Garcinia Cambogia is a tropical fruit native to Indonesia, and its other name is Malabar Tamarind. It is a superb ingredient for weight loss in the eyes of many people and is known as a diet fruit in its country of origin. Also, there are many types I diabetes and high cholesterol patients taking this supplement.
What Does Garcinia Cambogia Look Like?
You may not be familiar with garcinia cambogia, but you may have heard of or seen mangosteen, which looks very similar. It is usually yellow or green, very acidic, and is not usually eaten fresh but used for cooking. Its rind contains high levels of hydroxycitric acid (HCA), an active substance that has been shown to have weight-reducing effects, so supplements made from the rind extract are mainly used for weight loss.
How Does Garcinia Cambogia Help with Weight Loss?
It helps to reduce weight in two main ways:
1. Reducing appetite
In experimental studies on humans, it was found that Garcinia Cambogia can suppress appetite and increase satiety to some extent. In other words, it can make you eat less and thus lose weight. However, the response and effect are different for each person.
2、Stop fat production, especially belly fat
It affects blood lipids and the production of new fatty acids. It lowers high blood fat levels and reduces oxidative stress in the body. Some studies have shown that it is particularly effective in reducing abdominal fat accumulation in overweight people.
According to ScienceDirect: In one study, moderately obese people who took 2,800 mg of Garcinia Cambogia daily for 8 weeks experienced significant improvements in the following risk factors for disease:
- Total cholesterol levels: 6.3% reduction
- “Bad” LDL cholesterol levels: 12.3% reduction
- “Good” HDL cholesterol levels: 10.7% increase
- Blood triglycerides: reduced by 8.6%
- Fat metabolites: 125-258% increase in excretion from urine
Other Effects
Animal and test tube studies suggest that Garcinia Cambogia may have several anti-diabetic effects, including:
- Lowering insulin levels
- Improving leptin resistance
- Reducing inflammation
- Stabilizing blood sugar
- Improving insulin sensitivity
It also strengthens the digestive system. Animal studies have shown that it helps prevent stomach ulcers and reduces damage to the lining of the digestive tract.
Is Garcinia Cambogia Safe?
Most studies conclude that it is safe for healthy people to take the recommended dose. However, certain side effects have been reported. The most common ones are gastrointestinal discomfort, headache, and skin rash. Individual cases have mentioned that it may affect the liver in some people. Therefore, Garcinia Cambogia supplements are unsuitable for pregnant and lactating women, and people with liver and kidney problems.
Recommended Dosage
There are more Garcinia Cambogia supplements on the market today. To ensure safety, it is best to choose a reputable brand, and the hydroxycitric acid (HCA) content should be 50-60%. One needs to be wary of formulations with 70-95% HCA, as there have been no studies with such high concentrations in clinical trials, so there are inaccurate ingredients or information about such goods.
The recommended dose will vary for each brand, so please refer to the dosing instructions on the label for use. In general, it is recommended that 500 mg be taken 30-60 minutes before a meal, three times a day.