Weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro are flying off the shelves with the obesity-drug market currently worth around $15 billion, says James Witts.
Morgan Stanley Research suggests that could rise to $150 billion by 2035. Despite the popularity, the long-term side-effects aren’t yet known with many mooting a more natural alternative as the ideal. Well, results suggest that the answer could be on the horizon thanks to edible microbeads made from green tea polyphenols, vitamin E and seaweed.
The study out of Sichuan University in China, led by student Yue Wu, involved rats being split into three groups: those fed a high-fat diet (60% fats), either with or without the microbead formulation, and those fed a normal diet containing around 10% fat.
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After following the diets for 30 days, the microbead group lost 17% of their total bodyweight, while the rats in the other groups didn’t lose a pound. The microbead rodents also had reduced adipose tissue and less liver damage compared to the other two groups, while they also excreted more fat in their pooh, which didn’t impact their overall health.
“Losing weight can help some people prevent long-term health issues like diabetes and heart disease,” Wu said. “Our microbeads work directly in the gut to block fat absorption in a non-invasive and gentle way.”
More specifically, the tiny plant-based microbeads assemble through chemical interactions between green tea polyphenols and vitamin E. These bonds allow the structures to attach to fat droplets, forming the fat-binding core of each microbead.
To protect them from the stomach’s acidic environment, the researchers coated the beads with a natural seaweed-derived polymer. Once consumed, this protective coating swells in response to the stomach’s low pH, enabling the polyphenols and vitamin E to bind with and trap partially digested fats in the intestine.
The microbeads are tasteless, say the researchers, making them easy to incorporate into everyday foods. Anyone fancy a sprinkling of salt, vinegar and microbeads on their fish and chips? Lovely, lovely.
Wu and her team have initiated a human clinical trial and have also started working with a biotechnology company to manufacture the plant-based beads. All the ingredients are food grade and FDA-approved so, in theory, their production could easily be scaled up. If you’re concerned about the long-term effects of prescription weight-loss drugs or the short-term impact, which includes bad breath, natural microbeads could be the answer. As well, of course, as a hearty walk or two…
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