A. Chitosan has been hailed as a ‘fat binder’ with the power to help the body reduce its absorption of fats – an instant appeal for anyone struggling to lose weight. It is claimed to act like a ‘fat sponge’, soaking up dietary fat consumed which is then excreted via the bowel. If only that were vaguely true!

Studies have shown some weight loss in mice, but obesity researchers in Australia have concluded that the human studies that tested chitosan were flawed and give no good evidence for weight loss in humans.

Even if it does work, remember that chitosan could only ‘soak up’ a small proportion of all the fat you eat - perhaps 10 or 20 grams of fat at most.  You can’t eat the typical Aussie diet which has 60 to 100 grams of fat a day and  expect the chitosan to bind and excrete all that.

The bottom line

You will still need to eat a low kilojoule, low-fat diet. As well as doing some regular exercise such as walking. You certainly won’t see any results if you don’t.

Read up on my 10 tips to help you shed weight and other articles in the Healthy Weight Loss section.

Comments (0)

Write comment