Secret Shopper: What will help me lose more weight—green coffee bean extract or raspberry ketones?Secret Shopper: What will help me lose more weight—green coffee bean extract or raspberry ketones?

Natural Foods Merchandiser: What will help me lose more weight—green coffee bean extract or raspberry ketones?

Store:  Hmmm … I can’t really say which will work better. Both have been pretty hyped lately. Both have also been criticized. Dr. Oz shot them both into the spotlight, but there isn’t much science to back either one.

NFM: So neither is a good choice?

Store: Well, no, I wouldn’t say that. I’ve heard good things about both, but that’s in conjunction with healthy eating and exercise. I don’t believe any supplement can help you lose weight all by itself. If you want to try one, I’d suggest raspberry ketone, just because it doesn’t have caffeine.

NFM: Do I also need to eat a special diet?

Store: Generally, it’s recommended that you stick to whole foods and lots of raw fruits and vegetables, but that may be too big of a shock to your system, depending on your normal diet. There are some small books here [right next to the products] that cover more about diet if you’d like to look through them.

How did this retailer do?

Our expert educator: Heather Hausenblas, PhD, a healthy aging, diet and exercise researcher

The retailer is right about weight loss: There is no magic bullet. You need proper food choices, physical activity, hydration and stress management. But if shoppers want an extra bullet to give them a weight-loss boost, these supplements can help.

There is in fact plenty of research on both supplements. Some studies show that raspberry ketone may have fat-metabolizing effects. However, these are in vitro and animal studies. On the other hand, we do have substantial evidence from human trials that supports green coffee bean extract’s effectiveness for weight loss. And so based on the science, I’d say green coffee bean extract is the stronger suggestion. It actually has very little caffeine but is rich in chlorogenic acid, an antioxidant known to help maintain healthy blood sugar and blood pressure levels. When looking for a good green coffee bean extract supplement, shoppers should read the ingredients list to be sure a product contains chlorogenic acid extract, which can be listed as Svetol.