What is chitosan and how effective is it for weight loss?

Darrell Miller

08/19/15

Date: August 19, 2015 06:26 PM
Author: Darrell Miller
Subject: What is chitosan and how effective is it for weight loss?

Chitosan is a compound extracted from the hard shells of shrimps and other crustaceans.  While it has many uses, it also claims that it aids in the elimination of excess fat in our bodies which makes it a perfect candidate for inclusion in any weight loss program.  It can be ingested in the form of capsules, powder and pills.

How does it work?

Chitosan works by preventing the absorption and storage of fat before it is metabolized in the stomach.  Basically, it is a fiber that absorbs fats when they enter the body.  Therefore, the fat is broken down and does not get absorbed into the blood stream.  Instead, fat and chitosan go through your small intestine or the ileum where they bind with bile acids. They then form an insoluble gel that passes through the large intestine and is excreted out of your body. This means that instead of the fat being absorbed into the blood stream, it is excreted out of the body and no fat absorption means no weight gain.

There is still another way that chitosan helps in weight loss. Since chitosan is a fiber, it promotes cleansing which is important in the process of losing weight.

Another reason this compound seems to work for weight loss is that it makes the body not to crave for fattening foods.  It neither starves nor does it make you feel hungry; this is simply because you continue eating fat, the only thing is that the fat does not get absorbed into your blood stream.

Now, since less amounts of fat are entering the blood stream, the body is able to burn the existing fat present in your body. Therefore, your body burns the fat in the body and you constantly lose weight.

Chitosan products contain vitamin C which makes it swell up. This promotes appetite suppression which is very important for weight loss.

References

//www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-625-chitosan.aspx?activeingredientid=625&activeingredientname=chitosan

//slism.com/diet/chitosan-weight-loss.html