Millions of people saw the headlines claiming ACV could help you lose 9% of your body weight. Now the research has been pulled. Let’s talk about what went wrong.
TL;DR: A 2024 study claiming apple cider vinegar caused dramatic weight loss went viral and was shared millions of times. In October 2025, the BMJ retracted it due to serious concerns about data quality. Apple cider vinegar has some modest benefits, but it was never the weight loss miracle the headlines promised.
- The retracted study claimed 9% body weight loss in 12 weeks
- Experts questioned the data almost immediately
- ACV may have minor effects on blood sugar, but weight loss evidence is weak
- Celebrity endorsements and viral sharing spread the misinformation faster than corrections could follow
- This is a case study in why we shouldn’t trust health headlines
You Probably Saw This Study
In March 2024, a study came out that seemed to confirm what apple cider vinegar enthusiasts had been saying for years: ACV really does help you lose weight.
The research, published in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health (a respected medical journal), claimed that people who drank small amounts of apple cider vinegar daily lost significant weight. We’re talking about 9% of their total body mass in just 12 weeks. For someone weighing 200 pounds, that would be 18 pounds lost just by adding vinegar to their routine.
The study went everywhere. Hundreds of news articles. Tens of thousands of social media shares. It was cited as “proof” that apple cider vinegar works. Supplement companies referenced it. Influencers shared it. It became the scientific backing that ACV believers had been waiting for.
There was just one problem.
The study appears to have been fundamentally flawed. And in October 2025, it was retracted.
What “Retracted” Actually Means
When a scientific journal retracts a study, it’s a big deal. It means the journal is essentially saying: we no longer stand behind this research, and you shouldn’t either.
The BMJ Group cited “concerns raised about the quality of the work” as the reason for pulling the study. That’s somewhat vague language, but independent researchers who analyzed the data before the retraction were more specific.
They found what they called “improbable data characteristics.” In plain English: the numbers didn’t add up in ways that would be expected from a real clinical trial. The results were almost too clean, too dramatic, too consistent.
Marion Nestle, a professor emerita of nutrition at NYU and one of the most respected voices in the field, didn’t mince words. Her response to the retraction was essentially: the bigger surprise is why the journal accepted the study in the first place.
Why This Matters Beyond One Study
Here’s the thing that frustrates me as a physician who works with patients struggling with weight every single day.
That study was shared millions of times. It shaped purchasing decisions. It influenced what people believed about weight loss. Some people probably delayed seeking real medical help because they thought apple cider vinegar was going to solve their problem.
The retraction? It got a fraction of the attention. A few news articles. Some coverage in medical circles. But most people who saw the original headlines will never see the correction.
This is how health misinformation works. The exciting claim spreads like wildfire. The correction barely registers.
And apple cider vinegar continues to be marketed as a weight loss solution, with or without that study.
The Long History of ACV Claims
Apple cider vinegar didn’t become popular because of one study. It’s been touted as a health remedy for literally thousands of years. People have claimed it can help with everything from diabetes to digestion to heart disease to weight loss.
Celebrity endorsements have amplified these claims. Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom became part owners of a major ACV brand. Kim Kardashian has promoted it. Dr. Oz (before he became a government official) regularly featured it on his show.
When you combine ancient folk remedy status with celebrity backing and then add what appeared to be legitimate scientific research, you get a perfect storm of belief. People wanted it to be true. And for a while, it looked like maybe it was.
What Does the Actual Evidence Say?
Let me be fair here. Apple cider vinegar isn’t completely useless. There is some research suggesting modest benefits in certain areas.
Blood sugar: Some small studies suggest that consuming vinegar with meals may slightly reduce blood sugar spikes. The acetic acid in vinegar appears to slow the digestion of starches. This effect is real but modest, and it applies to vinegar in general, not just apple cider vinegar specifically.
Satiety: A few studies have shown that vinegar may increase feelings of fullness after meals. However, some researchers suspect this is simply because vinegar can cause mild nausea, making people less interested in eating. That’s not exactly the appetite control mechanism most people are hoping for.
Weight loss: Before the retracted study, there was really only one notable trial (from 2009 in Japan) showing any weight loss benefit from vinegar. That study found very modest results: about 2 to 4 pounds lost over 12 weeks compared to placebo. That’s not nothing, but it’s far from transformative.
Cholesterol and heart health: Some animal studies and very small human studies have suggested potential benefits, but nothing conclusive enough to make recommendations.
The bottom line: apple cider vinegar might have some minor health effects, primarily related to blood sugar. But as a weight loss tool? The evidence has always been weak, and now the strongest study supporting it has been pulled.
The Risks Nobody Talks About
While we’re being honest, let’s talk about downsides.
Apple cider vinegar is acidic. Very acidic. Regular consumption can:
Damage tooth enamel. Dentists have reported seeing enamel erosion in patients who drink ACV regularly, especially if they don’t dilute it or rinse their mouth afterward.
Irritate the esophagus and stomach. Some people experience heartburn, nausea, or digestive discomfort. If you have GERD or acid reflux, ACV can make it worse.
Interact with medications. ACV can affect potassium levels and may interact with diuretics, insulin, and other medications. If you’re on any prescription drugs, you should talk to your doctor before adding ACV to your routine.
Cause hypoglycemia in some people. If you’re diabetic and taking medication to lower blood sugar, adding ACV could potentially drop your blood sugar too low.
These risks are generally manageable if you’re using small amounts of diluted ACV occasionally. But the people who are really committed to the ACV weight loss theory tend to consume it daily, sometimes multiple times a day, often undiluted. That’s where problems can develop.
Why We Keep Falling for This
I want to step back and ask a bigger question: why did so many people believe this study so quickly?
Part of it is confirmation bias. If you already believed ACV was beneficial (maybe because your grandmother swore by it, or because you saw a celebrity endorsing it), then a study confirming that belief feels right. You’re not going to scrutinize it too closely.
Part of it is the appeal of simple solutions. Losing weight is hard. It requires sustained effort, lifestyle changes, and often medical support. But drinking a tablespoon of vinegar? That’s easy. We want the easy answer to be true.
Part of it is the way health news gets reported. Journalists are under pressure to write attention-grabbing headlines. “Apple Cider Vinegar May Help You Lose 9% of Your Body Weight” gets clicks. “Small Study With Questionable Methodology Suggests Possible Modest Effect” does not.
And part of it is that we’ve lost trust in institutions, which paradoxically makes us more vulnerable to misinformation. When people don’t trust their doctors or the medical establishment, they turn to influencers and viral studies. But those sources are even less reliable.
A Note About the Netflix Documentary
If you’ve heard about the 2025 Netflix series “Apple Cider Vinegar,” it’s worth mentioning. The documentary explores an influencer scandal related to false health claims about ACV and other “wellness” products.
I bring this up because it illustrates how intertwined the ACV phenomenon is with social media culture, influencer marketing, and the monetization of health misinformation. There’s a lot of money being made by convincing people that simple household products can solve complex health problems.
The retracted study fit perfectly into that ecosystem. It gave scientific cover to claims that were already generating revenue. And even now that it’s been retracted, the ACV industry continues largely unaffected.
What I Tell My Patients
When patients ask me about apple cider vinegar, here’s what I say:
If you enjoy it and want to use it in salad dressings or cooking, go ahead. There’s nothing wrong with that.
If you want to try drinking a small amount (diluted) before meals to see if it helps with blood sugar or satiety, that’s probably fine for most people, though you should check with your doctor if you’re on medications.
But if you’re hoping that apple cider vinegar is going to be the thing that finally helps you lose significant weight? I have to be honest with you. The evidence doesn’t support that hope. And the most impressive study that seemed to support it has now been retracted.
Weight loss is a complex physiological process. It involves hormones, metabolism, behavior, psychology, and often genetics. A tablespoon of vinegar doesn’t address any of those factors in a meaningful way.
The Bigger Lesson
Every few months, there’s a new “breakthrough” in weight loss. A new supplement. A new study. A new trend.
Most of them don’t hold up. Some are outright fraudulent. Others are based on preliminary research that gets wildly overstated in headlines. And a few, like this ACV study, turn out to have fundamental problems with the research itself.
I’m not saying you should never trust any health research. But I am saying you should be skeptical of dramatic claims, especially when they align perfectly with what people want to hear and what companies want to sell.
When something sounds too good to be true in medicine, it usually is.
Key Takeaways
- The viral 2024 study claiming ACV causes significant weight loss has been retracted
- Experts questioned the data quality almost immediately after publication
- Apple cider vinegar may have modest effects on blood sugar but is not a proven weight loss tool
- Regular ACV consumption carries risks including tooth enamel damage and medication interactions
- Health misinformation spreads faster than corrections, so be skeptical of dramatic claims
Your Next Step
If you’ve been relying on apple cider vinegar as part of your weight loss strategy and it hasn’t been working, you’re not doing anything wrong. It was never likely to work based on the actual evidence. If you’re ready to explore approaches that are backed by stronger science, I’m happy to have that conversation.
