Cortisol blockers: Can they help you lose weight?

There is no reliable evidence that so-called cortisol blockers such as CortiSlim, CortiStress and Cortistat will lead to weight loss.

The manufacturers of cortisol blockers claim that high levels of stress increase your body's production of the hormone cortisol, which supposedly causes you to accumulate excess fat. But what they don't tell you is that this occurs only when your body produces large amounts of cortisol due to a side effect of medication or due to an underlying medical condition such as Cushing's syndrome. There is no evidence that the amount of cortisol produced by a healthy individual under stress is enough to cause weight gain. Also, there is no evidence that cortisol blockers will control or reduce cortisol or that lowering cortisol results in weight loss.

Bottom line: The most effective way to lose weight is to control calorie intake and increase the number of calories burned through activity and exercise. There is no "magic diet pill" that can peel off the pounds for you.