Apple cider vinegar has long been touted as a holy grail for almost anything — from salad dressings and home maintenance to hair and skin care.
One of its biggest claims to fame is its purported ability to suppress appetite, which could lead to weight loss.
But this has now been debunked after the leading medical publisher BMJ Group retracted a study suggesting that an apple cider vinegar a day could help people shed some weight.
Flawed study
Originally published in the journal BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health in March 2024, the clinical study involved 120 overweight and obese teens and young adults aged between 12 and 25 in Lebanon.
The participants consumed small doses of apple cider vinegar diluted in water daily over the course of three months.
The study concluded that participants saw a significant reduction in body mass index, weight, body fat ratio, waist and hip circumferences, fasting blood glucose, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels.
The study — titled ‘Apple cider vinegar aids weight management in obesity, small clinical trial’ — catapulted to online fame after it was cited by news outlets across the world.
But it sparked concern among nutrition experts, who questioned the findings’ scientific methods and called on the BMJ to retract the study.
One critic described the study’s statistical analysis as “flawed”, while another said it lacked trial registration.
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Sour truth
Following an investigation, BMJ said in September this year it has retracted the controversial study, citing “concerns raised about the quality of the work”.
“Initially, concerns were raised in critiques of the study, some of which were published as letters in the journal. But after [a] review by BMJ Group’s content integrity team, the study was referred to statistical experts to evaluate its reliability.”
“This included attempts to replicate the results and examine the authenticity of the underlying data supplied by the authors,” the London-based publisher said in a press release dated September 23.
It added: “It wasn’t possible for the statisticians to replicate the results, and multiple analytical errors were identified.”
“There were also irregularities in the data set, and their report, which is appended to the retraction notice, concluded that the data collected from each participant would require further independent scrutiny.”
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