That type of recommendation is true for any weight loss pill and it’s good general advice. Even the best weight loss supplement won’t melt the pounds away overnight. You still have to work for the results. Of course, you could lose that much weight in a month (or more) with a healthy lifestyle change.

AtraFen Ingredients

To know whether AtraFen actually promotes weight loss, we need to look at the ingredients and what the research has to say. The ingredients are:

First of all, raspberry ketones aren’t naturally produced. They are synthetically produced, mostly because they would be too expensive to extract (1,2). As Perfect Keto explains, the supplement isn’t relevant to the ketosis diet either, despite the name.

The significance of raspberry ketones is their molecular structure. This is similar to synephrine and capsaicin, both of which can improve the metabolism (3,4).

Some research does show that raspberry ketones can have similar effects (5,6). The compounds may also increase levels of adiponectin, a hormone that may help with weight loss and might protect against obesity (7,8,9).

But, the research has only been conducted in animals. Most studies have also used very high doses. Those doses may not even be safe in the long-term – and are much higher than what Atrafen offers. 

The main human study considered a combination of ingredients, including caffeine. Any one of those could have caused the weight loss (10).

You can check out the article by Examine.com if you want to learn more about raspberry ketones and the current state of research. 

Most of the interest in African mango extract comes from one 2005 study. This did find that overweight participants taking the supplement lost more weight (11). But, it was a small study with limitations (12).

Plus, the dose was 1.05 grams three times a day. That’s much more African mango extract than you would find in AtraFen.

A second study found weight loss benefits as well. This time, the dosage was just 150 mg twice per day and participants were overweight or obese (13).

The studies aren’t enough to prove a relationship, especially not for people with just a little weight to lose. As Examine.com points out, the studies weren't high-quality either. Many had significant flaws, which limit their conclusions. 

It’s also not clear how much African mango extract you get in AtraFen anyway.

Acai is best known as a source of antioxidants, not for weight loss benefits.

There have been few weight loss studies and most don’t show any weight loss impact (14).

Green tea extract is often promoted as a weight loss tool – and there is some evidence to support this. Most of the benefit comes from the caffeine that’s present, along with the compound EGCG. This helps to increase levels of norepinephrine, this then increases fat breakdown (15,16).

Research also suggests green tea can increase fat burning (17,18,19) and metabolic rate (20,21). But, it’s unclear how much difference green tea makes in terms of the actual weight you lose.

Most of the studies that have shown weight loss benefits only do so at very high doses (as Examine.com discusses). This is often 400 mg (or more) of EGCG equivalent each day. 

Supplements are typically around 50% EGCG. That suggests you may need close to a gram of green tea extract to see fat burning impacts. Even then, the outcomes are highly debatable. 

Personally, I’d always choose green tea itself over a green tea supplement, as tea tends to be beneficial in other ways. There also won’t be a large amount of green tea extract in a single 600 mg AtraFen capsule.

Regardless, it's very clear that the green tea extract in AtraFen is going to have a minimal effect - and may do nothing at all. 

Resveratrol is a compound found in red wine and in grape juice. Research suggests that it might boost the metabolism and fat mobilization, potentially improving weight loss (22,23,24). Resveratrol may also help stabilize blood sugar (25).

Once again though, the research has mostly been conducted in animals, not humans. There haven’t been many studies either.

This ingredient is simply caffeine – and the connection between caffeine and weight loss is well known (26,27,28). One reason is simply that caffeine is a stimulant and it can help to increase the metabolism.

Some people also find that caffeine suppresses the appetite, making it easier for them to eat less.

But honestly, we’re not short on sources of caffeine. Many of us drink coffee regularly, while others may even turn to caffeine supplements. So, the caffeine may be useful but it’s hardly an amazing selling point.

Apple cider vinegar has been linked to weight loss in the past – but it isn’t normally used as a powder. Instead, it is often taken as a shot or included in a healthy drink.

The strongest evidence comes from using apple cider vinegar to control blood sugar levels (29).

Even then, research is limited. Realistically, apple cider vinegar has potential in this field but there isn’t enough evidence yet.

As with green tea, I imagine that you’d get more benefits from using the vinegar itself, rather than a supplement that contains it. 

The popularity of kelp partly comes from a single compound that may reduce fat absorption (​​​​30). While the potential is there, this doesn’t mean you’re getting enough of the compound in kelp itself or in AtraFen.

Kelp is a good source of nutrients, including iodine and could promote health and weight loss in that way. Even so, the effects in AtraFen are likely to be small, especially as kelp is just one of the ingredients.

A good alternative would be spirulina. This is algae rather than kelp but it offers similar benefits and is nutritionally dense as well.

Grapefruit is often considered a weight loss food, especially first thing in the morning.

In part, this may be because of an enzyme that contributes to weight loss. But, the research is minimal – and shows more benefits from grapefruit juice or whole grapefruits than from powder (31).

Will the Pills Work?

Research does link some of these ingredients to weight loss. But, in most cases, the evidence is limited. Many of the studies were conducted in animals or with minimal sample sizes. Even when a weight loss impact was observed, it was often small.

The studies also focus on individual compounds, often using fairly high doses.

With AtraFen, you’re taking one 600 mg capsule each day. All of these ingredients are in that capsule but that's it. This is a key issue with ingredients in any proprietary blend. The label states what the ingredients are but gives no information about individual amounts.

This could mean that you’re not getting enough of most compounds to even see an effect.

With some products, reviews tell you everything. But, that’s not the case for AtraFen. One problem is that the responses vary dramatically.

Positive Reviews

In some places (like Amazon), the average rating is extremely positive, with the vast majority of people rating it highly. In fact, there are more than 2,000 verified 5-star reviews, which is incredibly impressive.

Many of them also sound realistic, even though they don’t all state whether the person lost weight. Sounds great, right?

But, the responses aren’t reliable. Instead, the company offers a free bottle to anyone who buys through Amazon and then leaves a 5-star rating (as one person points out). That’s why most of the 5-star reviews are verified purchases.

Some of the customers are also leaving ratings as soon as they get their first bottle, so they have no way to know whether the pills actually work.

The site Review Meta highlights this pattern by showing how many customers use the same phrasing and most don’t normally review on Amazon. That pattern is incredibly suspicious. People who do write genuine responses tend to do so for most of the products they buy, not just one item.

Some of those positive reviews are probably entirely legitimate. Even so, there’s no way to know what information is accurate. This means you cannot trust the AtraFen reviews on Amazon.

Negative Reviews

If the responses for AltraFen were consistently positive, then the Amazon distribution would be more believable. But, that’s not the case.

Instead, many sites rate the supplements poorly, suggesting that they don’t work at all. For example, Diets in Review gives the supplement an expert rating of 2 out of 5, while their user rating is a measly 36%. The site Diet Pills Watchdog also gives it a poor rating.

AtraFen is commonly sold on Amazon and most of the negative reviews can be found there too. Key concepts highlighted include:

None of those outcomes are encouraging.

From the reviews alone, it’s clear that AtraFen has side effects for some users.

One reason is simply the caffeine. For people who are sensitive, caffeine can contribute to shakiness or jitters. The same is true if your caffeine intake is high.

The other ingredients can also cause issues. For example, green tea can decrease the iron absorbed from food (32), while compounds in grapefruit and grapefruit powder interact with some medications (33).

In fact, most plant-based products have the potential for side effects and medication interactions. This means you need to be careful and stop taking the supplement if you experience any issues.

Also remember, most research into plant extracts considers them independently. There is much less evidence for taking many different ones at once and less still for this specific combination.

Where to Buy Atrafen

AtraFen is an online-only product, so you won’t normally see it in local stores. Even so, it’s easy to purchase.

The first option is on the company’s site, where you can buy 1-, 2- or 3-bottle packs.

Alternatively, you can look on Amazon. With Amazon, the prices change over time. But, the supplements are often less expensive.

Additionally, Amazon seems to be the only place where you can get a free bottle in exchange for a positive review. This works well if the pills do help you.

Final Thoughts

Personally, I’m not convinced. AtraFen is fairly expensive for what you get and there’s simply no evidence that it will work. Instead, countless other supplements use similar ingredients and the company doesn’t even reference scientific studies.

If you already have a healthy diet and want a little bit of an edge then AtraFen could possibly help. But, the results won’t ever be as amazing as the reviews suggest.

For most people, following a healthy lifestyle is a better option. I know this advice is given time and time again but it is true. Diet pills simply aren’t realistic in the long-term and their results are never dramatic.

In contrast, many people lose large amounts of weight on the ketosis diet. In fact, this diet often works even when others fail. One reason is that you still get to make amazing meals and the diet simply doesn’t feel restrictive. You even get to eat many of the ingredients that other diets cut out.

You can find out more about the style in our Understanding the Ketosis Diet post, which highlights some of the best tools, resources and support for beginners and also those with more experience.

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