Melinda Safir, R.D., L.D., a nutritionist at the Cooper Clinic, Dallas says, “If carbohydrate blockers were the magic bullet for achieving weight loss, the epidemic of obesity would never have become the problem that it is today. The ability to choose what foods move from your plate into mouth is the most powerful carbohydrate blocker and weight-loss aid on the market. Every product touted as a weight-loss miracle pales in comparison to our own ability to control food selection and intake amount.”
One of America’s biggest health problem is obesity. In recent times, carbohydrate blockers have entered into the lucrative weight loss market which claims that they help you to lose weight and still enjoy your appealing starchy food such as potatoes, bread and pasta.
Carbohydrate blockers seem like the perfect answer if you are having a problem giving up those starchy foods but want to avoid the weight gain. Starch blockers work to limit the amount of carbohydrates being processed by your body. This reduces the intake of carbohydrate and calorie.
So, you must be thinking what does a carbohydrate blocker really do? It usually contains bean and wheat germ extracts especially white kidney beans. The best starch blockers are the ones that contain phaseolamin. It prevents the production of alpha-amylase, the starch-digesting enzyme in the body. Thus, it obstructs the bodily absorption of carb which lets the carbohydrate to pass through the body unnoticed.
To lose weight, you must have a high metabolism. Metabolism is the ability of your body to break down food. If you have low metabolic rate, then you will store more fat. In this case, regular exercise and controlled diet serve no use. One of the benefits of carb blockers is it’s ability to boost up your metabolic rate. With it, you will be able to shed off that weight.
There are still ongoing arguments whether these carb blockers really work. According to Mayo Clinic’s research, it would take about 4000 to 6000mg of phaseolamin to effectively inhibit the digestion of starch. The sad news is many carb blockers being sold do not even meet the minimum phaseolamin amount of 4000mg. In fact, most of them have only 500mg of white kidney bean extract which is far from the effective dosage. They also found that there is no sign of weight loss during the slowing down of the digestion of carbs.
Phaseolamin may have been successful during clinical testing but it failed to work afterwards because the laboratory did not mimic the functioning of a real body. When the phaseolamin is in the digestive system, it will be metabolized which prevents it from inhibiting the alpha amylase.
Pharmachem Laboratories learned from Mayo Clinic’s findings and went on to produce an improved phaseolamin variant. Their clinical tests demonstrated how the new phaseolamin 2250, also known as Phase 2, could curb more than 560 grams of dietary starch or 2250 starch calories, a number significantly higher than phaseolamin’s 30-45 grams. Furthermore, this new carb blocker can withstand the digestive juice in your gastrointestinal system because it is 100% pure.
If you are following Atkins’ diet, how does carb blockers benefit you? Atkins’ diet and carbohydrate blockers do not work the same way. The idea of Atkins’ diet is to consume low amounts of carbs. However, some people feel that carb blockers allow them to cheat on the Atkins’ diet, giving them some freedom to enjoy a little bit more carbohydrate foods than recommended. You should know that there is a limit to how much carb blockers can reduce carbohydrates in the body. If you eat too much carbohydrates, carb blockers may not be able to reduce them significantly and your low carb diet will not work. The carb blockers are a boon only if you take it once in a while like when your friend gives you a special treat or there’s a dinner party that night.
So, why should you use carbohydrate blockers then? They may not be a major contributor to your weight loss program but they are nice to have around when you experience that occasional urge to eat your favorite carbohydrates, but remember to eat in moderate amounts. Now that you have a way to expand a little on your choice of food, you don’t feel so stressed out with a restrictive diet plan. Moreover, they can help you to stick longer with the diet program. Whether you want to prevent the absorption of carbs or maintain your weight, you have to take carbohydrate blockers before meal.
