healthy eating

What is Garcinia Cambogia?

Garcinia Cambogia, is a fruit and is mostly found in the Rain Forests of India, Southeast Asia, Central and West Africa, and Indonesia. This fruit is also known as Malabar Tamarind, brindle berry, and Kudam Puli. The sourness of this fruit has always been considered good for digestion. Therefore, it is found in many Ayurvedic medicines and is often used in curries.

It was in 1960 when a research was carried on the fruit to use it in anti-obesity drugs and supplements followed by an intensive research in 1998 and that’s when its weight loss properties were discovered by Scientists.

In addition to weight loss it can also help fight depression, lower cholesterol, and boost energy levels.

There are many health benefits of Garcinia Cambogia. However, consuming the whole fruit will not help with weight loss since it contains fibres and other elements which may or may not be required by your body in excess. Therefore, it is optimal to take it in supplement form.

Garcinia Cambogia is a natural way to lose weight and would usually not cause any side-effects. However, it is highly recommended to closely follow the instructions listed on the bottle. In addition to that drink plenty of water to remove the toxins, follow a high-fibre and nutrition rich diet to keep yourself energetic while losing  weight and do not skip meals.

How does Garcina Cambogia Work? And what you need to know about this fat-loss supplement.

Health gurus claim that Hydroxycitric Acid (HCA) an organic acid, works by making you feel full, reducing your appetite, and affecting metabolism. It’s this effect that has led many to herald it as a natural way to lose weight.  From now on for the sake of simplicity I will refer to Hydroxycitric Acid as HCA.

Many of us may have asked the question that “Is Garcinia legit?”

With all the knowledge we have now, this question sounds a little like me asking, you “Is a hammer legit? “Or does it work” Obviously the answer to this question depends on the hammer and the person using it, right? : HCA isn’t a miracle; it’s a tool. Anyone who has ever suffered the indignity of smashing their finger with a hammer can confirm that tools only work when you know what to do with them and then follow through on that knowledge.

Over the past years we’ve learned a lot about not only what HCA supplements do in the body, but also how you can make the most of them. Here’s what you need to know about this blockbuster fat-loss supplement.

HCA blocks a portion of an enzyme called citrate lyase, which helps turn sugars and starches into fat. If we block that enzyme, and carbohydrates get diverted into energy production rather than accumulating as body fat. Then, when you burn fat through effective training, there’s less to replace it, and your overall fat level goes down.

According to scientists HCA also seems to have an ability to help suppress appetite, but not in the same way as a stimulant-based pill used for weight loss and dieting.  Instead, it increases the level of satiety—satisfaction you receive from food therefore, making it easier to eat less

The late great nutritionist Shari Lieberman suggested that a metabolic change brought on by HCA may send an appetite-suppressing signal to the brain via the amino acid 5-hydroxytryptophan which is a direct ancestor to the so-called “happy hormone,” serotonin. Subjects who took HCA supplements, ended up with elevated serotonin levels thus indicating a connection between the two.

According to Harry Preuss, a researcher and pathologist at Georgetown University and a past president of the American College of Nutrition suggests that  “You have to take the right dose of the right product, and you have to take it properly,” You have to give enough so that it reaches the sites in the body that it needs to reach.” In recent years, Dr. Preuss has continued to hammer on the idea that maximising bio availability with HCA is crucial for its success.

Dr. Preuss, who lead the most promising human studies into HCA, points out that there are three different forms of hydroxycitrates: those which are blended with calcium, potassium, or magnesium salts. The reason to add these salts is to decrease the degradation of free HCA into HCA lactone, an inactive form of the compound. These salts, which are added at a 1-to-1 or higher ratio in most commercial HCA supplements, also help your body more easily absorb the hydroxycitrate.

According to Dr. Preuss “If you have almost a pure calcium hydroxycitrate, it’s just not going to work,” he prefers hydroxycitrate that is bound to both calcium and potassium; he says the bond dramatically increases the absorption and effectiveness of HCA.

Dr. Preuss and his colleagues put this premise to the test in a study where they followed 30 healthy but overweight people ages 21-50 over an 8-week period. All of the subjects consumed a diet of 2,000 calories per day and walked for half an hour five days per week. One group was given Super CitriMax, a patented form of HCA bound with both calcium and potassium. The other group was given a placebo. At the end of the study, the placebo group had lost an average of three pounds, but the HCA group had lost an average of 12 pounds—a whopping 400 percent more weight. Their average BMI fell by 6.3 percent; in the placebo group, it fell only 1.7 percent.

To top it off, the HCA group experienced an almost double boost in serotonin levels compared to the placebo group. Higher serotonin levels are associated with fewer cravings, as well as a greater sense of calm. In a second similar study, Preuss and his colleagues tested 60 people, and this time, the HCA group lost an average of 10.5 pounds compared to the placebo group, which lost an average of 3.5 pounds.

“Perhaps the most remarkable result was in appetite control,” Preuss says of the second study. “The placebo group had no change, but the HCA group had a 16 percent reduction in the amount of food they ate per meal!”

The lesson here is that how you take HCA matters. As such, Preuss has taken the new wave of HCA popularity as an opportunity to remind us all about how to get the most out of this supplement, most recently in a paper he co-authored for the Alliance for Natural Health in 2013 titled “Garcinia Cambogia: How to Optimize its Effects.

Here are some of Preuss’ recommendations:

1. Choose a preparation that is at a minimum 50 percent HCA and is not composed wholly of calcium salts: Make sure potassium (K) and/or magnesium (Mg) is present. If the product has a low lactone content, that is even better.
2. Be sure to take an adequate dose. For a Ca/K preparation used successfully and reported in a peer-reviewed publication, the dose of extract was near 1.5 g, three times per day before meals. In this 60 percent HCA preparation, that approximates 0.9 g of HCA prior to each meal.
3. Take the preparation on an empty stomach, i.e., 30-60 minutes before each meal.
4. Remember, “If you don’t comply, don’t complain.” Take the right dose at the right time.

Note that he says “near” 1.5 g three times daily. Why not exactly 1.5? Given that HCA supplements come in a range of potencies and mixtures, it can be hard to be exact. Aim for the 1.5 g benchmark, but don’t be obsessive.

Garcinia cambogia may interfere with the following medications and supplements: iron, potassium, calcium, antidepressants, statins, montelukast (Singulair), and warfarin (Coumadin).

Garcinia cambogia is available in capsules, tablets, powders, and liquids. Capsules should be taken on an empty stomach, 30 minutes to an hour before a meal.

Garcinia cambogia may cause a decrease in blood sugar levels. People who have diabetes should discuss this with their doctor before taking the supplement.

People with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia should not take garcinia cambogia because it increases acetycholine levels in the brain. Many people with these conditions are given medications to lower acetycholine levels.