Natural Weight Loss Remedies – Aloe
Normally when you think of aloe (which contains over 400 different species), you think of it being used for wound healing and things like burns. Aloe is actually added to herbal weight loss products for the main reason that it cleans you right out. It induces a strong cathartic response, which is why they also say on the labels it is an internal cleanser. One of the 400 species is Aloe Vera, and it is purported to have medicinal properties. Many cosmetics companies use aloe in their products and market them as skin rejuvenators.
Aloe has been touted as a cure all for coughs, wounds, ulcers and gastritis as well as arthritis and immune system deficiencies when taken internally. Apparently the only actual substantiated internal use is as a laxative.
Research on Aloe as a weight loss agent seems to consistently indicate it has no effect on weight loss despite its inclusion in over-the-counter natural remedies for losing weight. Many feel its inclusion is misleading to consumers. An internal cleanser, when not spelled out that it promotes strong bowel movements, can mean many things, including it cleans up your system and rids you of fats. Certainly it may lead to some minimal weight loss, due to the time spent recycling the product. However, the real weight loss would come with a change in your diet and exercise program.
Aloe evidently also has some rather disturbing side effects – abdominal cramping, diarrhea, electrolyte disturbances, and decreases in potassium. It is also recommended you do not take aloe in combination with medications such as digoxin or diuretics.
The choice is yours and you can decide whether or not you want to try Aloe after you have read all you can about it. Most definitely it is being promoted as being effective in weight loss and not just because it causes diarrhea. It is said to reduce and stabilize body mass index by stimulating the metabolic rate in liver cells causing us to burn more energy. The other point about Aloe is that is has a high collagen protein content. Meaning, using aloe vera as a supplement in your diet would increase protein intake. The body spends more time trying to digest proteins and spends more energy doing that – thus it burns fat. It’s baffling, but as always, talk to your Doctor.
Natural Weight Loss Remedies – Cascara
Cascara Sagrada (also called Sacred Bark, Bitter Bark, Chittem bark , California Buckthorn and Rhamnus purshiana) is a common ingredient found in natural remedies for losing weight. A strong stimulant laxative, it needs to be used with a great deal of care because it can leech potassium and sodium from your body. Of interest, the bark of the tree is removed, cut into small pieces, and dried for one year before being used medicinally.
Spanish priests in California named the tree Cascara is harvested from. It’s name origins may either be from the medicinal properties of the bark or from its resemblance to wood used for the ark of the covenant.
Most Doctors will advice you that Cascara should be taken consecutively for no longer than eight to ten days, so you need to very carefully read labels when considering a natural remedy for losing weight that contains cascara. If pregnant or nursing, you must also use this with extreme caution.
It seems the main raison d’etre of this herbal product is to promote bowel movements, so how does it figure in today’s natural remedies for losing weight? Many of the products being marketed that have Cascara in them are packaged with other products to supposedly give you a lean look, help you become a fat burning furnace and so forth. This is precisely this thing you need to be careful of when you read labels.
If you find yourself reading a label that has Cascara, psyllium husks and Senna(all bowel movement enhancers), and Valerian (for sleeplessness) and an appetite suppressant, and a whole list of other ingredients, head for your Pharmacist to translate for you. It may be that using a product like this helps you lose weight because you are continually expelling what you do eat with the aid of bowel stimulators. Not a healthy way to lose weight.
While Senna, Cascara, and Aloe are authorized for oral use as laxatives, they are also way too often promoted for detoxifying or cleansing regimens. There are serious risks with the chronic use of laxatives or combining multiple laxatives together. These can include the risk of electrolyte disturbances affecting the heart, as well as functional bowel problems. Use caution when investigating herbal substances for weight loss.
Natural Weight Loss Remedies – Dandelion
The lowly Dandelion, the usual grass destroying culprit in our yards that gets cut on a regular basis with the lawnmower, is known by a variety of names such as lion’s tooth, fairy clock, priest’s crown, swine’s snout, blowball, milk gowan, and wild endive.
In addition to medicinal uses, dandelion can be used as a food and beverage. Leaves can be used raw in salads and sandwiches, or for tea. Roots can make a coffee substitute and the flowers can be used for wine and schnapps.
In Europe, the dandelion was used to treat fevers, boils, diarrhea, fluid retention, heartburn, and various skin problems. The Chinese used dandelion to treat breast cancer, inflammation, lack of milk flow, liver diseases, and digestive problems. As far as weight loss is concerned, the dandelion is considered to be a natural diuretic. It may produce significant weight loss by decreasing body water. However, it can cause allergic reactions and heartburn.
Weight control is definitely an obsession worldwide. In the US alone, two-thirds of the adult population is overweight and one third is classified as obese. It is any wonder that the natural herbal weight loss industry now offers more than 50 supplements and 125 proprietary products for weight loss. The question is have they been thoroughly tested to see if they live up to their claims.
Dandelion has been around for a long time, and thus has a history to support its claims. Those who support the use of dandelion in weight loss claim it may flush out the kidneys, boost metabolism, and cut your craving for sweets. How? Eating the leaves raw in a salad, or making tea and drinking it three times a day. These may trim pounds in short order thanks to the diuretic effect, but continued use can cause dehydration and electrolyte abnormalities. You need to read all you can about any weight loss products before you try them. For safe weight loss, your best bet would be to use the tried and true methods of changing your eating habits and exercising more.
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