This article is reviewed by a team of registered dietitians and medical doctors with extensive, practical clinical and public health experience.
Apple Cider Vinegar for Weight Loss in 1 Week: The Ultimate Guide

Vinegar is versatile and regularly used in both cooking and cleaning. Some types of vinegar go even further in their application and have been experimented with for certain ailments, but is apple cider vinegar good for weight loss?
When it comes to weight loss, one type of vinegar stands out from the rest: the highly versatile apple cider vinegar. It is made by using apples that are chopped up and allowed to stand at room temperature in water.
The natural sugars eventually ferment and form ethanol. Bacteria then convert this form of alcohol into acetic acid. It is this that is sold as the apple cider vinegar that we see in health shops and other stores.
Does Apple Cider Vinegar Help You Lose Weight?
The evidence that apple cider vinegar (ACV) can help us lose weight is mixed, and this is because of inconclusive results obtained by certain research. Furthermore, studies done on humans have been far too small in scale, with animal studies taking precedence.
Animal research has been conducted to see whether vinegar can help suppress appetite, reduce body fat storage, decrease insulin and blood sugar levels, and speed up metabolism.
It is thought that this vinegar, which people have used for many years, can help suppress appetite in animals and humans. However, if taken internally, it has to be well diluted with water to avoid stomach problems, such as indigestion, esophageal burns, and nausea.
In a small human trial[1], apple cider vinegar appeared to help reduce glucose and insulin levels in individuals and increased satiety for up to two hours. Satiety might have been increased due to feelings of nausea, which are common with ACV consumption
Furthermore, another human study[2] showed that those with type 2 diabetes who ate a high glycemic index meal containing mostly carbohydrates (carbs), which was accompanied by some vinegar intake, had reduced blood sugar levels compared to those who ate a simple carb meal without consuming any apple cider vinegar at all.
The most popular documented study[3] was done on 175 people who drank zero, one, or two tablespoons of ACV a day for three months. After three months, those individuals drinking the ACV had lost two to four pounds, had a decreased waist circumference, and had lower triglyceride levels than those who had not consumed the ACV.
With this research in mind, it can be argued that apple cider vinegar may aid weight loss because of its effects on appetite, blood sugar levels after meals, insulin levels, and metabolism.
How to Use Apple Cider Vinegar to Lose Weight in a Week
One-week apple cider vinegar weight loss[4] is only possible when combined with a calorie-controlled diet. Only one or two tablespoons a day should be consumed, and the apple cider vinegar should be diluted in plenty of water. It is best to space out the doses throughout the day if you take more than one tablespoon daily.
If you take this dose regularly, exercise, and consume a diet rich in lean meat, fish, and vegetables but low in simple carbs such as white bread and white rice, this can help boost the effectiveness of using apple cider vinegar. However, it is still possible to use apple cider vinegar for weight loss in one week without exercise or a strict healthy diet.
As already mentioned, more concentrated doses of this vinegar are not advisable, particularly for those who have a sensitive stomach or suffer from heartburn and regular indigestion.
For those who do not wish to take apple cider vinegar diluted in water, then apple cider vinegar can be added to foods like salads instead. This way, a little more than one or two tablespoons can be used daily as the vinegar can be added to any suitable foods that can be enhanced by dressings containing vinegar. Mixing apple cider vinegar with olive oil, for example, creates a delicious salad dressing!
Ultimately, when to drink ACV is up to the individual. Adding ACV to food is the easiest way of making sure that it is taken regularly, limiting any gastrointestinal side effects.
How Many Pounds Can You Lose?
The number of pounds that can be lost by adding apple cider vinegar to your food or an ACV drink depends on individual factors such as whether a restricted-calorie diet is also being adhered to while being on the apple cider vinegar diet. Adhering to an exercise program will also make a big difference.
The best results are obtained by those who eat healthily and also exercise; this enhances the effects of the vinegar further, especially when it comes to metabolism. Exercise speeds up our metabolism but so does apple cider vinegar[4].
Although weight loss can be achieved in just one week, the amount of weight loss that occurs in seven days is usually small. It is not advisable to starve yourself and only drink diluted apple cider vinegar to achieve more weight loss quicker, as this can make you ill due to a lack of nutrition. A healthy rate of weight loss is one to two pounds per week through a combination of diet and exercise, whether ACV is taken or not.
Weight loss with apple cider vinegar tends to be slow but steady, and individuals can lose four pounds or more after three months. Again, this figure can be increased with regular exercise and restricted calorie dieting.
How to Use Apple Cider Vinegar to Lose Belly Fat
If you have a high body fat percentage, you may want to add apple cider vinegar to other ingredients to make your own fat-burning drink that can help that fat start to disappear.
Researchers in 2009[5] fed mice a high-fat diet supplemented with ACV. They found that fat accumulation could be inhibited in the ACV group fed the high-fat diet but not in the diet-only group. Although this was never proven, the theory was that ACV turned on fat-burning genes.
How to use apple cider vinegar to lose belly fat is a question often asked. This again can also be boosted by adding apple cider vinegar to water containing lemon juice, ginger, or turmeric.
Precautions
Because apple cider vinegar is acidic; it should never be drunk without being heavily diluted in water first. Neat apple cider vinegar can weaken tooth enamel and burn the esophagus and stomach, and it can also cause vomiting. Furthermore, apple cider vinegar should not be used anywhere near or in the eyes. In addition, taking diluted ACV on an empty stomach might increase feelings of nausea.
The Bottom Line
While there are no large-scale studies on the effects of apple cider vinegar on the human body, some small-scale studies have shown some promising benefits of apple cider vinegar regarding weight loss, blood sugar control, metabolism, and other health benefits. Even insulin and cholesterol levels have been lowered by taking this vinegar internally.
Modest amounts of apple cider vinegar per day can positively affect fat and sugar production in the body. This can help in the battle with weight loss when taken safely in the recommended method and concentrations.
+ 5 sources
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- Östman, E., Granfeldt, Y., Persson, L. and Björck, I. (2005). Vinegar supplementation lowers glucose and insulin responses and increases satiety after a bread meal in healthy subjects. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, [online] 59(9), pp.983–988. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16015276/.
- Liatis, S., Grammatikou, S., Poulia, K-A., Perrea, D., Makrilakis, K., Diakoumopoulou, E. and Katsilambros, N. (2010). Vinegar reduces postprandial hyperglycaemia in patients with type II diabetes when added to a high, but not to a low, glycaemic index meal. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, [online] 64(7), pp.727–732. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20502468/.
- KONDO, T., KISHI, M., FUSHIMI, T., UGAJIN, S. and KAGA, T. (2009). Vinegar Intake Reduces Body Weight, Body Fat Mass, and Serum Triglyceride Levels in Obese Japanese Subjects. Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry, 73(8), pp.1837–1843.
- Shmerling, R.H. (2018). Apple cider vinegar diet: Does it really work? – Harvard Health. [online] Harvard Health. Available at: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/apple-cider-vinegar-diet-does-it-really-work-2018042513703.
- Yautz, L. (2016). Apple Cider Vinegar and Weight Loss | UPMC Health Plan. [online] UPMC MyHealth Matters. Available at: https://www.upmcmyhealthmatters.com/can-apple-cider-vinegar-help-me-lose-weight/.