MELBOURNE, Australia — The profoundly palatable roselle plant has cancer prevention agents that analysts in Australia say could assist with weight reduction endeavors. The new study suggests that roselle’s organic acid and antioxidants may be able to stop fat cells from growing. The body needs some fat to keep its energy and sugar levels in check, but too much fat causes the body to turn it into fat cells called adipocytes. Fat cells multiply and grow in size as people produce more energy without using it, resulting in weight gain and obesity.
Before becoming fat cells, human stem cells were treated with phenolic extracts and hydroxycitric acid by researchers from RMIT University in the current study. Adipocyte fat content did not change in cells exposed to hydroxycitric acid. However, phenolic extract-treated cells had 95% less fat than untreated cells.
Changing one’s lifestyle and taking medication are currently the primary treatments for obesity. While current medications work, they also make you more likely to get high blood pressure and damage to your kidneys and liver. According to the findings, phenolic extracts from the roselle plant may offer a natural but effective approach to weight loss.
According to Ben Adhikari, a professor at RMIT University’s Food Research and Innovation Center, in a press release, “The phenolic extracts from the roselle could help create a health food product that is effective in interfering with the formation of fat cells and also bypass the negative side effects of some medications.”
The research into the health benefits of polyphenols—compounds high in antioxidants—has grown in popularity. They can be found in a wide variety of vegetables and fruits. Antioxidants help the body eliminate harmful oxidative molecules that cause aging and chronic diseases when consumed.
Roselle polyphenols, according to previous research, function as a natural enzyme blocker similar to how some medications for obesity work. Lipase, a digestive enzyme, is stopped by polyphenol. The small amounts of fat that this protein breaks down allow the intestine to absorb them. Fat cells form from any extra fat. Fat cannot be absorbed into the body when something inhibits the lipase enzyme, allowing it to be eliminated as waste.
According to lead study author Manisa Singh, a PhD candidate at RMIT University, “There should be fewer or no side effects because these polyphenolic compounds are plant-derived and can be consumed.” The team intends to incorporate roselle’s phenolic extracts into health food products. The extracts could also be transformed by food scientists into tiny beads that are added to energizing beverages.
Adhikari explains, “Phenolic extracts oxidize easily, so encapsulation not only extends its shelf life but also allows us to control how they are released and absorbed by the body.” The extract may degrade in the stomach before we can reap its benefits if it is not encapsulated.
