Plexus has been around for what seems like a really long time. And although I’ve reviewed it twice already, I feel like it’s time for an update. People continue to message me about it, which leads me to think that it’s still popular. I’m not sure why, and you won’t be either, once you finish this Plexus review.
Since I’m assuming that many of you are here to find out about Plexus’ weight-management products, this Plexus review is about those, plus Plexus Triplex.
What is Plexus Triplex?
Triplex is three products: Bio Cleanse, which I cover below; ProBio5, which is a probiotic; and Slim Microbiome Activating, another version of the Slim Hunger Control product below.
Here’s the thing:
Science doesn’t know what the ideal microbiome is for any of us.
Science hasn’t isolated any microbes that, in abundance, will result in weight loss.
Most of us don’t need to take any probiotics whatsoever (I wrote about that, here).
Gut health is big business, but the vast majority of gut health products – especially those promising to ‘heal the gut’ or, promising weight loss – are garbage. We just don’t have the evidence to support taking any of these products for these things.
Companies like Plexus use vague marketing terms like, ‘calorie-smart fiber,’ ‘feeds beneficial microbes,’ and ‘supports X’ – but without further explanation, nuance, and proof, none of these terms mean anything. So please beware.
Plexus weight loss products
What is Plexus Slim? AKA Plexus Pink Drink
Plexus claims that this product:
- Clinically demonstrated to help you lose weight*
- Helps to reduce hunger*
- Supports enhanced satiation and satiety*
- Supports hydration by encouraging you to drink more water*
- Supports healthy glucose metabolism*
Slim Hunger Control is primarily polydextrose: a fiber that may increase feelings of fullness. It also has our usual suspects of green coffee bean and garcinia, and chromium.
I’m not sure what ‘clinically demonstrated’ means here, because there is no research at all on Slim. As far as polydextrose, like any fiber-rich food, it may do something to temper appetite if taken before meals. But saying that Slim is ‘clinically demonstrated’ to do these things? Not that I’ve found.
Chromium is a mineral that the body uses in insulin regulation. The thing is, unless you’re deficient in chromium – and deficiency is rare – it won’t greatly benefit your ‘glucose metabolism’. I see this claim a lot, but it’s false.
The dose of chromium you’re getting in your twice a day Slim Hunger Control is 400 micrograms total. For appetite effects, the dose that showed any efficacy in studies was 1000 micrograms. See how dose matters?
Still, you’re paying a premium for this and other ingredients which may not be effective in these amounts, and no, I don’t suggest you double or triple up your dose.
As far as the ‘Plexus Slim Blend’ of green coffee bean and garcinia, we know that these substances have no compelling evidence to suggest that they do anything at all for our appetite or weight. I’m actually not sure why companies continue to use those ingredients at all!
Plexus Bio Cleanse
This is just what it sounds like: another nutrition MLM cleanse that’s actually just a laxative.
Plexus says Bio Cleanse can:
- Helps cleanse the gastrointestinal tract*
- Helps reduce occasional gas, bloating, and GI discomfort*
- Helps promote regularity*
- Helps reduce unwanted microbes and substances*
- Relieves occasional constipation*
- Source of antioxidants*
- Contains Vitamin C to support immune function*
- Studies suggest Magnesium supplementation, as found in Bio Cleanse, may be associated with improvements in sleep quality in older adults*
Let’s get one thing straight: unless you’re having a colonoscopy, you don’t need to cleanse your GI tract. Your normal bodily functions ‘reduce unwanted microbes and substances’ just fine.
And the vitamin C claim? I’m pretty sure you’re not deficient in this vitamin, which is readily available in food.
Bio Cleanse is made up of magnesium, which makes us poop. Ever hear of Milk of Magnesia, that nasty white liquid that your grandparents probably took for their constipation? It’s magnesium hydroxide, which happens to be just what Bio Cleanse is.
The dose of this product is 4 capsules a day, equalling 1520mg of magnesium. The max dose of magnesium for constipation is 2 grams, meaning that the Bio Cleanse dose is surely going to have a laxative effect for most people.
Harmful microbes may be in poop, but that’s why poop exists – to get waste out of your body. Pooping itself detoxes us, so unless you’re chronically constipated – and most people aren’t – you don’t need Bio Cleanse at all. Nope.
Plexus Meta Burn.
Plexus claims that Meta Burn can “Reduce stubborn fat from hips, thighs and waist, and help support healthy energy and mood. Apparently, ‘MetaBurn delivers a fat-burning metabolism boost to help you achieve your weight management goals. You’ll notice better-fitting clothes and not to mention a mild energy lift, more positive mood and sharper mental focus.*'”
Nothing spot-reduces fat from certain areas of the body, and none of the ingredients in Meta Burn has ever been proven to increase metabolic rate.
Think about it: if fat burners worked, the weight loss industry would cease to exist. If you could just take a pill and burn your fat, why wouldn’t everyone be doing that?
BECAUSE IT DOESN’T WORK. NO FOOD, DRINK, OR SUPPLEMENT BURNS FAT.
Plexus Lean
Lean is a meal-replacement shake that checks all the latest buzzword boxes: Non-GMO; vegetarian; soy, gluten, and dairy free; ancient grains (QUINOA!), and no carageenan. None of that makes Lean any healthier, and neither do the copious vitamins and minerals it contains. Those are all things you’d get from solid food.
Even though there’s 20 grams of protein (vegetarian), 7 grams of fiber, and 7 grams of fat in Lean, there’s not much else to it. They threw some digestive enzymes in there (most of us don’t need those), plus the usual vitamins and minerals.
There’s 7 grams of sugar, along with stevia, to sweeten the deal. Most of these types of shakes taste a little like death, but I’ve never tasted Lean. Plexus says the shake “Provides energy for an active lifestyle”, but 230 calories for a meal is not really going to provide you energy for all that long.
You’re definitely going to lose weight if you cut calories by replacing meals with 230 calorie shakes, but do you think that’s a good idea?
HINT: it’s not. Cutting calories drastically may work for weight loss initially, but often results in rebound overeating and weight gain. What are you going to do when you want to transition off shakes to actual food?
Plexus Block
Block is Plexus’ supplement to ‘help metabolize carbohydrates’. Their site suggests that you can ‘enjoy more’ because this product is your ‘secret weapon’, but they don’t really go as far as to claim that Block ‘blocks’ anything. Smart move on Plexus’ part.
The dose is 2 caps before a carb-containing meal. So theoreticaly, if you eat carbs at every meal, you’ll be taking 6 caps a day. It contains our friend chromium, plus a brown seaweed blend and white kidney bean extract.
Brown seaweed has actually been shown to have an appetite reducing effect, but wait! This study gave subjects 4600mg of the seaweed before meals. With Block, you’re only getting 500mg. That’s a huuuuuuge difference, people. And though I suspect that the effect is not cumulative, even with 6 caps in a day, you’re only getting 1500mg.
Chromium has already been covered above, so I’m not going to say anything except ‘useless’.
White kidney bean extract is known to be a carbohydrate blocker that inhibits the digestion of starches. In two caps of Block you’ll get 200mg of this ingredient, but human studies used 1.5-6 GRAMS of it, and even those studies didn’t show statistically significant results for fat loss. Two of these studies were from the 80s, and all I have to say is this: if white kidney bean has been around for this long, and it was really and truly effective at fat loss, wouldn’t it be used as a legit weight-loss medication?
Think about it. As it stands, most people have never even heard of the stuff, and there’s a good reason for that.
Plexus Accelerator+
This is basically ANOTHER fat burner. It ‘helps jump-start your metabolic rate’, except that what we have is a proprietary blend of yerba mate (stimulant), 5-HTP, higenamine (stimulant), and hordenine (stimulant). The only purportedly effective ingredient here is the 5-HTP, which may help reduce appetite. The others may briefly increase metabolism, but not high enough or long enough to burn any significant calories resulting in weight loss.
Again, another scammy product. And because we don’t know how much of each ingredient is in the blend, we can’t assess if the 5-HTP is even at an effective dose.
Plexus Boost
Boost contains caralluma fimbriata, a cactus-type plant that historically has been used to suppress appetite during times of famine. There is one human study showing that it may effective in doses of 1g, and another study that was too short to show any weight loss effects. In other words, not exactly impressive data.
Boost has this ingredient, but it’s mixed with other things like green tea extract, yerba mate, and citrus – all in a total amount of 608mg.
You know what I’m going to say next, and that is: Even with the max daily two-cap dose, your total is just over 1200mg, but what percentage of that is actually caralluma? Hm. This seems to be a real pattern with Plexus.
Also telling is that Plexus warns not to take Boost with Accelerator+, because of their common stimulant ingredients.
The Research Behind Plexus
It looks like Plexus hasn’t done any research to prove the efficacy of their products. If I had a great product that worked really well, I’d at least do some research on it to prove my claims.
Is Plexus Worth It?
In case this Plexus review hasn’t convinced you, Plexus is about the same as every other nutrition MLM out there: Supplements with ingredients that are either not proven to do anything or, if they are, not in the concentrations that the products contain.
Always remember: If it worked, everyone would be at their ideal weight.
Cleansing does nothing. Carb blockers aren’t as effective as everyone wants them to be. Stimulants hop you up but don’t burn enough calories to be effective. There are a couple of possibly-effective ingredients in there, but we don’t know in what amounts.
Plexus is also super expensive.
Verdict:
Pass.
Thinking about trying the Modere Lean Body System? Read my review first.