Update 8/13/20. Thrive W (also called “Thrive For Women”) is a supplement touted to have multiple benefits ranging from weight loss to supporting muscle growth. Judging from all the emails I’ve been getting lately, Le-Vel supplements have been generating a lot of interest on the internet. This review will be specifically about “Thrive W” (not to be confused with Thrive M, the men's supplement). In this review, you'll learn about the research ingredients and side potential side effects. Does it really work? Let's see.
Other Thrive Reviews
Thrive W Benefits
According to the description of the product, Thrive W is touted to help with these areas:
- Weight management
- Cognitive performance
- Joint support
- Inflammation support
- Lean muscle support
- Digestive and immune support
It’s also said to contain an “anti-aging and antioxidant blend” of ingredients as well. There are a lot of ingredients in Thrive For Women. During this review, I’ll try to isolate which ingredients might be responsible for each of these claims.
Thrive W Research
The Le-Vel website states this about Thrive W: “From years of experience, science, and perfecting, THRIVE W is the only premium lifestyle capsule of its kind.” The words science and perfecting got my attention because it gave me the impression that years of research went into the creation and perfection of this supplement. But, when I searched online for:
- Thrive W research
- Le-Vel research
No clinical research could be located.
Searching clinical databases for:
- Thrive supplements
- Le-Vel supplements
- Thrive W
revealed no clinical studies either. Likewise, I saw no such clinical trials on the Le-vel website either.
If Thrive W has clinical evidence to support its effectiveness, that research could not be located.
But what about its ingredients?
Let’s now look at the Thrive W ingredients next.
Thrive W Ingredients List
According to the label, 1 capsule contains the following ingredients and it’s recommended to take 1-2 capsules per day on an empty stomach or between meals:
| Amount per serving | Percent daily value | |
| Vitamin A | 1500 IU | 30% |
| Vitamin B1 | 1.4 mg | 100% |
| Vitamin B2 | 1.7 mg | 100% |
| Vitamin B3 (niacinamide) | 12 mg | 60% |
| Vitamin B5 | 10 mg | 100% |
| Vitamin B6 | 2 mg | 100% |
| Folic acid | 800 mcg | 200% |
| Vitamin B12 | 100 mcg | 1667% |
| Vitamin D3 | 200 IU | 50% |
| Chromium (chromium AAC) | 200 mcg | 167% |
| Selenium (selenium AAC) | 90 mcg | 125% |
| Vanadium (vanadium AAC) | 25 mcg | N/A |
Thrive W Proprietary Blend
Each 1 capsule also has 257 mg of a proprietary blend containing the following ingredients:
| B. lactis | L. acidophilus | L. casei | L. helviticus |
| L. salvarius | L. plantarum | L. rhamnosus | Guarana |
| Green tea | Glucosamine | White willow extract | Glutamine |
| Green coffee bean | PEA | Kelp | Irvinga extract |
| BCAA blend | Theobromine | Ginger extract | Synephrine |
| Aspartic acid | L serine | Grape seed extract | Co Q10 |
| White tea extract |
Read this table from left to right. This will tell you which ingredients are present the most and least. For example, since B. lactis is listed first, it makes up most of the proprietary blend, while white tea extract makes up the last since it's listed last.
Other ingredients
The product also contains Stearic acid, silica, and gelatin. These other ingredients play no role in the effects or benefits of this supplement.
Thrive W Ingredients Review
Now let’s review each of the ingredients. There is not an overabundance of most of the vitamins or minerals in the product. I don't feel they add the benefits of the product and so I won’t discuss them, except to mention a few briefly.
Niacinamide
This is a form of the B vitamin, niacin. Niacinamide is different than niacin in that it won’t cause face flushing some report with niacin. This may be one of the ingredients behind the claim of “joint support.” There have been some studies on niacinamide noting it may help osteoarthritis pain. But, those studies generally use about 3 grams a day to achieve this effect. This is more than is in Thrive W (which has just 12 milligrams).
Among the ingredients, you may have noticed chromium, selenium, and vanadium are listed as:
- Chromium AAC
- Selenium AAC
- Vanadium AAC
The “AAC” refers to “amino acid chelate.” Basically, this means the minerals have been bonded to amino acids to improve their absorption. Whether or not this makes a significant difference is debatable. See the review of chromium weight loss research for more insights.
Proprietary Blend Ingredients
There are 25 ingredients in the proprietary blend. Each 1 capsule contains 527 mg total of all the 25 ingredients listed.
| B. lactis | L. acidophilus | L. casei | L. helviticus |
| L. salvarius | L. plantarum | L. rhamnosus | Guarana |
| Green tea | Glucosamine | White willow extract | Glutamine |
| Green coffee bean | PEA | Kelp | Irvinga extract |
| BCAA blend | Theobromine | Ginger extract | Synephrine |
| Aspartic acid | L serine | Grape seed extract | Co Q10 |
| White tea extract |
Supplement companies don't have to tell us how much of each ingredient is in proprietary blends. That said, remember the ingredients listed first are the most abundant, while ingredients toward the end of the list are the least abundant. For example, from the table above, the supplement has the most B. lactis (because it's listed first) and the least white tea extract (because it's listed last).
Probiotics Ingredients
Thrive W contains the following probiotic bacteria:
- B. lactis (the B stands for bacillus)
- L. acidophilus (the L stands for lactobacillus )
- L. caseri
- L. helviticus
- L. salvarius
- L. plantarum
- L. rhamnosus
In this list, the letters (“B” and “L”) represent the genus of the bacteria and the name (lactis, for example) represents the species of the bacteria used.
Different strains of bacteria might have different effects. One strain might do something great while another strain might do nothing at all. Without knowing the strain, it's not possible to know their exact function although it's possible they might be present for:
- Immune support
- Digestive support
- Weight management (maybe)
Probiotics are often added to supplements as a way to alter the microbiome – those bacteria that live inside of us. We now know gut bacteria can have big effects on our health. There are good bacteria and bad bacteria.
One question, however, is which bacteria are good and which are bad. There are a lot of bacteria in Thrive W but it's a lot less than the thousands of types that are inside of you.
When it comes to gut health, diversity is good. The more different types of bacteria we have inside of us, the better. Two ways that seem to alter gut bacteria is eating more fiber and exercise.
Here are 5 things that are bad for your gut health:
Thrive Premium Lifestyle Mix also contains probiotics. See that review for more info.
Guarana
This is a plant that contains caffeine. Is Le-Vel using the whole plant or an extract of the plant? They don’t tell us. If it’s an extract, then my guess is caffeine might be the extract used. If I am right, I can’t say how much caffeine is in the supplement. Can any Thrive promoters shed light on this?
See the Thrive Shake review for more insights on that supplement.
Green Tea
Green tea contains some caffeine (unless it's decaffeinated) so it’s possible this ingredient might also contribute to the stimulant effects of Thrive W. Green tea also has lots of antioxidants and so this may part of the “antioxidant blend” in the supplement too.
Green tea has been in several weight loss supplements I've reviewed previously but I don't believe it helps people lose weight. As proof, this study, found green tea supplements did not help people lose weight or raise their metabolism even after using it for 3 months.
As an aside, I personally wish companies would remove green tea from supplements. Drink the tea but leave the green tea supplements alone until we know more about their safety.
See the Supplements & Liver failure review.
Glucosamine
Since glucosamine is often used to help reduce arthritis pain, this likely is one of the ingredients responsible for the “Joint support” benefit in the product.
As mentioned in the review of glucosamine, there are 3 different types in supplements:
- Glucosamine sulfate
- Glucosamine HCL
- NAG (N-acetyl-glucosamine)
What type of glucosamine does Thrive W contain?
They don’t tell us.
The label only says “glucosamine.” I believe the strongest evidence is for glucosamine sulfate. Most studies showing it helps arthritis use 1500 mg per day. Remember, all the ingredients in 1 capsule of Thrive W only add up to just 527 mg.
Could the glucosamine combine with the other ingredients in the product to help arthritis pain? It's possible.
White Willow Bark
White willow bark contains an aspirin-like compound called salicylic acid. Some OTC pain relievers contain a combination of aspirin and caffeine. If people notice having less pain after using Thrive For Women, I think white willow bark might play a role in this.
Glutamine
This is an amino acid and is likely one of the ingredients behind the claim of “lean muscle support.” The body can make glutamine and this is why it’s also called a non-essential amino acid. That said, under stressful conditions or disease, we may not make enough. It’s for this reason glutamine is sometimes called a “conditionally essential amino acid.”
In other words, under some conditions, we need more than what we can make naturally. Because exercise is a stress, some feel glutamine can help support muscle growth, although not all research shows it works.
I covered some of the research on glutamine in a previous post so see that for more information.
While they don’t tell us how much glutamine is in Thrive W, I don’t think it's much, because all the ingredients only amount to 572 mg in 1 capsule.
Taking 2 capsules a day, would likely provide less than 1 gram of glutamine. That is less than many studies have used.
Green Coffee Bean
This supplement, also called Chlorogenic acid, is popular in weight loss supplements. I’ve written an entire in-depth review on the weight loss research of green coffee extract so see that too.
I feel green coffee bean needs better research. I believe this because one of the best studies on this compound was retracted after the authors admitted they could not verify the data used in the study.
This greatly reduces the believably of the hype surrounding this stuff. Green coffee extract is listed #13 in the ingredients list, so it doesn’t have much of it.
Green coffee bean is also in the Thrive Patch so see that review too.
Also, see the review of bogus weight-loss supplements.
PEA
The letters PEA are short for Phenylethylamine (Fee-nil-ethyl-A-mean), a type of amino acid. This ingredient might be linked to the “cognitive performance” claim made for Thirve W. Some interesting research suggests PEA might increase dopamine levels. This means it may be able to alter mood. It might help depression too. Exercise appears to naturally raise PEA levels.
PEA is also a stimulant which, according to WebMD.com “looks” like amphetamines.
Kelp
My hunch is kelp is in Thrive W because it contains iodine, a mineral needed to make thyroid hormone. Thyroid hormone raises metabolism. This is why kelp is sometimes found in weight loss supplements.
Other weight loss supplements I’ve looked at which contained iodine include:
See those other reviews for additional information.
Irvingia Extract
This is also called African Mango. As mentioned in my review of African Mango, there are some human studies on this compound. As far as I can tell, the best evidence appears to stem from the use of an extract called “IGOB131.” What extract of Irvingia is in Thrive W? I don't know.
Even if it contains the IGOB131 extract, how much does it have? They don’t tell us that either, but it is # 16 in the ingredients list, so my guess is not much.
See the MBS 360 review for another African Mango-containing supplement.
BCAA Blend
The letters BCAA stands for Branch Chain Amino Acid. There are 3 of these amino acids:
- Leucine
- Isoleucine
- Valine
Thrive W contains a “BCAA Blend.” My guess is the blend is a mixture of all three amino acids. BCAA's also popular in muscle building supplements so I believe they are linked to the “lean muscle support” claim. Regardless, given how far down in the ingredients list they are, I believe you’d probably get more BCAAs in a can of tuna fish than in Thrive W.
Theobromine
Theobromine is one of the compounds in the cacao plant which is where we get chocolate from. Theobromine is a stimulant and a diuretic (makes you pee more). For more on this ingredient, see my reviews of:
Ginger Extract
Since they don’t tell us what extract of ginger they are using, it’s hard to figure out what it’s supposed to do in the product. Maybe it's supposed to be anti-inflammatory? Does anybody know?
Synephrine
This is a stimulant. In supplements, it goes by several names including bitter orange and citrus Aurantium. In my review of the weight loss supplement called PhenTabz, it was called octopamine. Because it chemically “looks” like ephedra, it may be found in supplements claiming to be “ephedra-free.” Some of the supplements containing synephrine I’ve looked at previously include:
Synephrine can raise heart rate and blood pressure and has been associated with some serious side effects including heart attacks in even healthy people. As such, I’m not a fan of it in supplements.
For what it's worth, I don’t think there is much synephrine in Thrive W because it's pretty far down in the ingredients list. That's good. What's bad is its presence.
Aspartic Acid and Serine
These are non-essential amino acids. We make both aspartic acid and serine every day. What role do they play in Thrive W, I can’t say.
Grape Seed Extract
The scientific name for grape seed is Vitis vinifera. While they don’t tell us what extract of grape they are using, my guess this ingredient is for “inflammation support” given that grape product (like grape juice and grape seed oil) might reduce inflammation in the blood vessels.
CoQ10
Coenzyme Q10, also called CoQ10 or Ubiquinone is found in just about every cell of the body. It helps our cells make energy, and as we age, we make less of it. There are many studies on CoQ10 which hint it might have multiple effects in the body such as helping lower cholesterol levels, migraine headaches, and blood pressure among other things.
While all this is nice, does the product have enough CoQ10 to be therapeutically helpful? I don't know. Most studies generally use at least 100 mg. Remember the entire proprietary blend in Thrive W only has 527 mg. There are 25 ingredients in the proprietary blend and of those, CoQ10 is listed 24th.
White Tea Extract
Even though they call it white tea, this stuff is similar to green tea in its anti-oxidant power. While that's good, I have to ask what extract of white tea are they using? They don’t tell us.
White tea does have some caffeine so could this be the extract? While tea is the last ingredient listed in the proprietary blend so if it is, I don’t think there is much present.
Stimulant Ingredients
Here they are the stimulant ingredients:
- Guarana
- Green tea
- PEA
- Theobromine
- Synephrine
- White tea (maybe)
Ingredients are listed in order as they appear in the proprietary blend to give an idea of which might be present the most and least.
Where To Buy Thrive W
Thrive supplements cannot be purchased at Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Target, Rite Aid, Costco, Sams Club GNC, Vitamin Shoppe or other stores like that. Rather, they can only be purchased directly from Thrive promoters. You can also go to the Le-Vel.com website and purchase them too although you'll be asked to provide the name of the promoter who referred you.
I liked this as it means the company is not in competition with those who sell their supplements.
How Much Caffeine?
Those sensitive to caffeine may wonder how much caffeine is in this supplement. They don't really tell us. In the comments section below, you will see a Thrive Brand distributor state Thrive W has 40 mg of caffeine while Thrive M has 50 mg.
She also said that Thrive Lifestyle Mix has 25 mg and that the Thrive Patch does not have any caffeine. While this is nice, I'd like to see a document that states this. Remember, several ingredients in this product contain caffeine. Also, caffeine is not the only stimulant in the Thrive W.
Thrive W And Thrive DFT Patch: Better Together?
As I was told, thrive W is part of a lifestyle program that incorporates the use of a weight management patch called the “DFT Patch.
While it's possible both work best together to promote a greater effect, at this time, I'm unable to locate any clinical proof to substantiate this.
Thrive W vs. Thrive M
While this review is mostly about Thrive W, there is also a men's version, called Thrive M. How are they different? The table below shows how they compare to each other:
| Thrive W (1 capsule) | Thrive M (1 capsule) |
|---|---|
| Vitamin A 1500 IU (30%DV) | Vitamin A 1500 IU (30%DV) |
| Vitamin B1 1.4 mg (100% DV) | Vitamin B1 1.4 mg (100% DV) |
| Vitamin B2 1.7 mg (100% DV) | Vitamin B2 1.7 mg (100% DV) |
| Vitamin B3 12 mg (60% DV) | Vitamin B3 12 mg (60% DV) |
| Vitamin B5 2 mg (100% DV) | Vitamin B5 10 mg (100% DV) |
| Vitamin B6 2 mg (100% DV) | Vitamin B6 2 mg (100% DV) |
| Folic acid 800 mcg (200% DV) | Folic acid 800 mcg (200% DV) |
| Vitamin B12 100 mcg (1667% DV) | Vitamin B12 100 mcg (1667% DV) |
| Vitamin D3 200 IU (50% DV) | Vitamin D3 200 IU (50% DV) |
| Chromium 200 mcg (50% DV) | Chromium 200 mcg (50% DV) |
| Selenium 90 mcg (125% DV) | Selenium 90 mcg (125% DV) |
| Vanadium 25 mcg (N/A) | Vanadium 25 mcg (N/A) |
| Proprietary Blend 527 mg consisting of the following | Proprietary Blend 526 mg consisting of the following |
| B lactis | B lactis |
| L. acidophilus | L. acidophilus |
| L. casei | L. casei |
| L. helveticus | L. helveticus |
| L. salivarius | L. salivarius |
| L. plantarum | L. plantarum |
| L. rhamnosus | L. rhamnosus |
| Guarana caffeine | Guarana caffeine |
| Green tea caffeine | Green tea caffeine |
| Glucosamine | Glucosamine |
| White Willow extract | White Willow extract |
| Glutamine | Green coffee bean |
| Green Coffee Bean | PEA |
| PEA | Irvinga extract |
| Kelp | Theobromine |
| Irvingia Extract | Ginger extract |
| BCAA blend | Citrus Aurantium extract |
| Theobromine | Glutamine |
| Ginger extract | L arginine |
| Citrus Aurantium extract | Grape seed extract |
| Aspartic acid | BCAA blend |
| L Serine | CoQ10 |
| Grape seed extract | Kelp |
| CoQ10 | White tea extract |
| White tea extract |
In the table, “NA” means no daily value established. mg = milligrams and mcg = micrograms.
If you scroll down the ingredients, you see both Thrive W and Thrive M are pretty similar all the way down to the white willow ingredient. After that, the ingredients shift their positions a bit.
Thrive W contains the amino acids aspartic acid and serine. These are not present in Thrive M. Instead, thrive M contains the amino acid called arginine. It's speculation, but this might be because arginine helps produce nitric oxide. Nitric oxide plays a role in erections.
See the Super Beets review for more on nitric oxide.
The amounts in the proprietary blends are a little different – 526mg in Thrive M and 527 mg in Thrive W. I dont think this is significant.
Who Makes Thrive Supplements?
Thrive supplements are a product of a company called Le-Vel LLC. Another name for the company is “Le-Vel Brands LLC.” The listed address for the company is 9201 Warren Pkwy #200, Frisco, TX 75035. If you Google this address, you can see it's the same address as a company called “Going Postal” which is a post-office-like facility. The “#200” in the address may be the Going Postal “PO Box” number.
This is the same address as was reported to the Better Business Bureau.
To contact Le-Vel, the BBB lists this phone number: 888-557-0005.
The BBB indicates the Le-Vel business was created in 2013. The company website (Le-Vel.com) was registered in 2012. Le-Vel is a “cloud-based” company. In other words, there doesn’t appear to be an actual/physical building called “Le-Vel” where the supplements are made.
Here is BBB file Le-Vel LLC. The company had an A+ rating when this review was updated. See the BBB file for ratings and more information.
SiteJabber, a consumer website also has several reviews on Le-Vel. Here is the SiteJabber file. Interestingly, while many of the reviews left there said the same thing – “life-changing” what are the odds of different people using the same words? The problem with testimonials is we have no way of verifying them.
Thrive W Side Effects
Does Thrive W have any side effects? Here are some thoughts I had based on the ingredients. This list is not complete:
- Stop taking Thrive W at least 2 weeks before surgery.
- Don't take Thrive W if you are pregnant or breastfeeding
- If you take any medications such as those used to treat kidney or liver problems or high blood pressure or heart disease, show the ingredients to your doctor or pharmacist. In theory, some of the ingredients might interact with medications.
- In theory, glucosamine might raise blood sugar in diabetics.
Green tea-containing supplements have been linked to liver problems –including liver failure. While I think this a very rare occurrence and I don’t believe this product has a lot of green tea, If you have liver issues, speak to your doctor or pharmacist.
Here are some of the concerns/complaints people expressed in the comments section below. I'll be honest, some of these left below by people who've taken Thrive supplements have me uneasy. Here are some excerpts of the side effects people reported in the comments section below:
- I took it only five days and I also have high blood pressure and I felt like I had a heavyweight on my chest.
- I EXPERIENCED a stiff neck then a sick headache and I passed out. I stopped Thrive. been off of it for a wk. I feel better but my skin I jumpy at times.
- So I’ve been taking Thrive W for over a year now. When I don't take it I notice a loss of energy.
- My mind was racing, yet I felt too bad to do anything! I felt so sick from the caffeine overload! I never want to feel this way again!
- One thing I noticed is that Thrive makes me thirsty. I can’t get enough water.
- I was given a sample of Thrive, during a period when I was mourning the death of my sister. I just could not seem to pull myself out of a depressed state of mind. Thrive helped me with that, and did an excellent job of doing so.
- had a lot of energy , clear-headed, and my back pain went away as well as my migraine I have nearly every day. I felt somewhat jacked up, however , but at the end of the day it wasn’t so intense and I slept like a baby . But … I had heart palpitations before going to sleep.
Take these for what they are. Looking over the testimonials, many people do say they have more energy. I believe that's a testament to the stimulants in this supplement. Read the comments below to see what everybody else is saying.
Is Thrive Safe?
Because everyone is different it's not possible to say across the board anything is 100% “safe.” We all have differences. That said, it's good to keep in mind several of the ingredients in Thrive W are stimulants. While there is no clinical proof either way, for those who sensitive to stimulants or who are not “healthy,” in theory, this might be an issue.
Just a few conditions where stimulants might be a problem include breastfeeding, heart disease, high blood pressure, kidney problems, liver problems, diabetes or stroke risk.
To be clear, there is no proof Thrive W is a problem for any of these conditions. Again, each person is different. As with all dietary supplements, to know for sure, show the ingredients to your doctor and/or pharmacist for more individualized information on this topic. This is always wise for those who have health problems.
How To Return Thrive W
If you purchased supplements via a promoter, they should be able to help with returning products. Here is what I could gather from the company website.
According to the Terms and Conditions page of Le-Vel.com, unopened supplements come with a 30-day satisfaction guarantee minus a 10% restocking fee.
In other words, the company keeps 10% of the money spent to pay the cost for restocking the items.
Before returning items, people have to first contact the “Le-Vel Online Support Ticket System from within your account.” In other words, it appears you can’t do this over the phone.
Be sure to include the original packing slip or a printed copy of your receipt.
For supplements that are opened or partially used or damaged, the company will refund only 50% of the cost of the products.
Send the package to be returned to this address:
Le-Vel Returns
1545 S 4800 W
Salt Lake City, UT 84104
The return address, corresponded to “Pro Star Logistics.” This is a company that helps other companies with order fulfillment, packing, and warehousing. Their website is ProStarLogistics.com for those who wish to learn more about them.
While I’m sure Le-Vel promoters can help people with all of this, I feel the return process is overly complicated. I was also not satisfied with the company keeping a “restocking fee” on returned supplements.
Does Thrive W Realy Work?
Without clinical studies, it’s difficult to make a decision. On the surface, it would appear Thrive W has ingredients to support its claims but are the levels of those ingredients the same as used in clinical trials? I do believe some who take Thrive W will feel more energized and that's probably because several of the ingredients are stimulants like caffeine. As for weight loss? I think the results will vary.
Here it is on Amazon
Ben, I am also very curious about this. I have a coworker that is promoting this and after reading through these comments, I am concerned he is putting himself at risk. Thanks.
Synepherine (bitter orange)
Katrina, yes that is another name for bitter orange.
Just to inform everyone save your money. The FDA is already investigating this company and it will be shut down. They will not have any money left to refund anyone because they will be hit with fines that will take it all.
Ben, do you have proof that the FDA is looking at them?
LOL bloodpressure dropping after starting Thrive.. That’s a rich one. Thrive is filled with so much energy toxins there is no way your BP dropped. Also the only reason people loose weight on this poison is it puts their body into overdrive. This crap is dangerous. Just read the ingredients. Not only is it a MLM scam, BUT it can kill you.
I took thrive for one day. I have never felt so sick in all my life (when I was not actually I’ll) within an hour of taking the morning pill I had a screaming migraine that did not cease all day. I have felt like my brain was in a fog and have NO ENERGY and even shaky at times.
I highly recommend to NOT USE THIS PRODUCT. I feel foolish that I tried something without doing the proper research. If I knew then what I know now I would never have tried this garbage. But a quick learning curve for me.
You want more energy?? Sleep more, eat clean, and consume less sugar and white flour. I was doing these things before taking thrive and I felt fine.
friendly, really glad you are feeling better now.
Great review… from a doc who is well versed in supplements, anti-aging and even did a fellowship through american academy of anti-aging and regenerative medicine. What I see as long term problems from all the stimulants: cardiomyopathy, adrenal fatigue and failure, thyroid burnout, dependency, anxiety and depression, mood swings, weight gain, syndrome X… just to name a few.
Thanks Dr Matt, I appreciate that!
My aunt just passed away. Has been on thrive for 3-4 months. heart attack on Christmas day 2015. Died dec 26. Symptoms, severe stomach pain, organs failed slowly, kidneys failed, brain activity gone, She was a very healthy woman who if she wasn’t teaching aerobics was taking aerobics. It is my opinion that Thrive had a lot to do with her passing. She was 60 years old.
Annette, Oh I am so sorry to hear about your aunts passing. I will say a prayer for you and your family that you are comforted at this very difficult time.
I beg to differ as my husband had the same experience! He was also informed by his doctor to never take any of it again because it caused him major heart problems we are still dealing with a year later as well as numbness and tingling!
Joe, is there anything like Thrive, but healthier? What would you recommend to someone in place of Thrive? It sounds very appealing but I am nervous too. Thank you for a great review.
Jess, yes I believe there is. Here is a review I wrote of different weight loss supplements with evidence.
http://www.joe-cannon.com/what-weight-loss-supplements-work/
As I mentioned there, I believe the evidence is strongest for those that contain fiber.
If you have any other questions, just let me know either here or at my other site.
I have been using Thrive for Two months and I have enjoyed the results ! I have stopped drinking soda and also have stopped eating junk food. I have increased my water intake which all I consumed before was soda. I have lost 15 lbs and I regularly go to the gym and work out.
I have not experienced the fogginess that some people have experienced. I do have more energy now and feel good! There are some days that I choose not to take it and I have not seen any bad side effects. I do see a doctor for regular checkups and my bloodwork has been great!.
So far my experience has been pleasant and I bought from a friend of a friend who gave me a 1 week sample for free to try and did not pressure me into buying. I have not had no issues with ordering I even had stopped my auto ship and have bought single items instead of buying a whole package. I like the breakdown that you gave in this article and thanks for your insight!
Damaria, thanks for your feedback. I’m happy it is helping you and you are feeling ok.
Hi Joe,
My husband 41, Had never suffer from migraines. He started Thrive 3 weeks ago and last week he had an episode of what we thought it was an stroke. He lost sensation half of his body. His face was numb his eye as well. It was very scared.
We went to ER and after all the CT scans and MRIs nothing was found. Doctor asked if he was taking anything and I had to mention the Thrive. he reviewed them and told him to stop, they have to much caffeine.
My husband is doing better but his symptoms still there at least some like he will feel hot half of his body and sweat but the other half is normal. 🙁
I did not try THRIVE at all thank God, but I am concerned from my husband. He also is on high blood medication. I wish I had read this before he started.
Ruth, thanks for sharing all that. Its for reasons like what you said that I just dont feel good about weight loss supplements that contain stimulants. In my opinion, people with high blood pressure should not be taking stimulants like that. The good news is that the human body is very resilient and your husband is still very young, so I will say a prayer your husband continues to show improvement. It sounds like you are doing all that you can do right now. Let’s give it time and hopefully things will get better.
Do keep me updated on how you both are doing Ruth.
Thank you Joe. I really appreciate your comment and the time you took to reply. I’ll keep posted. 🙂
Yeah My husband got hemiplejic migraine only after 3 weeks of trying that Thrive. Doctor said is loaded with caffeine, He is recovering from symptoms like stroke so please be careful with what your drink.
Ruth, I am so sorry to hear this! I will say a prayer that your husband gets better soon and that you both have a nice holiday.
Thank you Joe, I did not see your response here that is why I posted my other comment. I wish I had found your research earlier but I am glad I found it anyway. An advice to everyone, talk to your doctor first and listen to your body!!!
Ruth, I agree with what you said. if you ever have any other questions, just ask and I’ll try to help.
Tried Thirve for a week! Made me jumpy and made my heart race! Would never recommend it! Nothing like a good workout and eating healthy! I’m done with the supplements! ?
http://www.bbb.org/west-florida/business-reviews/health-and-wellness/le-vel-thrive-in-life-in-largo-fl-90222763
At least there’s a phone number that might help people..
aab, thanks for that. I’ve updated my review with their contact #.
Hi there! I was wondering if you could tell me if Thrive is “all-natural”? I don’t want to try it until I know and I have found conflicting information that leads me to believe there are synthetic ingredients. Thanks!
Hi Jacklyn, when it comes to “all natural” you should know that this claim has no formal definition. In other words companies can say natural and all natural for just about anything, even if it isnt really “all natural.” Does that help?
I love Thrive! It has worked wonderfully for me. I do have a question that I need someone to answer for me please. I am applying for a new position at work and will have to take a pre employment drug urine screen. Will anything in this product cause a problem on the drug test?
Thanks
Hi Kim, drug testing is not my area of expertise, so why don’t you show the ingredients in the product you take to the people doing the drug test and ask them if any will cause a red flag to pop up. Let me know what they say.
Hi Joe,
I would like to preface this by stating that I am in fact a brand promoter for le-vel, however, that being said, the product has never exactly knocked my own personal socks off. As a result of the impressive experiences from people in my wheelhouse I chose to get involved. I have surprisingly been successful as a promoter, but I still have my doubts, hence the reason I am on your web page and posting these questions. Here they are:
Question #1
As a person who has had fairly severe nutritional deficiencies due to a cholecystectomy 6 years ago, I was immediately interested in thrive due to their claim that it has a high rate of absorption. Vitamins can be challenging as you have to be be mindful of how and when you take them and what you consume in conjunction with them – which I am sure you know :).
Thrive does not contain fillers. Fillers are in a huge percentage of vitamins and they cause the vitamin to bind to the filler and be effectively expelled from the body, with the filler, in the form of waste/urine which obviously inhibits their availability to the body.
Thrive does contain silica, which is a known filler, however the support team confirmed that it was only in the capsule shell and not in the inner capsule ingredients. While I can’t seem to find any evidence of fillers, I am curious about the bio-availability of this product and if anything can substantiate le-vel’s claims in that area??? The next question will go into more of why I have doubts about this point…
Question #2
Withdrawals. (You had mentioned caffeine, so on a side-note below, I will give you the exact mg of each product per le-vel). Back to withdrawals. Twice since June I have run out of the product. Both times I have felt AWFUL. This time I have only been out since yesterday and in August I was out for 8 days due to vacation (I forgot it). I feel lethargic, my brain feels fuzzy, I get headaches, and most notably I am dizzy when I stand up too fast.
I know you cannot give medical advice, but I would love to know if there could be withdrawals from any of the ingredients? This is why I question the bio-availability. Thrive is pushed as a product that “fills in nutritional gaps” if it truly is a health system filling in my deficiencies, then wouldn’t some of the products effects be retained even off of Thrive? Wouldn’t I continue to feel good until my nutritional gaps begin to increase again?
Thank you and here is the caffeine info 🙂
Thrive M 50mg Thrive W 40mg Lifestyle Mix 25mg and ZERO in DFT patches.
AlexaMarie, thanks for your questions. As for bioavailability, I could not find any clinical studies on Thrive that proves its more bioavailable. Also, when they say its more bioavailable, my question would be, “compared to what?” What did they compare it to? I cant find any research on this so I cant comment either way. Have you reached out to the company to see what they compared it to – and where the research is published? This is the way I’d ask the question: “can you show me published, peer reviewed research in humans that proves Thrive is more bio-available?” Maybe they have it? If they do, I’d enjoy reading it.
I appreciate you telling me the caffeine in Thrive supplements. It doesn’t look like there is much caffeine in each product but if you use multiple caffeine containing supplements, this would increase the amount you are getting. There are also other stimulants in Thrive W too which might have an additive effect. If you are not used to caffeine and other stimulants, then abruptly stopping that intake might cause withdrawal issues in some people. Other than the stimulants, I’m not sure would would be making you feel the way you describe.
Do you drink coffee or use any other caffeine containing products?
Thank you for your thoughtful response. I absolutely will ask that question as soon as I am done typing this. As for the withdrawal issues, I still drink a cup of coffee per day. I did before, I continued to while taking Thrive, and I have since I ran out. I am a huge fan of coffee, more by taste, so i didn’t want to miss out on the ambience and enjoyment 🙂
That is why I wasn’t sure because I am still consuming the caffeine. I will re-read through your list of stimulants. It does bother me that I can’t find any substantiated research online either, not even in my back office.
let me know what you find out. Since your used to caffeine, I’m honestly not sure.
I’ve been on thrive for about a month. I quit drinking my one cup of coffee but continued to drink about 2 12 oz sodas a day. After a week of loving uti started promoting it. Why not. But then I decided I wanted to find out more stuff about it because I don’t want to promote something if I’m. It totally for sure about it.
I decided to do a tes ton myself and get off of it for a week and start back on it in a week. Before I got to the next week, I had my first migraine and never had one. I didn’t know what was going on. I went to the ER and they did a cat scan on me and said they found an abnormality, then they ambulanced me to the next upper hospital that does MRIs. They found nothing.
I’m skeptical where this migraine came from and I keep going back to Thrive. Did I have so much caffeine that my head went into a shock or whatever and made me have migraine for not having enough caffeine?
To ease the pain they gave fioricit, which contains a high dose of caffeine, acetaminophen, butalbital, and codeine. So…… Since I’ve never experienced a migraine before and there was a possible hemorrhaging or stroke.
What do you get out of this? I take psychotic medicines. I’ve noticed I’ve been very irritable. That was my main reason why I wanted to stop it and start it again because I wanted to see if it would change me back in my irritable mood.
I’m going to my rheumatologist and let him look at the ingredients. Not sure in his field he can tell if it’s safe to us. Let me know if this something your familiar with.
Melanie, it sure sounds like you have been through a lot. While I honesty can’t tell if it was Thrive or not, I’d say stop taking it because you are also taking some medications. I dont know how they interact with each other. In addition to your rheumatologist, show the ingredients to your pharmacist too and see what she/he thinks? Pharmacists know a lot about drugs and supplements. Get their opinion and let me know what they say.
Hopefully you are feeling better today. Since tonight is Halloween, I’d say give out candy. Seeing all the little kids in their customs always puts me in a good mood.
My wife gave me some to try. It is definitely a stimulant. I don’t drink caffeine at all, but occasionally when driving long distances, I drink a 5 hour energy drink. This feels like I just drank 10 of them. Jittery for sure, dry mouth, heart racing, anxious, numb fingers and face. I’m clinching my hands and teeth. This is garbage.
I use to live close to SLC. The scams that come out of there are unreal. The whole deal with this product is about making money. I can tell you by the way that I feel that this stuff is dangerous. Buyer beware.
I feel like I’m going to have a stroke or heart attack. I’m a 60 year old man that doesn’t need to lose weight. I don’t have a need for speed so I will stay far away from this crap!!!
Wow…..I have spent the past hour reading the review and all of the comments and still feel confused about the THRIVE product. I jumped onto the Thrive bandwagon less than a week ago.
Friends of mine are taking it and have been posting about it for the past month and I thought, hmmmm why not join this energy bandwagon and feel great? What was I thinking????? I am 27 years old, I eat health, maintain a healthy lifestyle (with the occasional cheat meals) and workout no less than 5 times a week and am currently training for a half marathon.
I do intake my fair share of caffeine, with a cup or a cup and half of coffee in the morning and maybe a 12oz diet coke in the afternoon but I don’t think that is outside the norm. Overall, I control my eating by simply not eating the cupcakes, donuts, hamburgers, french-fries, candies, etc. that are constantly at my fingertips. That is a personal choice I made when I was 18 years old….so what made me want to try this product?
Well, I have been on ADD medicine for my entire adult life. Taking a pill so that I can concentrate like everyone else can on a daily basis, frankly stinks! Not to mention, it kills brain cells and has other implications we won’t even begin to address. I read and heard success stories from others that also had ADD that got on THRIVE and no longer needed their medicine. That perked my ears, along with the sleep benefits and energy everyone kept ranting about.
I am 5 days into my 8-week trial and can honestly say that the only major difference is have felt is not getting headaches from not drinking coffee and that is because the product is loaded with caffeine and other stimulants.
I haven’t been to my GP since starting this product, so I haven’t been taking my ADD medicine because my sister scared me by telling me that it could interact and cause a heart attack. (She also offered me money to stop taking THRIVE.) Red flag, many will say i haven’t felt the difference because my body is detoxing in two ways, by not taking the ADD medicine and by absorbing THRIVE. This could be true, which is why I continued taking the product beyond three day.
I didn’t stop taking THRIVE until today. I got an email from a nurse and it scared me so much that I immediately ripped the DFT patch off of my arm. I now have two PA’s, my gyno, and my GP researching the product.
At first glance, and in my initial research, this product appeared to be harmless. To be honest, my promoter has never taken a diet pill or fallen into any type of scheme before so when I heard how great she felt due to this product it made me want to try it because I knew she had never walked down the pyramid scheme before, much less put anything bad into her body.
Now I feel confused because I agree with some of the comments about overly researching this product when we don’t do the same with the food we put into our bodies but I then resort back to my logical thinking and have to ask myself, if there was a miracle pill/shake, that was healthy and could change your life, wouldn’t everyone would be taking it?
Now I feel scared for my friends that have been taking this product for 3+months. Was this product ever intended to be taken for more than the initial 8-weeks? I also find it amusing, and pointed this out to my promoter when I was ordering, that they advertise it to be an 8-week trial but your $150.00 only gets you a 4-week supply of the product….that one still stumps me.
I posted a picture of myself on Facebook on the first day I started THRIVE and my sister posted an article on my post about bitter orange from WebMD…..this alarmed my promoter who then spoke to her promoter that then disputed back about the nurses and doctors that are on the product and promote it.
I am at a loss……..you can research and find doctors that use this product and promote it and then you find reviews like the ones above that make you question the product. What has also made me nervous about the DFT patch is not knowing if the ingredients are going directly into my blood or not…..Overall, I am not sure if I should continue the rest of my supply or not.
Last note- when people that haven’t been drinking caffeine get on this product they love it within the first three days and are hooked. Then, they come off of it while waiting for their supply to come in the mail and feel terrible, un-energized, and exhausted which is all due to not having the caffeine anymore.
There is 1667% of the recommended dose of B-12 in this product…..is too much of a good thing bad? How long can you stay on this product? My main concern, and I will be asking my doctor, is that a lot of things within the 3 products we naturally produce within our bodies. If we continue to ingest more than what we need, will our bodies become dependent and stop producing it on their own? If so, how would you get by if you had to stop taking the product?I guess I just answered my own question….ill stick to my healthy lifestyle, exercise, and try to drink more water!
I will come back and post the medical opinions I receive for others that care to read.
SarahAnn, Thanks for sharing and yes please do post back with what those medical opinions. You did make some interesting points in your comment and I do think that your lack of headaches from getting off coffee might simply be because of the caffeine in this product. That does make sense to me.
Many energy products -even stuff like 5 hour energy – have a lot of vitamin B12. Generally its pretty harmless and thats one reason why they add it. Also, people sometimes think it gives them more energy but if you have enough of it, I dont think it does.
As for the bitter orange, I do share your sisters concerns about it. synephrine (bitter orange) is pretty far down in the ingredients list so my guess is the product doesn’t have much of it. That said, its just not an ingredient I like to see in weight loss products.
I did review the thrive patch – if you didn’t see it, here is my review.
While it has some interesting research, I cant say how much the patch ingredients get into us. Read my review for more on the Thrive Patch.
While I can appreciate your need to get off your ADD medications, from what you said you were going and eating, it sounds like you you thriving pretty well on your own.
If you have any other questions, just ask.
I’ll look forward to reading what the others have to say about it.
So I saw this posted on a Thrive promoters facebook wall, yes it was open to anyone to read. This person has zero security settings. Anyway this is a part of her post on her wall. I found it to be rather disturbing……..
“screaming ears, massive headache, sore throat for days..(when Thrivers get sick, it very different, have to go through it to understand)”
Now, why in the heck would I want to take a supplement that would do this to me IF I got sick? No thanks. My friend gave me a 3 day sample pack and she was dumbfounded that I felt no change after the 3rd day, heck I felt nothing after 1 day.
She then tried a sales tactic of “well men usually take between 8 to 10 days before they feel a change, you should sign up for the 8wk program”. I said no thank you as I’m not interested. She then went off on me telling me that 100% of the food I ingest is GMO and that the produce I eat has no nutritional value in it.
She told me that Thrive is 100% natural ingredients and the best thing for me. I’m a stubborn guy and when someone says I should take something, well I dont listen.
Darin, that’s amazing she would say that to you! I wonder where she heard that men take 8 to 10 days before they feel any different?
Not sure Joe but im guessing that she was trying to convince me to buy into this product by using any sales tactic she could think of. Funny thing, my friend is pretty convincing at trying to recruit me. She even went as far as saying I could sell the product without even using it, which in turn I told her that wouldn’t make me a very good salesman.
To sell something I dont believe in, no thanks!! The hype on this is pretty amazing but there is just TO much stacked against it so far. Finding your page and reading the articles that others have posted was and is very helpful.
Darin, My guess as to why she said you could sell it even if you don’t use it may be because she gets a commission for signing up new distributors under her. That is common for network marketing (MLM). I’m glad you found my review helpful.
Oh yes, that is totally it Joe. I was very close to being another commission sale to her!!
I enjoy it when people go on about GMO and then talk about natural. Under the guidelines for what can be sold as “natural” there is no distinction regarding GMOs, to be natural means no pesticides or artificial fertilizers, grown chemical free BUT not GMO free.
I also want to strangle people for GMO… almost all products today are genetically modified. Whether in the laboratory or field (yes, grafting a plant -is- genetic modification) any changes create a GMO -genetically modified organism-. What the people really mean, and hate it when one corrects them, is -Transgenically modified organisms, which are organisms which are modified with genetic material from an unrelated source (such as the round-up resistant plants).
The term Natural is really mostly undefined, although it is commonly used as I mentioned above. I had a definition once, but now the FDA claims they have no actual definitive listing of what is natural and what isn’t.
So natural could mean just about anything a company wishes to put the word natural on.
Very informative David. Your info enlightened me just a little bit more on “Natural” products and “GMO” products.