Do creams that claim to give you a slimmer figure really work? While these creams seem to be duds, their popularity seems to indicate that at some leve, consumers believe (or want to believe) that there must be something out there that helps to tone that flab. You know I've always been skeptical of such creams, so I decided to finally put the creams to the test.
For the uninitiated, Bioessence is a local brand whose range of products consists mostly of skincare and bodycare. One of the most popular product lines is its Inchloss line, which has recently added the Inchloss Body Cream Extra Strength to its lineup. I previously blogged about the Bioessence Inchloss line, so I won't go into further detail. Instead, I'm sure you're dying to know if it worked on me.
The two products I used were the Bioessence Inchloss Body Scrub, which is meant to be used in the shower, and the Bioessence Inchloss Body Cream Extra Strength, which is meant to be applied as a body cream after your shower.
The Inchloss Shower Scrub is a clear pink gel, with rather large buffing grains suspended in the gel. The scrub claims to also have some ingredients that help to promote circulation and have a slimming effect. I used it for a week, and while I felt it was inconclusive terms of slimming, it was pretty effective as a body scrub in the shower. The producct has a sweet, fruity scent which is quite pleasant.
The Inchloss Body Cream extra strength is a thick white cream that also has the similar sweet, fruity smell, although I wouldn't advise you smelling at very close range, since it has capsicum inside, which made me sneeze when I inhaled too deeply. However, the cream absorbs well, and also functions as a very light moisturizer.
One of the things I noticed about the cream is that it gives off a burning sensation, and makes the areas which the cream was applied to feel hot. This is supposed to be a sign that the cream is working. Because of the stinging sensation, I strongly recommend that after application of the cream, you wash your hands before you rub your eyes or touch your face, otherwise the cream could get onto the more sensitive parts of your face or eyes and cause a lot of discomfort. Don't say I didn't tell you! :P
I tried out both the Body Scrub and the Body Cream Extra strength for one week, and various measurements from my flabby body parts were taken before and after the week. So did the products work? The results are below. And OMG yes, I just posted all my bodily statistics on my blog. Great, now everyone can figure out how many inches I have round my tubby tummy. *Groan*
Anyway, as you can see from the details, over five parts of my flabby body (both arms, tummy, and both thighs), the total sum of centimeters lost was 1.9 (or 0.75in), which was a bit disappointing. So sadly, the cream didn't really work for me. To be fair though, one week is a rather short period of time for a trial, and during the one week, I didn't significantly change my eating or excercising patterns, as requested by the company.
However, the other bloggers who were there reported much larger losses than I did. The blogger who lost the most lost 15cm (5.9in), and there were quite a few people who had losses of near 10cm. So I was one of the people who lost very little. However, that said, even the girls who lost a lot of inches didn't look any different - everyone looked the same in appearance. To be fair, though, the products claim to make you appear slimmer through toning, so I wouldn't expect any major changes in body size, especially after just one week.
So do these products really work? As with all things, I believe that there's no shortcut to health or weight loss. You do need to watch your diet, eat healthy, and exercise, and these should be the cornerstone of any attempt to keep healthy. So the creams will just be a supplement to the routine. I'm sad to say that for me, any effect was minimal, although perhaps a longer trial period would be needed. However, given that others seem to have acheived better results with this product, I wouldn't write the product off totally - it just didn't work for me.
(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)
