Obesity has become a serious health problem in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 42 percent of American adults were obese in 2017-2018.
There is no magic pill that can cure obesity
Current obesity treatments increase the risk of developing high blood pressure as well as damage to the kidney and liver. Even the diet and lifestyle changes aren’t sufficient to shed all the extra weight.
A new study suggests that a hibiscus flower extract could be a potential game-changer.
Researchers from the RMIT University in Australia say that the highly edible roselle plant, also known as Hibiscus Sabdariffa could provide a natural but effective weight management strategy.
Researchers used freeze-dried roselle flowers to extract the antioxidant compounds and organic acid which might be effective at preventing the formation of fat cells.
“The phenolic extracts from the roselle could help create a health food product that is effective in interfering with the formation of fat cells, but also bypass the bad side effects of some medications,” says Ben Adhikari, a professor at RMIT University’s Food Research and Innovation Center.
Researchers treated the human stem cells with phenolic extract. The fat cells derived from the phenol-treated stem cells were found to have 95% less fat.
The phenolic extract works by inhibiting the activity of a digestive enzyme called lipase
Lipase breaks ingested fats down into small portions that can be absorbed through the walls of the intestine. Excess fats, not required by the body, are then stored in fat cells. The roselle phenols allow that fat to pass through the digestive system.
In the future, the roselle phenolic extract could be encapsulated for use in health supplements without the side effects.
