Seaweed Anti-Obesity Tablet Hope

Story from BBC News - 2006/9/11

Scientists have pinpointed a unlikely potential weapon in the war against obesity - seaweed.

They found rats given fucoxanthin - a pigment in brown kelp - lost up to 10% of their body weight, mainly from around the gut.
They hope fucoxanthin can be developed into a slimming supplement or a drug that targets harmful fat.
The Hokkaido University research was presented to an American Chemical Society meeting in San Francisco.

Brown kelp, Undaria pinnatifida, is a key ingredient of Japanese miso soup.
But the researchers said drinking large quanatities of the soup in an effort to lose weight would have little effect.
Fucoxanthin is tightly bound to proteins in the seaweed and not easily absorbed in its natural form.

Double Effect - The researcher, led by Dr Kazuo Miyashita, said it might take another three to five years before a slimming pill based on fucoxanthin was available to the public.

"The problem remains that medication, however good, will only ever plaster over the cracks", says Dr Ian Campbell.

Mannatech the cutting edge research and development glyconutritional company has developed their prodect Undaria supporting general health.