In the European list of authorised health claims, there is only one ingredient that can say on its label that it helps you lose weight: konjac glucomannan, and only under very specific conditions. Apart from that, the only product category with its own weight-related claim is meal replacements. Everything else sold as a fat burner, blocker or metabolic booster is not on that list.
That doesn't mean those products are illegal by definition. It means something more useful to know: that if they promise a result regarding your weight, they are saying on the label or in the advertisement something that the European Union has not authorised them to say. Here is the real list, where it comes from and how you can check it yourself in two minutes.
Food with the composition printed, not a capsule with a promise
Fitóniq is not a supplement: they are savoury dishes, smoothies and sweet options in pre-portioned servings, with the energy, protein, fibre and micronutrients on the label of each product. You can read exactly what you are putting on the table before buying it.
View the range and its labelsWhat does it mean that a product "has an authorised claim"?
In the European Union, a food or a food supplement cannot freely say whatever it wants about what it does in your body. Regulation (EU) 432/2012 establishes a closed list of permitted health claims. Each entry has three parts:
- The authorised phrase, with a specific wording that cannot be freely reformulated.
- The conditions of use: what amount the product must provide and what must be informed to the consumer for the claim to be valid.
- The mandatory warnings, when there are any.
If an ingredient is not on that list, there is no authorised claim. And one thing that is often misinterpreted: that an ingredient being on the list is not a promise of individual results either. It is an authorisation to say a phrase, with conditions.
Practical detail: the Spanish version of Regulation 432/2012 was corrected by Regulation (EU) 2017/1407, so it is advisable to consult the consolidated text and not an old copy.
What ingredients have an authorised claim related to weight?
Very few. This is the full picture, just as it appears in the current regulations.
| Ingredient or category | Authorised claim | Conditions to be met |
|---|---|---|
| Konjac glucomannan | "Glucomannan helps you lose weight when following a low-calorie diet" | 1 g of glucomannan per quantified serving. It must be stated that the effect is obtained with 3 g daily in three doses of 1 g, with one or two glasses of water, before meals, following a low-calorie diet. Mandatory choking hazard warning |
| Food substitutes for weight control | Own claim under Regulation (EU) 2016/1413 (reproduced below) | Strict composition requirements: energy per meal, proportion of protein, linoleic acid and minimum contribution of vitamins and minerals per replaced meal |
| Green tea and tea catechins | None on weight | EFSA did not establish a cause-effect relationship between their consumption and the maintenance of normal body weight |
| Garcinia cambogia and hydroxycitric acid | None | No authorised claim. There is also a report from the Scientific Committee of AESAN on risks associated with these supplements |
| L-carnitine, chitosan, raspberry ketone and similar | None on weight | They do not appear in the annex of Regulation 432/2012 with a weight loss claim |
A nuance that confuses many people: glucomannan appears twice in the annex, with two claims and two different amounts. One is about weight, with 3 g daily. The other is about cholesterol and requires 4 g daily. They are not interchangeable.
Glucomannan, by the way, is a soluble fibre and its mechanism is nothing exotic: it forms a viscous gel when hydrated. How fibre works in general we cover in fibre and weight loss.
And everything else? Green tea, garcinia, the usual fat burners
The case of green tea is well documented. The NDA panel of the EFSA, in its opinion published in EFSA Journal 2010;8(10):1791, evaluated green tea catechins in relation to the maintenance of normal body weight and did not establish a cause-effect relationship. That is why there is no authorised claim, and that is why no product can legally claim in Europe that green tea makes you lose weight.
Garcinia is a different and somewhat more serious case. The Scientific Committee of AESAN published a report on the risk associated with the consumption of food supplements containing Garcinia gummi-gutta as an ingredient, in which it concludes that there is sufficient clinical evidence to establish a causal association between its consumption and the development of acute liver injury, with improvement of liver function upon withdrawal of the supplement. It is public and verifiable information on the agency's own website, and it is worth knowing before buying.
With the rest of the catalog the pattern repeats: ingredients with attractive mechanistic stories, a press release, and no entry in the annex. If a product promises to "boost your metabolism", it is also advisable to read before what is known about a slow metabolism, because the premise is usually the problem.
Structure instead of capsules
What usually fails is not that a miracle ingredient is missing, but that by seven in the evening nothing is decided. The Fitóniq system is simple on purpose: 2 Fitóniq meals, 2 snacks and 1 traditional meal a day, without calculating or improvising.
See what the method consists ofHow do I check in two minutes if a product is selling me smoke?
You don't need to be a food safety technician. Four checks solve almost all cases.
| What to look for | Sign that things are going well | Sign that you should be suspicious |
|---|---|---|
| The phrase the product uses | Reproduces an authorised claim with its wording and its conditions | Invented phrases like "burn fat", "block carbs" or "speed up metabolism" |
| The amount per dose | Provides the amount required by the claim, indicated on the label | Mentions the ingredient without saying how much it contains, or it contains much less than required |
| The labeling | Complete composition, responsible company and contact details in Spain or the EU | Label only in another language, without an identifiable responsible party, bought by courier from outside the EU |
| The sales pitch | Explains what the product is and what it contains | Before and after photos, figures of kilos, testimonials and urgency |
That last point is the most immediate of all. A commercial communication cannot refer to the pace or magnitude of weight loss: Article 12 of Regulation (EC) 1924/2006 prohibits it. When an advertisement tells you how many kilos you are going to lose and in how long, you already know that whoever signs it either does not know the rule or has decided to ignore it. Neither of the two is reassuring.
And a check that costs little: the AESAN and the AEMPS publish alerts when they withdraw products from the market. In 2024, the withdrawal of several supplements marketed as weight loss products was ordered for containing undeclared sibutramine in the labeling, a substance suspended throughout the European Union since 2010. A product with an undeclared pharmacological active ingredient ceases to be a food supplement: legally it is a medicine sold as if it were not. Searching for the product name together with "AEMPS" or "AESAN" is a thirty-second check.
Where do food substitutes fit into all this?
In a separate category, and for a specific reason: they are not supplements, they are food. A food substitute for weight control must meet composition requirements set by Regulation (EU) 2016/1413, which go much further than providing an ingredient: energy per meal, proportion of protein over the energy value, linoleic acid, and a minimum contribution of vitamins and minerals for each replaced meal. Precisely for that it has its own authorised claim:
The replacement of two of the main meals of the day with a substitute in a low-calorie diet helps you lose weight.
It is important to maintain an adequate daily intake of liquids. These products are intended for use only as part of a low-calorie diet, in which other foods are a necessary part.
To achieve the claimed effect, two of the main meals of each day must be replaced by the corresponding substitute.
It is advisable to read that phrase carefully, because it says exactly what it says and not a word more. It talks about a low-calorie diet, in which other foods are still necessary, and about replacing two main meals. It is not an authorisation to promise results, nor does it anticipate what is going to happen to anyone in particular. Clinical trials have studied the use of food substitutes within low-calorie diets. The results of those studies do not allow us to anticipate the individual result of a person. We have them compiled on the clinical studies page.
Fitóniq offers pre-portioned servings and preparations ready in a few minutes, with several flavors among savoury dishes, smoothies and sweets. The energy, protein, fibre and micronutrients appear on the label of each product, so you can know its composition before incorporating it into your diet. The 12 products cost €23.99 per box of seven sachets, that is €3.43 per serving, with between 200 and 238 kcal per prepared serving depending on the product.
About protein: proteins help preserve muscle mass. This claim can only be used regarding foods that are, at minimum, a source of protein.
That said, they are not for everyone either, nor under any circumstances: we treat it honestly in are replacement smoothies suitable for everyone? and in how to choose a replacement smoothie without being disappointed.
If you are going to spend the money, let it be on prepared meals
A jar of capsules costs what it costs and does not solve any meal. Fitóniq plans organize the weeks with pre-portioned servings and the composition on the label, so you don't have to estimate portions or decide on the fly.
Compare the available plansFrequently asked questions
Is there any weight loss pill that is approved in Europe?
You have to distinguish two worlds. In the world of food supplements, the only authorised claim related to weight loss corresponds to konjac glucomannan, with strict conditions of dosage and use. In the world of medicines there are drugs approved by the European Medicines Agency, but they are subject to prescription and medical follow-up. If you are considering that route, it is a conversation with your doctor, not with an online store.
Do fat burners do anything?
None has an authorised weight loss claim in the European Union, which means that the presented evidence has not been enough to back up that claim. Some ingredients have measurable physiological effects in the short term, such as stimulants on the state of alertness, but that is not the same as an effect on body weight.
So what is it that actually changes the result?
The energy balance over time and, above all, your ability to sustain the pattern you have chosen. We develop it in the calorie deficit guide. It is not an exciting answer, but it is the only one that does not depend on a specific ingredient doing something that the regulations do not recognize.
Are food substitutes a type of supplement?
No. A food supplement provides concentrated nutrients and is taken in addition to the diet. A food substitute is a complete meal that replaces another and must meet the composition requirements of Regulation (EU) 2016/1413. They are different legal categories, with different obligations.
How do I know how much of an ingredient a product really contains?
By looking at the label, which is where the amount per recommended daily dose must be. If the ingredient appears in the package claim but not in the table with a specific amount, that is the answer. Reading labels with criteria is a skill that is learned quickly: we explain it step by step in how to read a nutritional label.
In summary
- In the annex of Regulation (EU) 432/2012, konjac glucomannan is the only ingredient with an authorised claim of helping you lose weight, with strict conditions of dosage, form of taking it and choking warning.
- Food substitutes have their own claim under Regulation (EU) 2016/1413, because they are food subject to composition requirements, not supplements.
- Green tea, garcinia, L-carnitine and the rest of the fat burner catalog do not have an authorised claim of weight loss. In the case of garcinia, moreover, there is a report from the Scientific Committee of AESAN on associated risks.
- Four checks are enough: the phrase it uses, the amount per dose, the labeling and the sales pitch. If it promises kilos and deadlines, it is already violating Article 12 of Regulation 1924/2006.
The uncomfortable conclusion of this article is that the list of what is authorised is short and boring. But knowing that it is short saves you money and quite a bit of frustration, and returns your attention to the part that does depend on you: how you organize the meals for next week.
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