Garcinia Cambogia – the Advantages, Usages and Precautions

Also known by the name of tamarind, garcinia cambogia is a small, pumpkin-shaped fruit. Garcinia cambogia is native to Indonesia, however, it is grown in other regions such as West Africa, Central Africa and Southeast Asia as well. Traditionally used as an ingredient for several dishes such as curries, soup or for fish preservation, garcinia cambogia is now a days finding appreciation among people trying to lose extra fat.

A major ingredient of garcinia cambogia is hydroxycitric acid or HCA and this plays a major role in weight loss.

First of all, it inhibits Citrate lyase, an enzyme which is required by human body to create fat from carbohydrates. If carbohydrates are not used immediately in your body and are stored in any other form, these tend to get converted into fats. However, as HCA inhibits Citrate lyase, this fat transformation process is stopped. Not only that, but production of triglycerides and LDL gets decreased as well, thereby controlling your cholesterol level.

Secondly, HCA increases serotonin levels, thereby stopping eating due to mood shifts. Serotonin is known for its usage in medicines for depression as it is a neurotransmitter in human brain that makes one feel good. As low level of serotonin can make a person anxious, he may get into reactive or emotional eating. HCA however enhances serotonin level and thereby your mood is improved as well. Hence, a person never tries to deal with a stressful situation with food.

Finally, garcinia cambogia is known to block appetite. This means that you will eat less and therefore the extra fat in your body is bound to get burnt. For this specific capability of garcinia cambogia, in certain parts of Asia, this is used in a specific soup which is taken before meals to reduce appetite.

Various garcinia cambogia supplements are available in the market and it may become intimidating for you to choose one. There is one point that you should always notice before buying any supplement though: whether it has a HCA level of at least 50% or not. Check out all the other listed ingredients to ensure that those are natural as well. Garcinia cambogia supplements generally come in tablet or capsule format.

It’s natural, so if you take this in normal amounts, there should not be any harm to your health. However, there are contraindications for garcinia cambogia that you should take a note of:

Avoid these if you are breastfeeding or are pregnant.

If you are taking glyburide, insulin or any other diabetic medication, avoid these supplements or at least talk to a doctor before having these. Otherwise, your blood sugar level may go down than normal.

If you are having any type of cholesterol lowering drug, you should not have garcinia cambogia supplements; as otherwise, you can experience severe side effects such as muscle degradation or rhabdomyolysis. Same goes if you are suffering from any form of dementia.

Most of the users claim that they have seen great results after taking garcinia cambogia for at least a month. It helps you in losing weight, but, you’ll probably attain even better results if you follow a healthy diet and exercise routine along with the same. Always remember one thing, no matter what you do to lose weight, without a proper lifestyle and healthy routine, you are unlikely to have the best possible results.