Linoleic Acid Supplements May Help Dieting Adults Keep weight off
The article suggests that conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) may help dieters keep weight off. What the article doesn’t mention is that CLA acts as a PPAR-gamma agonist, much like the fancy new Type 2 diabetic drugs. Knowing that controlling insulin sensitivity is important for controlling weight, this seem like a logical mechanism by which the CLA works.
The results of two new studies presented at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society on Sunday suggest that conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) may help obese people temporarily lose weight and help them keep the weight off after dieting. Dr. Pariza and his colleagues at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, administered 3g of CLA to 35 obese adults each day and placebo to another 36 obese adults. Each of the patients in the double-blind study also followed a light exercise program and a diet program. All patients lost an average of about 5 lb. over the next 6 months. But in the third of patients who gained lean body mass, the researchers found that those who took placebo regained fat and muscle in a normal 3-to-1 ratio, while those who took CLA regained weight in a 1-to-1 ratio. “CLA could help people avoid the yo-yo effect that is so common” after weight loss, Dr. Pariza said. His research was funded in part by companies that sell CLA to dietary supplement manufacturers. Investigators cannot be sure that CLA was directly responsible for the weight loss, but “there is an indication” that it was, Dr. Ola Gudmundsen said in a statement at the meeting. The investigators stressed that CLA-containing products sold in health food stores are highly variable in their quality. Some products claiming to contain CLA have been found to contain none at all.