The class action complaint, brought in both the California Superior Court and the Southern District of New York, points to a lack of “clinical data that supports the notion that simply boosting the amount of naturally occurring GLP-1 in the body has sustained weight loss effects.”
Lemme’s GLP-1 Daily, launched in September 2024, responded to the surge in demand for GLP-1 boosting semaglutide and tirzepatide weight loss drugs, offering “a breakthrough capsule formula” as a natural alternative and without unwanted pharmaceutical side effects like extreme nausea and diarrhea.
“Enter Lemme, a supplement brand founded by Simon Huck and Kourtney Kardashian Barker, hoping to cash in on the GLP-1 agonist craze and swindle Americans into buying their supplements instead,” the plaintiff’s attorneys from Warren Terzian LLP allege.
Huck is the principal owner of the public relations firm Command Entertainment Group, and Kardashian Barker rose to fame on reality TV show “Keeping up with the Kardashians”.
Natural v. agonist: The problem with riding the GLP-1 wave
The relationship between supplement ingredients and GLP-1 weight loss drugs first rose to viral fame in 2023 when berberine appeared on the social media scene as #naturesozempic. Industry experts were quick to flag problems with chasing the latest weight loss fad by connecting a botanical to an injectable anti-diabetic medication used for off-label benefits.
“To be succinct, berberine is not nature’s Ozempic, despite the social media assertions,” Mark Miller, PhD, MBA, FACN, CNS, president at Kaiviti Consulting, told NutraIngredients at the time. “When one does not appreciate mechanisms of action, it is highly likely that mistakes will be made when aligning a natural product with a popular pharmaceutical.”
Since then, a rash of GLP-1 supplements powered by different ingredients continue to enter the market, but the Robins v. Lemme case now raises the truth-in-advertising questions in court about whether a supplement can impart similar benefits to a pharmaceutical. It argues that enzymes break down GLP-1 produced by the body much too fast for it to be efficacious.
“What makes GLP-1 agonists so effective compared to naturally occurring GLP-1 is that the amino acid sequence of GLP-1 has been modified to make the agonists resistant to being broken down by the enzymes that break down GLP-1,” the complaint reads. “Semaglutide, for example, has a half-life of about 7 days when administered by injection—which is why people who take Ozempic or Wegovy take weekly injections—as opposed to 1-2 minutes.”
The Lemme case: Defining the gray area
According to a search of court records, Lemme appears to be the first supplement company targeted by class actions over its on-label “GLP-1 support & weight management” claims.
Additional claims include its ability to “reduce hunger & cravings, promote fat reduction and support healthy weight management with 3 clinically studied ingredients.*”
The asterisk links to a small print note that GLP-1 Daily is not a weight loss supplement and is formulated to support healthy weight management. Above the supplement facts panel, the brand clarifies that GLP-1 Daily does not contain synthetic GLP-1 or act as a GLP-1 agonist.
“We spent years working with our medical advisory board to formulate Lemme GLP-1 Daily into the most effective and researched GLP-1 supplement on the market,” Kardashian Barker shared in a statement following the launch. “I’m excited and proud of our cutting-edge formulation that uses both clinically studied and patented ingredients to increase GLP-1 levels in the body, naturally.”
The formula includes three plant-based ingredients: Eriomin lemon fruit extract from Ingredients by Nature, Supresa Crave Control saffron extract from PLT Health Solutions and Morosil red orange fruit extract from Bionap.
Eriomin’s science shows that its flavonoid extract can boost GLP-1 levels naturally by an average of 17.5% and reduce hyperglycemia following a 12-week intervention in prediabetic individuals. No effects on blood pressure, body weight, BMI, lean mass, fat mass and ratio hip/waist were observed.
The plaintiff’s attorneys argue that “it is unsurprising that a mere 17% increase in GLP-1 would have no discernible effect on caloric consumption, BMI or weight loss” as eating for satiety increases GLP-1 levels by 400% to 900%, and concentrations of GLP-1 agonists in the blood is 300,000% to 600,000% greater.
“As a matter of policy, we do not comment on pending litigation involving finished products with multiple ingredients,” said Rob Brewster, president at Ingredients by Nature. “However, we absolutely stand behind our ingredient and our science.”
The class action also notes that while studied individually, the extracts as combination supplement have not been tested.
Originally developed by French company Inoreal as Satiereal, Supresa is backed by a 2010 study reporting that eight weeks of supplementation in 60 mildly overweight, healthy women “creates a satiating effect that could contribute to body weight loss”. Meanwhile, a 12-week trial showed the potential of Morosil to support weight loss in overweight but otherwise healthy adults when combined with diet and exercise.
Robins says she would not have purchased Lemme GLP-1 Daily capsules, priced at $89.99 per one month supply, had she known the weight loss benefit claims were not clinically substantiated. The lawsuit even states she gained five pounds while taking the supplement.
Commenting independently on the case, Katie Bond, partner at Keller and Heckman, told NutraIngredients: “I think these lawsuits are welcome—at least to all the regulatory and legal people who’ve been wringing their hands and, maybe also, fighting with the marketing team over how, when and where GLP-1 can be mentioned at all. It’s always helpful to have examples of challenges. They often reinforce the rules or help make a seemingly gray area more black and white.”
Although Lemme did not respond to a request for comment, a company spokesperson told Bloomberg Law the lawsuit was ‘frivolous’.