garcinia-cambogia

Can Garcinia Cambogia Aid in Fat-Loss Or Is It Just Another Fad?

It all boils down to how you use it

After the lackluster results in the study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, research on HCA went on by those refusing to  let go of its potential benefits despite its waning popularity. Some found the past studies’ results discouraging but not definitely conclusive. New research has shown that in order for the HCA to be effective you have to take the right dosage of the right product and you need to take it in a proper way.

In the Journal study, they used a random dose and they never specified what type of citrate they used. You need to administer the proper amount in order for it to reach all the places in the body that it is supposed to reach. The idea that you need to maximize the bioavailability of the HCA if you want it to succeed. If you do not prioritize it you will be met with failure, as the Journal study did.

It is actually not the first time happening. The same thing happens with studies concerning vitamins where participants are often given the wrong dose or in the wrong form and when they can’t seem to wait to proclaim the particular supplement as ineffective. The confirmation bias kicks in, case closed and everyone’s happy. One study that was done on human participants pointed out that there are three different types of hydroxycitrates, those blended with potassium, calcium or magnesium salts. The reason these salts are added is because they are there to decrease the degradation of free HCA into HCA lactone, which represents the inactive form of the substance.

These salts are combined in a 1:1 or higher ratio to HCA in the majority of commercial HCA supplements and can help you absorb the hydroxycitrate more easily.

If you consume pure calcium hydroxycitrate, it won’t work. If the hydroxycitrate is bound to both potassium and calcium, the effectiveness and absorption rate of HCA is tremendously increased. A study was made where 30 healthy but slightly overweight participants aged 20-50 during a period of 8 weeks. All the participants consumed a 2000-calories diet a day and walked for 30 minutes five days a week. One group took Super CitriMax, a form HCA bound with potassium and calcium.

The other group took a placebo. When the study ended, the group that took placebo lost an average of 3 lbs and the group that took Super CitriMax lost an average of 12 lbs, 400% more. The placebo group’s average BMI fell by 1.8% and the HCA group’s by 6.4%.

On top of it all, the group that took HCA had their serotonin levels doubled in comparison to the group that took the placebo. Having high levels of serotonin is related to fewer food cravings, as well as calming you down. Another study tested 50 people, where the HCA group lost an average of 10 lbs and the placebo group lost an average of only 3 lbs. The most impressive result of the studies was the control of appetite. The placebo group experienced no change whatsoever, whereas the HCA group experienced a 16% decrease in the quantity of food they ate per meal.

How to supplement it the right way

It would be very easy to look at supplements from the standpoint of either taking them or not taking them. Some supplements can provide such a precise effect that would allow you to look at them from this perspective. However, this is not the case with HCA. The takeaway point here is that it matters how you take it. HCA’s newfound popularity has given us an opportunity to remind ourselves how to optimize our usage of this supplement. Here are some takeaway points:

  • Prepare a dose containing minimum 50% of HCA and is not comprised wholly of calcium salts. Ensure that both magnesium and potassium are present. The less the product has lactone content, the better.
  • Ensure that you take an adequate dose. In order to prepare a successful calcium/potassium dosage, the dose of the extract should be near 1.5 grams, three times a day before each meal. In a 60% HCA preparation, that would round up to 0.9 grams of HCA before each meal.
  • Take it on an empty stomach or half an hour to an hour before meals.
  • If you fail to stick to these rules, you won’t see much of a result. Take the right doses at the right time.

Note that the guideline points “near” 1.5 grams a day. You might ask why not exactly 1.5? Considering that supplements containing HCA come in a diverse range of mixtures and potencies, being exact is hard. Aim for the 1.5 target, but don’t obsess over it. Why take it on an empty stomach? It’s because it is advantageous to the appetite-reducing effect of the supplement, but what’s more important is that HCA needs the space to be effective. If food is present, the hydroxycitrate salt can be tied down to some of the ingredients of the meal and become inactive. This is also known as the “food effect” and can also decrease the bioavailability of other supplements, including HCA.

If you follow these guidelines, HCA will prove to be an effective weapon in your weight-loss arsenal. Side effects are not common if you take it at a reasonable dose, and because it does not have a stimulating effect, it won’t disrupt your mood or sleeping patterns. If you want to lose weight or are happy with the current one and want to maintain and you are also following a healthy diet and training regimen, you can’t go wrong by adding this supplement to them.


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