Do the Products Influencers Are Selling Work?

Allie Hargens first started trying to lose weight when she was in the sixth grade, going on the grapefruit diet, a fad diet that entails eating grapefruit at every meal. Since then, she’s cycled through all sorts of eating and exercise plans. But no matter what she’s done, Hargens, 34, says she’s struggled to lose that “last stubborn 15 pounds” — until she came across a product marketed as “GLP-1 patches,” playing off the current popularity of medications like Ozempic. The patches — which are marked as supplements, not medication — purport to aid in weight management appetite control; users are instructed to wear them continuously, changing them out every eight hours. Hargens ordered a pack and after a few weeks of using them, she noticed she was eating less and spending less time thinking about food. “I wasn’t going to rummage in the pantry even though I’m not actually hungry,” she says.

In recent years, a class of drugs known as GLP-1 agonists have become wildly popular for patients seeking to lose weight. Though the medication was originally developed as a diabetes drug, it’s been shown to be effective for a myriad of conditions, like polycystic ovarian syndrome and migraines. One study found that four percent of Americans are taking GLP-1s, which reflects a 600 percent increase in the last five years. Though GLP-1s  — which come in the form of a shot — seem to be a miracle drug for weight loss, they can come with a steep price tag, costing consumers $1,000 or more. According to both sellers and buyers on TikTok, people don’t have to foot that bill – instead, they can buy a pack of GLP-1 patches for around $13 a month and reap similar benefits. Though many people using the patches swear by their efficacy, experts question the supposed science behind the viral supplements and point toward a potential placebo effect.

The most popular brand of GLP-1 patches comes from Kind Patches, which also sells ‘Menopause Patches’ to balance hormones and ‘Love Patches’ patches to enhance mood and intimacy, among other offerings. Ingredients in Kind’s GLP-1 Patches include berberine, pomegranate, and L-glutamine extract, all of which have been shown to aid in the production of GLP-1, a naturally occurring hormone that regulates appetite. However, the doses of the ingredients in the patches aren’t anywhere near the amount that would be needed to have an effect on someone’s GLP-1 production, says Dr. Alyssa Dominguez, an endocrinologist at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine. “The doses are super off compared to anything that was in research studies, like they were giving people 8,000 times the dose of what is in the patch,” she says. The concept behind the patches is not backed by science, according to Dr. Dominguez, though given their price point, she can understand why people would want to give them a try. “I would recommend not spending any money on these because I don’t think they’re going to do anything meaningful,” she says. (The primary ingredient in the GLP-1 shots is semaglutide, an ingredient that is not present in the patches.)

When reached for comment, a representative for Kind Patches said that though they stood behind their product, they may not be universally effective. “While we’d love to guarantee that our patches work for everyone, it’s important to note that individual responses to any supplement or product, including our patches, can vary based on a person’s unique physiology, lifestyle, and specific sleep-related issues,” they said. Experts remain skeptical. “My suspicion would be that any benefit that somebody got from this would be much more likely due to a placebo effect than actual increased production of GLP-1,” says Dr. Dominguez. 

Studies have shown that many Americans distrust the pharmaceutical industry, and the wellness industry is only growing. Part of the allure of the patches, according to Dr. Diana Isaacs, an endocrine pharmacist at the Cleveland Clinic, is rooted in this suspicion of the pharmaceutical industry. “A lot of people believe supplements are more natural, so they’re healthier,” Dr. Isaacs says.

But across TikTok, users swear they’ve lost weight and gained control over their cravings thanks to the patches — though many of the people claiming this are also selling the patches, too. Stephanie Morales, a 40-year-old who lives in Wisconsin, had previously taken a GLP-1 shot for weight loss and experienced success, but her prescription was expensive and she worried about being dependent on the medication. “I’m nervous with shots and stuff like that. I wanted to do something more natural,” she says. In July, Morales bought a pack of patches through an influencer’s TikTok Shop and found that, when wearing them, she wasn’t eating as much as usual. “I didn’t really want to keep snacking like I used to,” she says. “It feels like you have control of your life.” Before, Morales was on a constant seesaw of overeating and then starving herself. Now, she says, her eating habits have leveled out, which she credits to the patches.

In addition to using the patches herself, Morales, like many of the people making content about the efficacy of the patches, is now selling them through TikTok Shop. “I sell hundreds a day,” she says, estimating that she makes between $200 and $300 every day on commission. In July alone she says she made $5,000. Another seller on TikTok Shop, who requested to remain anonymous, says she recently made $70,000 in one month off selling the weight-management patches. Hargens, who also sells the patches in addition to using them herself, says she doesn’t worry about a conflict of interest. “I shared the patches because I liked them,” she says. Morales says that sometimes people accuse her of only promoting products, including the patches, to make money. “But I only promote products that have worked for me,” she says. “There will always be negative comments and opinions, but you just have to work through it.” In the comments of TikTok videos, users share their own experiences with the patches, testifying that they’re eating less and losing weight. (Dr. Isaac remains unconvinced. “There’s no data to support these,” she says. “It’s a complete waste of money. Someone’s trying to make a quick buck off this.”)

Melissa Lagano, who is 45 and lives in Connecticut, didn’t struggle with weight management until after she had two children. For a while, she did Weight Watchers, but the program’s focus on tracking calories left Lagano with a disordered view of food. “I became really restrictive and just obsessed with every bite I took,” she says. She eventually started taking Tirzepatide, one of the GLP-1 agonist shots. While using the medication, she lost 20 pounds, but she didn’t want to be on medication forever. Lagano stopped taking Tirzepatide and turned to the GLP-1 patches to maintain her weight. “My weight has stayed steady,” she says. “I don’t know if it’s in my head or if it really is something that’s helping, but I’m not going to stop wearing them.” Hargens, the 34-year-old who’s long struggled with her weight, is similarly unbothered by the concept of her experience with the patches being chalked up to the placebo effect. “I don’t see that as a bad thing, even if it’s just in your mind.”