Glucomannan Review

What You Should Know

Glucomman is a water soluble dietary fibre that is derived from the Kojac root. It is a dietary fiber that helps increase a user’s stool bulk by absorbing water. This helps the stool move more easily through the colon. Basically, it is a fiber that expands in the stomach and absorbs fats. The absorbed fats are eliminated from the body and do not undergo digestion, thus nullifying the calorific effect.

List of Ingredients

Glucomannan is a popular ingredient derived from the Kojac Root. It is a natural diuretic found in many diet supplements today. It is also available in tablet form.

Product Features

Glucomannan is often recommended as a solution to obesity. It is also recommended to people who have high cholesterol, and have problems with constipation. It should never be taken by anyone who has problems with their oesophagus as it can lead to choking. It should also never be taken by someone who is diabetic unless under the supervision of their physician as it can alter the person’s insulin requirements. Two Glucomanan tablets of 500mg before each meal is often the recommended dose for this product. It should be taken with plenty of water, and again, if not enough water is taken, there is a risk of choking. It is therefore a product that should be ingested with care.

In trials studies, one in twenty obese patients who took capsules of purified Glucomannan sixty minutes before a meal lost 5.5 pounds after eight weeks. It does therefore seem to achieve weight loss in certain people, but there are a number of risks and side effects associated with this product. In fact the sale of Glucomannan has been banned by the Australian government. Glucomannan can be ordered on line as a supplement by itself, at an average cost of approximately $9 for one hundred tablets. Glucomannan is also a common ingredient in a number of weight loss nutritional supplements.

Advantages

• It is available for purchase from online pharmacies.
• It is relatively inexpensive.
• There are product studies available that indicate Glucomannan can help with weight loss in certain cases.

Disadvantages

• We could not find an official website for Glucomannan.
• It cannot be taken by anyone who has problems with their oesophagus.
• It can be dangerous for diabetics as it can alter the insulin
  requirements.
• The sale of Glucomannan has been banned in some countries.
• Since it is a diuretic, plan on frequently needing access to a bathroom.

Conclusion

There does seem to be some evidence that Glucomannan can result in a small amount of weight loss. However it seems that this supplement would need to be taken on a permanent basis if the effect is to be long-lasting, and this could have negative effects on the user’s digestive system. What gives rise to concern, however, are the known side effects of this product and it is only natural that the fact that this product has already been banned in Australia makes us wary of recommending this product as part of your weight loss programme. A number of warnings have been given by the FDA, regarding safety issues with Glucomannan.We would like to see proper controlled and standardized trials with this product over a very long time period, which assess the long term effects of taking Glucomannan and any risks involved. Until we see these tests, we need to be wary of using Glucomannan on its own and also as an ingredient in other supplements.