07/19/2018 / By RJ Jhonson
If you’re trying to lose weight, you can never go wrong with a healthy diet and regular exercise. A study published in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine says adding spirulina to your diet may also help.
Spirulina platensis (Arthrospira platensis), is a unicellular photosynthetic microorganism called a cyanobacterium, though it is often classified as an alga. Although it belongs to the same classification as many disease-causing bacteria, spirulina is nontoxic and contains proteins and plenty of nutrients that can help you maintain your health.
Researchers wanted to know if spirulina can aid in weight loss, too. They recruited 64 obese individuals aged 2o to 50 years old. These participants were randomized between an intervention group (29 members) and a placebo group (27 members). Those in the first group took two daily doses of spirulina at 500 milligrams, while the control group took two starch tablets. They did this for 12 weeks.
To monitor any change, the scientists took note of the participants’ anthropometric parameters, serum lipids, appetite, and serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) at the beginning and the end of the 12-week period. The participants were also required to undergo an assessment of their dietary intake and appetite using one 24-hour recall method and a standard visual analog scale (VAS), respectively.
At the end of the study period, the researchers noted that while both groups showed decreased BMI, the reduction in the intervention group was higher than that in the control group. The spirulina group also showed reduced total cholesterol and appetite levels compared to the placebo group. However, no significant changes in mean serum VEGF, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, or triglycerides were observed.
These outcomes led the researchers to conclude that spirulina is effective at modulating body weight and controlling appetite and cholesterol levels, which means it could help people looking for a healthy way to lose extra pounds.
Aside from exercise, you can help your body lose weight through the following methods:
Learn of other natural ways to lose weight at Slender.news.
Sources include:
BMCComplementAlternMed.BioMedCentral.com
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