Aspire – The Calorie Burning Soft Drink

By WLR's Food Information Executive, Laurence Beeken

Would you be tempted by a diet drink which claims to increase metabolism and help you burn over 200 calories?

The Weight Loss Resources forums have been buzzing with speculation following the release of a new cranberry flavoured drink by Aspire. Tested by a British laboratory, it appears to do just what it says on the can, so we thought we’d look a little deeper for you.

What is Aspire Calorie Burning Drink?

Aspire is a cranberry flavoured drink, claimed to be the first calorie burning soft drink to be launched in the UK. Tests show that people drinking Aspire burned, on average, over 200 calories (Kcals) per drink.

Aspire Calorie Burning Claim:

• Burns on average over 200 calories (Kcals) per can
• Contains 5 calories (Kcals) per 100ml
• Contains a combination of carefully selected natural ingredients
• One can provides a good source of vitamins
• Cranberry flavoured and lightly carbonated

What is in Aspire?

Aspire contains a combination of the following ingredients:

• Guarana extract
• Green tea extract
• L – Carnitine

How was Aspire Tested?

The test was undertaken by the laboratory at Leeds Metropolitan University.

The laboratory tested Aspire’s calorie burning effect on men and women of varying ages and lifestyles.

The amount of calories burnt by Aspire was recorded over a 3 hour period after the consumption of 1 can.

The subjects were tested at a resting state to achieve a result that represented the amount of calories Aspire burnt without any exercise.

Does Aspire Work?

In order to put a claim on packaging, a manufacturer must adhere to European Law. We contacted EFSA (European Food Standards Agency) who evaluate health claims on food products.

To date, they have not evaluated Aspire's calorie burning claims - although have evaluated both green tea and L-carnitine in relation to weight loss, and found that neither showed conclusive cause and effect:

Report of health claims related to Camellia sinensis (Green Tea)

Report of health claims related to L-carnitine

What about the Laboratory Tests?

Aspire should have had a matched control group to see how many calories they burn in 3 hours after drinking a neutral drink, matched for calorie content . As we know, we are always burning calories in the 'background' so would need to know if the drink burned more than the control drink, which isn't clear from the report.

We contacted the laboratory to ask if they used a control group and also if there was a significant increase of calories over the 3 hours post ingestion compared to control.

They confirmed that a control beverage was used, and that the 209 calories burnt was the total number of calories over the 3 hour period, following the consumption of Aspire.

WLR Says…

Sounds very good, but basically there was only a 27 cal increase in calories burned over three hours, compared to a control group having a drink with similar calories but no other ingredients (e.g. green tea). To put this in perspective, if you laughed for about 10 minutes you’d probably burn the same calories.

The main point is that the 200 calories are not extra calories burnt, they are background calories, which just goes to show you that clever marketing makes all the difference! By all means drink it, but don’t expect the weight to fall off, and if you consume a lot, then it may have the reverse effect!