New study conducted in China reports multi-vitamin and mineral
supplements may help reduce body weight and improve blood fat levels,
according to results of a clinical trial in obese women.
Results of a 26-week randomized,double-blind, placebo-controlled
intervention study with obese women found that multivitamins & minerals
were associated with significantly lower body weight, body mass
index, and fat mass.
Levels of total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol were also significantly
reduced, while HDL-cholesterol were increased, according to
findings published in the International Journal of Obesity.
Obesity rates have skyrocketed in the US in recent years - 15 per
cent of the population was obese in 1980, compared to 34 per cent
today, according to figures from the Center for Disease Control and
Prevention.
Daily Multivitamin Use...
According to a National Institutes of Health (NIH) State-of-the-
Science Panel, half of the American population routinely use
dietary supplements.
Recent results of the National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey showed that 35 per cent of the US adult population
regularly consumes one or more types of multivitamin product
(Am. J. Epidemiol., 2004, Vol. 160, Pages 339-349).
Study Details...
Ninety-six obese women aged between 18 and 55 were recruited
to participate in the study, with 87 completing the 26 weeks of
intervention. Women were randomly assigned to one of three
groups: One received a multivitamin and mineral supplement; the
second received a calcium supplement; and the third received an
identical placebo.
Researchers from the Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene
at Harbin Medical University, reported that the multivitamin and
mineral group lost an average of 3.6 kg (approx. 8 lbs.) of body
weight, compared to 0.9 kg (approx. 2 lbs.) and 0.2 kg (less than
one-half pound) for the calcium and placebo groups, respectively.
In addition, significant reductions in BMI and waist circumference
were observed in the multivitamin and mineral group, while the
changes in the other groups were not significant.
"To our knowledge, this study is the first to evaluate the effects of
multivitamin and mineral supplementation on lipid profile in obese
subjects," wrote the researchers.
Calcium and Dairy Intake...
On the other hand, the calcium group only experienced cholesterol
improvements, with HDL levels increasing and LDL decreasing,
compared with the placebo group.
A relationship between dairy intake and weight reduction has been
recorded in numerous studies, and dairy industries in Europe and
the US have been promoting milk-based products for consumers
who want to slim for some time. The subject, however, remains
controversial.
Some experts are arguing that calcium and vitamin D are the active
nutrients behind the effects of dairy. Other researchers have
previously said that dairy can help reduce body fat and that calcium
only accounts for about 40 per cent of the fat reduction effect.
Source: International Journal of Obesity
Published online
"Effects of multivitamin and mineral supplementation on adiposity,
energy expenditure and lipid profiles in obese Chinese women"
No comments:
Post a Comment