Garcinia Cambogia Extract

Unless you’ve been vacationing on a deserted island, you’ve heard about Garcinia cambogia extract.

What is it and what do you need to know? Here’s a rundown.

What is Garcinia Cambogia?

Garcinia trees are found in Asia, Australia, southern Africa, and Polynesia. One species of garcinia you may have heard of is the purple mangosteen. It is the principal acid in the highly acidic fruits of Garcinia cambogia, however, that has been identified as hydroxycitric acid (HCA). This is the extract that has been shown to aid in weight loss.

How Does Garcinia Cambogia Work?

Garcinia cambogia seems to promote weight reduction and improvement on lipid profile by its major compound, hydroxycitric acid (HCA). HCA blocks ATP-citratelyase, potentially inhibiting lipogenesis, the process by which simple sugars such as glucose are converted to fatty acids.

Click to See Our Sources

“Hypolipemic Effect of Garcinia cambogia in Obese Women” Phytother Res. 2013 Oct 17. doi: 10.1002/ptr.5076. [Epub ahead of print]

“Plant extracts with appetite suppressing properties for body weight control: a systematic review of double blind randomized controlled clinical trials.” Complement Ther Med. 2013 Aug;21(4):407-16. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2013.05.007. Epub 2013 Jun 24.

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The Taste for Life Staff

The Taste for Life staff come from a wide variety of backgrounds and specialties. We believe learning is a life-long process, and love to share the knowledge we gain.