Benefits
Healthy cholesterol and lipids
In a 12 week randomized placebo controlled trial in 64 overweight and mildly obese adults who had been diagnosed with mildly high cholesterol, 500 mg a day of a bergamot phytosome lowered total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and visceral fat compared with placebo. That product was made by a different company (Indena) and used a lecithin based phytosome form, not SelectSIEVE Bergamot, and the study reported no significant differences in its other measures.
Blood sugar and metabolic markers (not demonstrated)
No blood sugar or metabolic marker benefit has been shown for this ingredient. The one trial cited on this page measured lipids and visceral fat, and it reported no significant differences in the other parameters it recorded.
Antioxidant activity in laboratory tests
Bergamot polyphenols show antioxidant activity in laboratory tests. No trial of this ingredient has measured antioxidant status or heart health outcomes in people.
Mechanism of action
Flavonoid lipid action
Laboratory work suggests bergamot flavonoids may influence how the body makes and clears cholesterol. This is a proposed mechanism rather than a proven effect, and bergamot is not a substitute for cholesterol medication.
Antioxidant action
Bergamot polyphenols scavenge free radicals in test tube studies. Whether that translates into any blood vessel benefit in people has not been tested for this ingredient.
Clinical trials
Randomized placebo controlled trial of a bergamot phytosome made by Indena, 500 mg a day in two tablets for 12 weeks, in 64 people (33 on the extract, 31 on placebo). This is not SelectSIEVE Bergamot. (Rondanelli et al. 2021, Phytotherapy Research)
64 overweight and class I obese adults who had been diagnosed with mildly high cholesterol. Results in people with a diagnosis do not necessarily apply to a healthy person.
Compared with placebo, visceral fat fell (p=0.005), total cholesterol fell (p<0.0002) and LDL cholesterol fell (p=0.004). The authors reported no significant differences in the other parameters measured. Because the product tested was another company's phytosome, these results are not evidence for SelectSIEVE Bergamot.