This soluble fiber, glucomannan, has been widely researched to find out what effect it has on obese people:

One double blind trial over eight weeks gave twenty obese subjects, either two-500mg capsules of purified Glucomannan fiber, or a placebo. These were taken with eight ounces of water, one hour before each of their three daily meals. The participants in this study were told not to change their regular eating habits or usual exercise. The results showed a noteworthy average weight loss of five and a half pounds, in those participants using Glucomannan over the eight-week period, and no side effects were reported.Fiber Weight Loss

Fiber comes from plant-based foods and our bodies can't digest it so the fibers pass through us keeping our bowel movements regular and ward off certain diseases. Fiber also helps transport cholesterol out of our body, reducing our risk for heart disease.

Studies have shown a link between high-fiber diets and a decreased risk of colon cancer. Since fiber increases the bulk of the stool, moves waste faster through the digestive tract, leaving less time for cancerous substances in your stool to have contact with the lining of the bowel.

Adding more fiber to your diet will likely help you lose weight and improve your health, but do it gradually. Rapid increases in consumption of fiber may result in gas or diarrhea.

And be sure to drink plenty of fluids when adding fiber to your diet. While fiber is normally helpful to your digestive system, without adequate fluids it can cause constipation instead of helping to eliminate it.

Fiber Weight Loss

It would come as a surprise to many that a diet high in fibers such as glucomannan is actually very useful in reducing the weight of individuals. Additionally it has also been found out that the supplemental intake of fiber dramatically reduces the fat content of individuals. It is also found that these supplements not just decreased the weight of the individuals but also reduced the risk of type II diabetes.

Glucomannan Lowers Cholesterol And Other Lipids

Controlling cholesterol

The quantity and the type of food we eat is the determinant of good or bad cholesterol level in our blood. Exercise and balanced diet will lower the ‘bad' cholesterol in helps to increase the ‘good' cholesterol. Obesity, improper diet, smoking and sedentary lifestyle will result into increase in the LDL and VLDL. More horrible thing is that our genes can have a deleterious role in increasing the bad cholesterol level even we are on the right track.

Glucomannan can be a friendly medicine if we want to lower our cholesterol level. Glucomannan as a cholesterol-lowering agent

Glucomannan has shown statistically noteworthy development to manage the total cholesterol level in the obese people [1]. Glucomannan has a hemicellulose active ingredient. It binds cholesterol from all through our body parts and brings them to the liver. From here, after filtration, either the cholesterol goes to the recycle area for reuse or they are excreted chiefly through kidney.

There is some good news for the healthy people also. In a double blind cross over study, it was seen that one month course of 3.9 grams of glucomannan significantly lowers the total cholesterol, LDL and triglycerides (one type of lipid binding agent) by 23%. However, it did not change the HDL level in blood. It also reduces Systolic Blood Pressure.

Chronic Constipation

Constipation is a common condition, which affects people of all ages, however the severity can differ. If you suffer long-term, this is usually known as chronic constipation. This can cause a great deal of pain and discomfort, and may lead to difficulties, like fecal impaction and fecal incontinence.

Treatments for chronic constipation are usually extremely effective, but it may take some months before your regular bowel pattern is re-established.

It appears that twice a many women as men, regularly take medications because they suffer from chronic constipation, and this problem is more widespread in the elderly. Additionally up to forty percent of pregnant women experience and take a medicine for constipation, sometime during their pregnancy.

Konjac Dietary Fiber

Details of the Konjac Plant

The konjac plant belongs to the genus Amorphophallus. The botanical name of the plant is therefore, Amorphophallus konjac. The plant is known to be a perennial plant. It grows from a large corm. The corm can as large as 25cm in diameter. It is generally found in regions of East Asia especially Japan, Indonesia and China. It is now cultivated in parts of East Asia for its large corms and roots, which are the source of supplement fiber glucomannan, also known as konjac-mannan (KJM). It is also used as a vegetarian substitute for gelatin as it forms a thick viscous jelly like mass with water. Medicinal Properties of Konjac-Mannan (KJM)

Glucomannan obtained from the root and corms of the konjac plant are having a wide variety of pharmacological actions in the body and can help treat w broad range of diseases and disorders in the body. This dietary fiber is known to help patients who are obese, who have diabetes (type II), and also patients with constipation.

Obesity: Glucomannan is known to reduce the uptake of lipids and cholesterol [3]. This drastically reduces the amount of calories that are taken up by the body. Hence, people who are obese are advised to increase intake of konjac. It is also suggested that glucomannan could be responsible for reducing weight by not allowing uptake of glucose and sugars, which are highly calorific in value. It is also known to dilute the energy uptake as it itself does not have much caloric value.