14 DAY TRIAL // Researchers in Boston believe they have the solution to the obesity problem, which can also work wonderfully for all those looking to lose weight: a granule that becomes a gel-like substance in the stomach, filling it up so that overeating is prevented.
As a recent piece in Huffington Post informs, the researchers believe the granule is the solution they’ve been looking for all along.
Since it doesn’t enter the bloodstream and is eliminated by the body after being broken down, it comes with little to no side effects. It also prevents cravings by telling the body it’s full even with very little food.
“Researchers at Gelesis, a Boston-based company, think so. They have been testing a polymer or hydrogel called Attiva,” the Post writes.
“The substance is about the size of a sugar grain, but when the grains are consumed in a capsule along with water, the grains swell into a gel-like substance. As the gel expands in the stomach, little room is left for food,” the same report says.
By expanding the stomach, the gel also “stimulates nerve fibers that tell the brain the stomach is too full to receive any more food.”
Even better, that’s not all that Attiva promises to do. The grains leave the stomach by shrinking to their initial shape again but they swell up again once they enter the small intestine.
“[They] trap digested sugar and fatty acids in their viscous matrix. Eventually, as the polymer shrinks again, the sugar and fatty acids are released and slowly trickle into the bloodstream,” the Post writes.
As it’s passing through the large intestine, the grains disintegrate and are eliminated. In theory at least, it seem Attiva is really the answer to the obesity problem, while also appearing like a strong ally in the fight against the extra pounds for anyone looking to lose some weight.
However, not all that glitters is gold, the Post also notes. Even if this seems like an excellent idea, the very fact that the granules have to be ingested before mealtimes may make some overeat – as they choose not to do so on “a special occasion.”
There is also the question of how Attiva wouldn’t tackle the real problem with overeating, meaning the emotional side. However, it might work wonders for dieters who are only looking to shift a couple of pounds.