Supplement

Garcinia cambogia (hydroxycitric acid)

Herbs · Garcinia gummi-gutta, Malabar tamarind, hydroxycitric acid (HCA)

Garcinia cambogia has been sold as a fat burner since the 1990s. In meta-analyses, what remains is a weight effect of about one kilogram compared with placebo, whose clinical relevance even the analysts call uncertain. Cases of severe liver injury, by contrast, are well documented. France has suspended its sale, and in 2026 EFSA was unable to derive a safe intake level.

What Garcinia cambogia is

Garcinia cambogia, botanically Garcinia gummi-gutta, is a tree from southern India and Southeast Asia. The dried fruit rind, also called Malabar tamarind, serves as a sour seasoning in South Indian cuisine. For food supplements, hydroxycitric acid (HCA) is extracted from it, often combined with other plant substances such as green tea extract.

In the BK-Score, human evidence stands at 5 out of 10 points and the hype gap at 2 out of 10. This means: there are a number of controlled studies, but there is a large gap between the fat burner promise and the measured effect.

How it works

Hydroxycitric acid inhibits ATP citrate lyase, an enzyme outside the mitochondria that stands at the beginning of fat synthesis from carbohydrates. This gave rise to the idea that HCA could reduce body fat. The pathway has been described biochemically and was the basis of the placebo-controlled study in the Journal of the American Medical Association from 1998.

In humans, no clear effect could be derived from this: in exactly this study, weight and fat mass did not differ from placebo. A plausible mechanism is not yet a clinical benefit.

What is well supported

A small weight effect in meta-analyses. Across 9 pooled studies, 0.88 kg more weight loss than under placebo, with the confidence interval reaching −0.00 kg. A second analysis of 8 studies with 530 participants arrived at −1.34 kg.
Severe liver injury is documented. In the US network for drug-induced liver injury, 22 cases were attributed with high certainty to Garcinia-containing products; 91 percent of those affected were hospitalized.

What the studies show

Heymsfield 1998: no difference from placebo

Randomized, double-blind study in 135 overweight adults over 12 weeks, both groups on a high-fiber, low-energy diet. The active group received 1,500 mg of hydroxycitric acid per day. Both groups lost weight; the difference was not significant: 3.2 kg under HCA, 4.1 kg under placebo. There was also no difference in the proportion of fat mass.

Onakpoya 2011: just under one kilogram

The meta-analysis found 23 eligible studies, included 12 and pooled 9. The difference from placebo was −0.88 kg (95 % interval −1.75 to −0.00). The authors conclude that there is a short-term, small effect of uncertain clinical relevance. In one included study, gastrointestinal side effects occurred twice as often under HCA as under placebo.

Vuppalanchi 2022: liver injury in the DILIN registry

Among 1,418 patients of the Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network from 2004 to 2018, 22 cases were attributed to Garcinia with high certainty: 5 with Garcinia alone, 16 in combination with green tea extract, one with ashwagandha. Those affected were 17 to 54 years old, and the injury occurred after a median of 51 days. One patient died, one needed a liver transplant. The tissue marker HLA-B*35:01 was found in 55 percent, compared with 19 percent for other food supplements – the same marker that was also more frequent in liver injury caused by turmeric.

Where the data stop

A relevant weight loss. About one kilogram across studies that mostly lasted a few weeks, with a confidence interval that in the older meta-analysis reaches almost to zero.
Blood sugar and liver values. A meta-analysis of 9 publications with 444 participants found no effect on fasting glucose, insulin, ALT or AST.
Attribution of the liver injury. Most DILIN cases involved mixed products with green tea extract, which can itself damage the liver; the authors describe the injury caused by the two as clinically indistinguishable.
Long-term data. Controlled studies lasting longer than a few months are missing.

Status, approval and legal

In France, the sale of food supplements containing Garcinia cambogia has been suspended since the decree of April 15, 2025, initially for one year; a decree of April 16, 2026 extended the suspension by another year. This was preceded by the ANSES warning of March 5, 2025, which advises the entire population against consumption; medicines containing the plant have been prohibited there since 2012.

At EU level, the EFSA NDA Panel endorsed on January 28, 2026, in the procedure under Article 8(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006, a draft opinion on hydroxycitric acid and HCA-containing plant preparations. According to it, no safe intake level can be established. The draft went into public consultation in March 2026; the final opinion and a decision by the European Commission were pending as of this page’s last update. No ban could be found in Germany; Garcinia products are on sale here as food supplements. There is no authorized health claim on weight loss.

Safety

The central risk is the liver. In addition to the 22 DILIN cases with one death and one transplant, ANSES recorded 38 reports of adverse effects from 2009 to March 2024, including acute hepatitis, pancreatitis, and heart and muscle damage – also in people without pre-existing conditions. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned about Hydroxycut products in 2009 after 23 reports of liver injury up to transplantation and death, but could not identify a single causative ingredient.

In 2015, the BfR pointed to testicular damage in male rats under high doses of certain extracts; human studies with lower doses have so far given no indication of this, but the question has not been specifically studied in humans. Anyone who notices jaundice, dark urine, upper abdominal pain or unusual fatigue while taking it should have their liver values checked by a physician. In the BK-Score, safety data stand at 5 out of 10. This text is for information and does not replace medical advice.

BK-Score Thin human evidence

Human evidence		5
Mechanism		4
Safety data		5
Hype gap		2
Track record of use		6

Evidence 5, because there are many, mostly small and short randomized studies whose pooled weight effect is 0.88 kg (Onakpoya 2011) or 1.34 kg (Golzarand 2020), while the largest early placebo-controlled study with 135 participants found no difference (Heymsfield 1998, JAMA). Mechanism 4, because the inhibition of ATP citrate lyase has been described biochemically but has not been shown in humans to cause weight loss. Safety 5, because liver injury is well documented – 22 confirmed cases in the US network DILIN with one death and one transplant (Vuppalanchi 2022), 38 reports to ANSES – but EFSA, in the draft of January 28, 2026, was unable to derive a safe intake level. Hype 2, because the fat burner label is set against an effect of about one kilogram whose clinical relevance even the authors of the meta-analysis classify as uncertain. Use 6, because the fruit rind has traditionally served as a seasoning in southern India, but has only been widespread as a concentrated slimming extract since the 1990s.

The score rates the state of knowledge, not the substance. “Safety data 5” means this is how well safety has been studied – not how harmless the substance is. “Track record of use 6” means this is how long and widely it has been used – that is not proof of efficacy.
Subjective assessment by Biohacking Kompakt based on published scoring rules – not a scientific rating and not a medical recommendation. Rules and all ratings (German)

Frequently asked questions about Garcinia cambogia (hydroxycitric acid)

Does Garcinia cambogia help with weight loss?

The effect is small. One meta-analysis found 0.88 kg more weight loss than under placebo, a second 1.34 kg, in each case across studies that mostly lasted a few weeks. The largest early placebo-controlled study with 135 participants found no significant difference. The authors of the older meta-analysis call the clinical relevance uncertain.

Can Garcinia cambogia damage the liver?

Yes, severe liver injury has been documented. In the US registry DILIN, 22 cases were attributed with high certainty to Garcinia-containing products, including one death and one liver transplant; most of the products also contained green tea extract. The French agency ANSES counted 38 reports of adverse effects and advises against consumption.

Is Garcinia cambogia banned?

In France, its sale in food supplements has been suspended since April 2025, and the suspension was extended by one year in April 2026. No ban could be found in Germany. At EU level, EFSA endorsed a draft in January 2026 according to which no safe intake level can be established; the European Commission’s decision is pending.

What is hydroxycitric acid?

Hydroxycitric acid, HCA for short, is the main constituent of the dried fruit rind of Garcinia gummi-gutta. In the laboratory it inhibits ATP citrate lyase, an enzyme of fat synthesis. In humans, no clear effect on body fat could be derived from this.

What was the Hydroxycut case?

Hydroxycut was a line of slimming products with several ingredients about which the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning in 2009 after 23 reports of liver injury, up to transplantation and death. The FDA could not identify a single causative ingredient. The case shows how difficult it is to attribute liver injury from mixed products to one component.

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Sources

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Information only, not medical advice and not a usage or dosage recommendation. Prescription-only and unapproved substances belong in the hands of a physician. Last updated: 2026-10-09.