Sometimes supplements can be a scary topic because as much as you want to lose weight, you don’t exactly want to ruin your heart or somehow hurt the balance of your body.
So people are going crazy about Garcinia Cambogia. Also known as the Malabar tamarind, people have been going nuts taking it as a weight loss supplement.
Claims have been made saying that it slows down your appetite and blocks your body’s ability to make fat . Plus – some say that it keeps your blood sugar level and your bad cholesterol down.
But does it really do any of those things?
And more importantly – is it safe for you? Time to find out:
Is Garcinia Cambogia Safe For Weight Loss?
Garcinia Cambogia has an active ingredient in its rind called hydroxycitric acid (also known as hca ). Studies have shown that hca can help your body burn fat and cut down on your appetite (1). Plus, it’s been shown to block the production of something called citrate lyase, which is an enzyme that your body uses to make and store fat. plus , it raises the amount of serotonin in your brain, which can make you feel less hungry (2).
Sounds great, right? Actually, when you look at the at the real data, it’s far less impressive. For instance – reviews from the Journal of Obesity found that subjects who took Garcinia Cambogia lost about 2 more pounds than those who didn’t take it (3). Modest, right?
Worse, the researchers weren’t confident that the weight loss was from the supplement – it could have been from the lower calorie diets those subjects were following as well.
In short – there’s no slam dunk conclusive evidence that Garcinia Cambogia helps weight loss.
What About Diabetes And Cholesterol?
Another effect of the hca in Garcinia Cambogia is that it allows your body to more easily use glucose – which is the fuel your cells need to stay energized.
A study found that mice who consumed Garcinia Cambogia maintained lower insulin levels than mice that didn’t – which is why people with Type II Diabetes are considering Garcinia Cambogia for treatments.
However, this is extremely important – if you’re already taking medication to control your blood sugar, adding Garcinia Cambogia to the mix can cause your glucose to plummet to dangerous levels.
Now let’s talk about cholesterol. A few studies have found that garciniacambogia can improve your cholesterol levels – thinning out the triglycerides and the ldl (bad cholesterol) in your blood, while raising the “good” hdl cholesterol.
However, similarly to its diabetes application, you should not take Garcinia Cambogia if you’re already on medication for cholesterol. It could cause dangerous complications.
Side Effects
These side effects have been reported as a result of taking Garcinia Cambogia. You might experience some, all, or none of these:
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1. Upset Stomach/Diarrhea
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2. Dry Mouth
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3. Headache
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4. Dizziness
Additionally, sales and distribution of a weight loss drug that contained Garcinia Cambogia was stopped in 2009 when it was found that some people got serious liver damage as a result of the drug.
Now, that product had lots of other ingredients – so it’s not clear whether Garcinia Cambogia was the culprit, but it’s safe to say that it’s unclear whether Garcinia Cambogia is safe for your liver or not.
more: Take The Quiz – Do You Know The Unique Veggies That Burn Abdominal Fat?
Do not take Garcinia Cambogia if you’re taking any of these medications, as it might interact poorly:
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1. Pain medicines
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2. Warfarin (as a blood thinner)
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3. Drugs that lower cholesterol like statins
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4. Diabetes medication like insulin or pills
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5. Accolate and Singulair, or other asthma or allergy medications
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6. Anemia supplements like iron
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7. Psychiatric prescription medication
definitely don’t take Garcinia Cambogia if you’re pregnant or nursing, and if you’ve got kidney or liver issues, it’s best to stay away.
So Should You Buy It Or Not?
Look – at the end of the day, I’m not the one you should talk to about whether to take Garcinia Cambogia or not. That decision is up to you to make with your doctor.
Talk to your doctor about whether it’s right for you. Your doctor has all the info – and will help you make an informed decision.
I have clients that have tried this and had good results, but just like with any other “fad”, there is still hard work involved if you want to take it to the next level.
From what I am reading, seems like something worth trying. If you are one of the few that experience the side effects, just stop taking it.
It is weird to me that something like this with the side effects listed would even be considered by a person. Hard work and determination will get you a better body and help you lose weight. There is usually not an easy way around it.
I think its safe. I use it and never experienced any of those side effects so I must be a lucky one!
Well, if it actually keeps your blood sugar levels balanced, it might be something that diabetics could benefit from.
I was thinking the same thing. My cousin has that issue and this might be something that I would recommend to him.
Never heard of it and do not plan to try it either. I don’t understand why FAD diets get so much attention.
I have slight depression bouts, so I know about serotonin. If there is something out there that can boost that for me, I am willing to give it a try.
Even if this blocks that chemical needed to store fat, which is good, does that chemical do anything else in your body that you might be missing now that it is blocked?
It is great for weight loss. I lost 11 pounds in a 6 weeks and I can see the difference when I put on my clothes. I LOVE it!
This is good to know. Most of us here are wondering who it works.
Even though I have never heard of this type of thing, after reading through this, it seems like it would work like a champ. Thanks!
Too many fad diets on the market already. This is just another that you are likely to forget about shortly after starting it.
Yeah, I am the same way. Fads die too quickly. I just make sure to eat healthy and that is all I can do.
2 more pounds is just that, 2 more pounds. Basically without doing anything you are losing weight, how can you complain about that?
True, but it could be just enough to get you motivated to lose even more!
I have been using it. It was something I read about online and was freaked about it at first, but it has been doing the trick and I have not seen the side effects up to this point.
It is great when something new comes along to wow the diet world, but I cannot get around the side effects. I would not want to deal with ANY of those.
Getting more serotonin in your brain will also put you in a better mood overall. That is never a bad thing!
That is right. Serotonin does a lot for your brain and it keeps you in a good mood!
Never heard of it. Is this proven?
I am not sure, either. I did a search for it on Google and it must be sort of new.
Do you know how many fad diets have been proven to not work at all?
Yeah, I thought about this too. Sometimes you just never know what is really going to work or not.
I heard about this on the radio today. I have never heard of it, or maybe I thought it was something else, but it seems like a new “fad” diet for people to try, right?
I have never heard of this before and that makes me curious. I usually do extra research when there is something like this and I know less about.
If there is something in your body that wants to store fat, I will take whatever I can to make sure that is not happening!
True to that!
I do not see how this would be bad for your body.
After reading through this, I agree with you Mary.