Glucomannan and Weight Loss

For anybody out there that has struggled with their weight, and there are certainly plenty, you’ll all know that losing weight can feel like a constant battle and uphill struggle that is seemingly never-ending. You can diet and exercise for days, weeks, months even, yet when the time comes to take your measurements and step on the scales, you may only have lost a few pounds and barely any inches at all. What makes it worse, is the fact that all it takes is just one or two poor dietary decisions and all of your hard work will be undone, leaving you right back at square one!

In order for us to lose weight, health officials and experts recommend a combination of a healthy and balanced diet, along with plenty of exercise. On top of that however, you may also wish to consider using specially designed supplements. One supplement in particular, which has been grabbing headlines for all of the right reasons is Glucomannan. In this article we’ll be taking an in-depth look at Glucomannan, to help determine whether or not this supplement is indeed as healthy and beneficial for weight loss, as many people believe it to be.

What Is Glucomannan?

Glucomannan is a form of sugar that is naturally made from the root of a plant known as a Konjac plant. This plant has actually been used for thousands upon thousands of years, particularly in ancient Japanese cuisine where it was commonly used as a gelling agent or a thickener. In Japan in fact, this product is so well-known, that they have given it its very own nickname – “The Broom Of The Intestines”.

Over the years, experts have been looking into glucomannan more and more, as there is significant evidence to suggest that it can greatly help individuals of all shapes and sizes, to lose weight and maintain their weight in the process.

How does it work?

Once Glucomannan has been consumed, when it makes its way into the stomach, it actually swells up and expands as it absorbs water from the digestive tract, just like a sponge. As it absorbs the water, it forms a bulky fibre. This is especially useful as it helps to prevent cholesterol (fats) and simple carbohydrates, from being absorbed by the body, where they would naturally be stored as body fat. Not only that, but as it expands and swells up, it can also greatly reduce your appetite by making you feel full and satisfied. This again benefits weight loss because if you aren’t hungry, you won’t eat as much, and if you don’t eat as much, you don’t consume as many calories.

Also, when you’re full, you’re less likely to crave unhealthy foods and drinks, so you’re less likely to cheat on your diet. As if that wasn’t enough, it can also help to regulate blood sugar levels, which can help protect against diabetes.

Adding Glucomannan to calorie-restricted diets

Research into adding Glucomannan to calorie-restricted diets have regularly found that the Glucomannan study groups lose more fat than those groups that are not adding fibre.

In one study (Birketvedt GS, et al. 2005), the group that were adding fibre dropped an additional .8/kg (1.75 lb) on average over 5 weeks when compared to the non-fibre control group.