Weight Control

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Herbs for Obesity
Aloe Vera (Aloe barbadensis)
Aloe vera juice improves digestion and cleanses the digestive tract.
Astragalus (Astragalus gummifer)
Astragalus increases energy and improves nutrient absorption.
Caution: Do not use this herb in the presence of a fever.
Bee pollen
Bee pollen stimulates the metabolism and helps to curb appetite. Take up to 1 teaspoon daily.
Bladderwrack (Fucus vesiculosus)
Bladderwrack contain iodine, which helps to enhance thyroid function. Dosage: Take 150 milligrams at
breakfast and another 150 milligrams lunch for two months.
Caution: Check with your doctor before taking this herb if you have a thyroid disorder, high blood
pressure, or heart problems. If you are allergic to shellfish and/ or sensitive to iodine, do not take this
herb. Also do not take kelp and bladderwrack at the same time.
Brewer's yeast
Brewer's yeast will help to reduce various cravings for food and drink.
Chickweed (Stellaria media)
This herb a great folk reputation for shedding weight.
You can eat it raw in salads. Alternately, you can steam it and eat it like a vegetable. For a great
weight loss salad, mix chickweed, dandelion, evening primrose, stinging nettle (cooked and cooled),
plantain and purslane. Add this to your regular salad.
Coconut oil
Coconut oil, extracted from coconuts, is a rich source for medium chain triglycerides. Medium chain
triglycerides (MCTS) are special types of saturated fats separated out from coconut oil that range in
length from six to twelve carbon chains. Unlike regular fats, MCTs do not appear to cause weight gain;
they actually promote weight loss.

Medium Chain Triglycerides and Long Chain Triglycerides

Medium chain triglycerides (MCTS) are special types of saturated fats separated out

from coconut oil. It range in length from six to twelve carbon chains.
The long-chain triglycerides (LCTS) are the most abundant fats found in nature. LCTs
are the storage fat for both humans and plants. They range in length from eighteen to
twenty-four carbons.
MCTs are used by the body differently than LCTs. This is because of the difference in
length of carbon chains. The larger LCTs are difficult for the body to metabolize. So the
body tends to store these fats. MCTS, on the other hand, are easy to metabolize. So,
they are rapidly burned as energy. They also promote the burning of LCTs.
Because of the way body handles MCTs, MCTs do not appear to cause weight gain like
the conventional fats do. They, in fact, actually promote weight loss. LCTs are usually
stored in the fat deposits. Since their energy is conserved, a high fat diet decreases the
metabolic rate. Lower the metabolism, higher the weight gain.
Scientists suggest that medium-Chain Triglycerides promote weight loss by increasing
thermogenesis (heat production). Thermogenesis is the method by which the body
"wastes" calories. There is evidence that the level of diet-induced thermogenesis is what
determines whether an individual is likely to be overweight. In lean individuals, a meal
may stimulate up to a forty-percent increase in heat production. In contrast, overweight
individuals often experience only a ten-percent or less increase in heat production. The
food energy is stored instead of being converted to heat. In actuality, the food is more
efficiently converted in case of LCTs. So, ther eis less need for them to obtain the same
energy. (LCTs is like a fuel efficient car. It needs less fuel to go to the same distance as
compared to a fuel guzzling car (like MCTs). So, for the same food consumption, LCTs
will have more fat stored int he body promoting weight gain.
This has been demonstrated in clinical trials.
In one study, scientists compared the thermogenic effect of a high-calorie diet containing
forty-percent fat as MCTs to that of one containing forty-percent fat as LCTs.
The thermogenic effect (calories wasted six hours after a meal) of the MCTs was almost
twice as great as that of the LCTs. (120 calories vs. 66 calories.) It appears that the
excess energy provided by fats in the form of MCTs would not be efficiently stored as fat.
Instead, they would be burned and produce heat.
A follow-up study demonstrated that MCT oil given over a six-day period can increase
diet-induced thermogenesis by fifty percent.
In another study, researchers gave single meals of 400 calories composed entirely of
either MCTs or LTCs. Six hours after eating, scientists found that the thermogeneic effect
of MCTs was three times greater than that of LCTs. Interestingly, MCTs had no effect on
the blood fat level. The LCTs, on the other hand, elevated blood fat levels by sixty eight
percent. Blood fat level is a significant risk factor for contracting CHDs.
Researchers concluded that substituting MCTs for LCTs in your diet would produce
weight loss as long as the calorie level remained the same.

In order to gain the benefit from MCTs, a diet must remain low in LCTs. Use MCTs (coconut oil or
other products containing MCTs) as an oil for salad dressing, as a bread spread, or simply taken as a
supplement. Coconut oil is an important herb used in Ayurvedic Medicine. Ayurvedic physicians often
prescribe that coconut oil be massaged on the body.

Recommended Dosage: 1 to 2 tablespoons per day.

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
Dandelion may flush out the kidneys, boost metabolism, and off- set a craving for sweets. Eat the
leaves raw in a salad or make a tea by boiling 2 to 3 tsp of the root in a cup of water for I 0 to 15
minutes. Drink three times a day.
Evening primrose (Oenothera biennis).
This herb is a good source for tryptophan which is believed to help in weight loss. Take a halfteaspoon of evening primrose oil three times a day.
Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
Fennel removes mucus and fat from the intestinal tract, and is a natural appetite suppressant.
Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum)
Fenugreek is useful for dissolving fat within the liver.
Green Tea (Camellia sinensis)
Green tea enhances the ability of the body to burn fat. Choose a standardized extract containing 50
percent catechin and 90 percent total polyphenols and take 300 milligrams thirty minutes before
breakfast and another thirty minutes before lunch. Do not take more.
Guggul (Commiphora mukul)
This is a popular herb used in Ayurveda. Guggul is frequently recommended by Ayurveda
practitioners for weight control in addition to use in lowering cholesterol. In clinical trials, intake of
guggul derivatives regularly for three months results in four times the weight loss compared to
placebo.
Dosage: 2.25 grams twice a day
Kelp (Fucus spp.)
Kelp is a type of seaweed thats rich in antioxidant vitamins and iodine. It is believed to stimulate a
hormone produced by the thyroid gland thats responsible for boosting metabolism, so youll burn
more calories by the hour. You can also get other kinds of seaweed in your diet by adding them to
soups and salads. Kelp is very useful for thyroid-related obesity.
Dosage: Take 300-1,500 mg daily as directed on the label.
Caution: Check with your doctor before taking kelp if you have a thyroid disorder, high blood pressure,
or heart problems.
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra)
Licorice root strengthens the adrenal glands, thus helping to sustain a regulated blood-sugar level and
reduce cravings for sweets. Licorice tastes sweet.
Dose: Take a cup of licorice daily, one week out of every month for up to three months. Licorice can
also be added to other teas to sweeten them.

Caution: Do not take licorice by itself on a daily basis for more than five days at a time, as it can
elevate blood pressure. Do not take it at all if you have high blood pressure. This herb should be used
with caution. Check the herbal database for other important safety information.
Malabar tamarind (Gareinia cantbogia)
The Malabar tamarind is a yellowish fruit that is about the size of an orange, with a thin skin and deep
furrows similar to an acorn squash. It is native to southern India, where it is dried and used
extensively in curries (especially fish). It looks black when dried.
The dried fruit of Malabar Tamarind contains about thirty percent hydroxycitric acid. It is a powerful
lipogenic inhibitor. (Lipogenic inhibitor is a substance which helps prevent the production of fat.)
In animal studies, hydroxycitrate has been shown to be a powerful inhibitor of fat formation. One study
showed that hydroxycitrate produced a "significant reduction in food intake, and body weight gain" in
rats. The results in humans are not yet proven.
In addition to inhibiting the production of fat, hydroxycitrate may also suppress appetite.
Note that hydroxycitrate only inhibits the conversion of carbohydrates into fat. It will have no effect if a
high-fat diet is consumed.
Recommended Dosage: 500 mg three times per day. Take it along with a supplement of Chromium for
best results.