Eight weeks of supplementation with the combination of extracts led to an average weight loss of 1.8 kg, compared to a 0.5 kg increase in the placebo group, according to findings published in the Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism.
Body mass index (BMI) also decreased by 0.7 kg/m2 compared to a 0.1 kg/m2 increase in the placebo group, reported scientists from Kashan University of Medical Sciences and Barij Medicinal Plants Research Center in Iran.
Data from the randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial involving 50 overweight women also produced beneficial changes in insulin levels, and measure of insulin resistance.
“Our study indicated that taking green tea, capsaicin and ginger co-supplements for 8 weeks among overweight women had beneficial effects on weight, BMI, markers of insulin metabolism and plasma [glutathione] levels,” wrote the scientists.
Study details
Twenty five women were assigned to consume daily supplements containing 500 mg green tea, 100 mg capsaicin, and 200 mg ginger extracts, while another 25 women were assigned to consume placebo.
After eight weeks, the results showed that, in addition to the improvements in body weight and BMI, women receiving the extracts showed significant decreases in serum insulin concentrations (-2.6 µIU/mL) compared to the placebo (-0.6 µIU/mL).
Insulin resistance, as measured by HOMA-IR, also improved compared to placebo, while levels of the antioxidant enzyme glutathione also improved in the women consuming the green tea, capsaicin and ginger supplements (+73.8 µmol/L), while levels decreased in the women receiving placebo (-28.3 µmol/L).
Source: Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism
2017, Volume 70, Pages 277-285, doi: 10.1159/000471889
“The Effect of Dietary Supplements Containing Green Tea, Capsaicin and Ginger Extracts on Weight Loss and Metabolic Profiles in Overweight Women: A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial”
Authors: M. Taghizadeh et al.