Irvingia: Anti-Diabetic Weight Loss Supplement from African Mango

by Roy C | February 28, 2009 at 04:26 pm

14273 views | 47 Recommendations | 34 comments

Many things are written about supplements that seem wonderful at first. Too often health claims often turn out to be over-blown, which give the orthodox medical establishment all the reason to have become the Bizarro World's version of Will Rogers: orthodox medicine has never met a vitamin that it ever liked.

To really understand the validity of reporting, the writer should make it clear what his perspective is. So, a bit about my credentials as a reporter on issues of science and health might be useful before I dive into this article.

I have a strong background in science, life sciences, in particular, including biochem and the like. I have taught science and taught ESL to science people. I am fairly up to date.

I have had enough conversations so that I know that my remark about doctors never meeting a vitamin that they like is an unfortunate truth about medical orthodoxy that has been changing over time.

My interest in nutrition came about after all that science education, and it has progressed right through Adelle Davis, Nathan Pritikin, Pearson and Shaw, Zone Diets, and the works. I have not read books about all major diets that have come on the market, but I have read extensively about nearly every one of them.

I am also an A.C.E. certified personal trainer. I usually attend the nutrition courses to keep my certificate in this area.

I have recently begun using a weight-loss supplement and that, in itself, is unusual. Historically, my problem was that I wanted to gain weight. Given my metabolism, I wasn't sure that I really understood or believed everyone's claim to have been eating well and yet packing on unwanted weight.

But, time has intervened and now I can gain weight with the best of them! And my appetite, once described by my father-in-law as the biggest he had ever seen, has diminished. Yet, I still have more weight (205 lbs.) on my 74 inch frame than I want.

I have tried hydroxycitric acid, the main ingredient in a popular weight-loss supplement with a similar name, and I can honestly say that impeding the rise in blood sugar levels by lowering the absorption of carbohdrate does help me lose weight, especially fat, very well.

Taking a couple of tablespoons of barley (the lowest glycemic carbo food) after a meal also slows down the absorption of carbohydrates by rendering the bolus, the ball of digesting food, more viscous. That slows absorption and lowers insulin levels, slows the conversion of carbos to fat, and you lose weight. That I have verified for myself.

But, when I read about Irvingia, I was intrigued and I decided I had to try some. Several people I talk to will be using this supplement based on my understanding and my experimentation on myself.

The Irvingia Story:

Back in the early and mid-90s, a lot was beginning to be known about leptin, a hormone that when given to mice, melted away their extra pounds. The only problem was that it didn't work in humans at all, and no one understood the why and wherefore of that.

At this date we can now explain this mystery of leptin resistance, and we now have a way to combat it due to the work of a researcher in Africa by the name of Dr Julius Oben.

Below is a piece from the Life Extension News on the fifth annual Functional Foods for Chronic Disease conference in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The highlight of the conference was the startling presentation by Dr. Julius Oben, who has participated in more than 50 studies in the field of weight loss.

The Head of the Laboratory of Nutrition and Nutritional Biochemistry at the University of Yaoundé, Cameroon, he revealed the latest clinical evidence on a recently developed extract from the seed of the Irvingia gabonensis fruit, also known as bush mango and ogbono, which grows in Cameroon and neighboring regions of Nigeria.

Dr. Oben was performing epidemiological studies in African tribal populations when he noted that people in a certain region had low incidences of obesity, diabetes, and related diseases. Exploring further, he found that they use irvingia paste to thicken soups an average of ten times per week.

This led to the development of a concentrated extract that stimulates fat loss while promoting healthy cholesterol and blood sugar levels.

Leptin is a hormone that inhibits food intake in people of normal body weight by reducing the hunger signals from the brain. However, obese individuals often produce so much leptin that their cells become resistant to it.

A patented irvingia extract was shown to improve leptin sensitivity, so the test subjects felt less hunger and ate less. The extract was also shown to increase the levels of adiponectin, a hormone secreted by fat cells that promotes insulin sensitivity. When more blood sugar makes its way inside the working cells, less is delivered to the fat cells for storage. Adiponectin has anti-inflammatory and cardiovascular benefits as well.

Dr.Oben discussed the results of his ten week clinical trial. It had 102 volunteers who kept a diary on their daily exercise routines and what they ate.

After ten weeks, the comparison of the the Irvingia extract group with the control group which had received a placebo demonstrated a striking difference: the Irvingia group had an average weight loss of 28 lbs, while the placebo group had only lost less than two pounds.

C-reactive protein levels, an indicator of the level of inflammation going on in the body, were reduced. This protein cross-binds with leptin, rendering it unable to cross the blood-brain barrier. The brain cannot get the leptin-induced appetite control signal. Lowering C-reactive protein levels lets the leptin get across the blood-brain barrier to shut off appetite. This explains the apparent leptin insensitivity in obese people.

There were drops in total cholesterol, and LDL, and blood sugar while HDL went up. Leptin concentrations went down, as sensitivity to leptin increased.

So, based on the research and my own use, I would say that this supplement was worth trying. At about a buck a day in cost, it is not outside the means of most people.

If you lose twenty pounds of weight, you just might be able to chuck those blood pressure pills, saving you that cost.

One last point: some will ask why a person wouldn't want to eat African mango whole instead. Be my guest. It won't be available, or might not have the desired irvingia levels, and it will cost a lot more to ship fresh African mango than to ship an extract.

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Amy Judd

at 16:55 on February 28th, 2009

Thanks for this very informative piece - I think a lot of people are interested in this kind of information. Good piece.

Roy C

at 17:08 on February 28th, 2009

You're welcome. This is where medicine in heading: prevention, often done by the use of supplements, food extracts, bio-feedback, exercise and diet.

Any question- just post them. I will get to them.

Kim Hagood (not verified)

at 06:49 on March 25th, 2009

Where can I buy this? I have tried a few stores but they don't care it. Do you have a source on line where I could buy it?

colwellx5 (not verified)

at 12:45 on May 1st, 2009

Did you ever get a response back saying where you could get this? I'm very interested in finding it myself. Thank you for your time. -Gina

Michael Bucher (not verified)

at 05:50 on July 13th, 2009

Did you get a reply as to where you could buy this?

Frances Whealton (not verified)

at 06:27 on August 13th, 2009

You can buy the Life Extension Integra-Lean Irvingia at the Vitamin Shoppe or order from them online.

QueensHart

at 17:28 on February 28th, 2009

Thank you for this good news. I will try this and report back. I have been cooking for my ailing parents thinking each meal could be the last! Too much delicious food around has been very difficult along with the stress of witnessing them lose their memories among other problems of old age .

It is definitely affordable for me and I believe I too could go off my blood pressure if I lost 20 lbs.

Nourishing my brain also with nutrients has been a focus of mine after witnessing my parent's

difficulties.

Roy C

at 17:34 on February 28th, 2009

At lunch, one time, with a bunch of med students, Linus Pauling came on TV, on the talk show from Philadelphia (forget the name of the guy).

There was an internist on the show. He hated Linus Pauling and the comments I had been hearing about Pauling from doctors were of the same sort. Such hostility, but none of us watching the show at the time had an opinion about C.

Years later, I read Pauling's book about vitamin C and the common cold. I would ward off colds and flu that came on me from staying out too late or working out too hard.

I recommended it to a law student friend of mine who had a masters in toxicology at the gym who was a skeptic. I moved away.

He read the book and took about forty grams of C for a cold that had started to get bad. Wrote me that he had had one of his best workouts just hours after getting all that C into him and that he completely agreed with Pauling's take on C.

I take C and zinc lozenges. They work very well together. Everyone knows this but doctors. For them, it is all placebo.

Paschen

at 19:20 on February 28th, 2009

I do miss our Mango Tree.

Barry Artiste

at 19:49 on February 28th, 2009

It's true Mango has so many uses, J.Lo swears by it.

http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoaftdXh.html

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k.a. (not verified)

at 06:32 on March 3rd, 2009

Here's my personal experience with LEF's Irvingia product Integra Lean:

I started taking it around the end of December. A bottle of 60 is supposed to last one month by taking 2/day. I only took 1/day. I lost 10 pounds in two months. I felt great while taking the product--all my life I have felt constantly bloated, no matter what or when I ate--the bloating completely went away, and my stomach felt like I thought it finally should feel--flat and empty! Woohoo! My cravings for mass amounts of carbs disappeared, as well as my desire to eat chocolate. Also, I wasn't nearly as tired, and my blood pressure did drop to normal levels--a great thing.

Now for the downside--I experienced one huge side effect--diarrhea! 5-12 times a day....I teach and am not able to just run to the bathroom whenever I need to, so my work life was severly affected. I can't imagine how it would have been had I taken the recommended 2 caps/day.

I took the last capsule 5 days ago--it took about 3 days for the diarrhea to go away, but also the other positive benefits went away, too. I again became bloated, tired, and all my previous cravings returned with a vengeance. I am debating whether to take it again....I don't like the side effect, but I cannot stand the constant bloating, tiredness, and uncontrolled eating.

Rhonda J Mangus

at 06:43 on March 3rd, 2009

Sorry I missed this, Roy!

Cindy Rhyes

at 18:53 on March 10th, 2009

Good job! I just love your article. People must really begin to value their health more than anything else in this world. After all, health is wealth. It is better to prevent something from occurring rather than be sorry in the end. Love our body. Maintain a good lifestyle and the rest will follow.

Keith Ranville

at 09:40 on March 11th, 2009

Diabetis is a nasty health issue its usually caused by the north american diet. I read books like Kevin Trudeau and his informercial book; Natural Cures ‘They' Don't Want You to Know About. And I somewhat think there is like a medical mafia out there raking in money from pharcacy drugs, that natural cures could very well have the same effect.

I think drugs like Metforin done wonders for me to control my diabetis. I don't take it because my diabetis is in somewhat remission. But, one thing or two that I would like to add and it makes logical sense? Health its mainly about your PH levels that it can make you ill and stay sick or make you well and stay well.. depending on the balance of you ph levels. if your ph levels is to acidic then you will mostly likely have health problems, bad bacteria, viruses usually thrive in these conditions. If you make your body more alkaline; bad bacteria and viruses can't live in this invoirnment. So what you do is make you body more alkaline fresh greens or a glass of barley green drink every morning or alkaline water many health foods stores carry it on the shelves.

Pine bark is a great antioxidant, believe it or not, it was used on early europeans given by native americans as tonic to combat there scruveys.

Warning any health probelm you think you may have please go see you family doctor for advise

Roy C

at 18:20 on March 12th, 2009

Thanks, Keith for commenting.

Metformin is a great drug, actually. In experiments with rats, it has extended their lives due to its anti-diabetic capacity.

Jeff Krause (not verified)

at 03:39 on March 24th, 2009

Where can you purchase the african mango seed extract?

patricia conner (not verified)

at 16:58 on June 23rd, 2009

Hello Jeff,

You can purchase the African Mango which is called Irvingia only on the internet or in Las Cruces New Mexico at Dr. Brad Haire's office.

Here is the web site http://www.iherb.com/Life-Extension-Integra-Lean-Irvingia-150-mg-60-Veggie-Caps/9395?at=0

My Dr.Brad Haire in Las Cruces New Mexico told me to take this Irvingia so I purchased mine from his office but now I will have to order it over the internet. I am waiting on the finances now to purchase some for my diabetis.

I did take it one month and I did not notice any change in my blood sugar levels but I did start to lose my appetite and I lost weight. My doctor said it would take about 10 weeks of taking it to see results with my blood sugar. I did lose weigh with taking it only one month though.

I am sure now after reading this article that it will lower my blood sugar in time.

Patricia

Roy C

at 06:17 on March 24th, 2009

At the Life Extension Foundation. Just click on the lef.org link above. Use their search engine to find the page.

I will be back later to put this link in.

Ter (not verified)

at 16:56 on March 24th, 2009

Don't want to appear braindead, but did anyone mention when to purchase the Mango extract. I'm assuming it's in pill form... would appreciate knowing where I can buy it and what exactly should I be looking for? Thanks for the reply.

Roy C

at 17:04 on March 24th, 2009

Buy it here: Irvingia.

I have no relationship with them other than being a customer myself.

In the first month I lost 5 lbs, but I am relatively thin and wanted to just lose fat off my abdomen. I have been taking the two pills a day.

You should not feel nauseous unless you are allergic to the mango extract.

If you really want to be precise, get your blood lipid levels done before and your blood glucose level as well. Then you will have a baseline other than eyeballing it and using your scale.

I also use lithium which is anti-depressant. I have noticed that I don't crave food to snack on nearly as much.

For 20 cents more a day, you sleep better, snack less, and enjoy a better mood.

Debbie H. (not verified)

at 06:21 on March 25th, 2009

I am very interested in trying the mango extract. I am only slightly hesitant after reading the one comment from As I do have issues

Debbie H. (not verified)

at 06:26 on March 25th, 2009

I am very interested in trying the mango extract. I am only slightly hesitant after reading the one comment about having diarrhea. Has anyone else had the same type of side effect or any other side effects? Thanks for your input. I am really anxious to try this, as I think it seems to be quite beneficial.

Roy C

at 06:52 on March 25th, 2009

I have to wonder about that. I have not read anything about any side-effects.

Penny G (not verified)

at 12:58 on March 25th, 2009

Having just read the newpaper article this a.m. re: irvingia extract, I was prompted to go to the internet......& here I am...with a question reguarding the strength of the dosage of this product. Do the tablets come in only one strength, or are their different levels to choose from? And, are there other ingredients in the tablets, or is it just pure extract? Thanks for your attention.

Penny G (not verified)

at 13:06 on March 25th, 2009

Too fast on the draw.......sorry, have just found the info a I wanted.

Thanks for your time.

JessiD123 (not verified)

at 22:26 on April 6th, 2009

Hi, I just wanted to mention that the extract is derived from the seeds. The seeds which are traditionally ground and added to soups are know as Ogbono. This can be bought in Western countries from African grocery stores. I bought some recently. It doesn't taste brilliant, but I have found by having a teaspoon twice a day, my appetite has reduced and I have more energy. I guess there would be know way of knowing the ammount of actives if you buy it this way, but it does give people another option to encorporate it into their diet. You may even be able to try Ogbono soup at an African restaurant if you have one in your area. Have fun!

Roy C

at 23:02 on April 6th, 2009

Thanks, Jesse, for that.

Margaret Crawford (not verified)

at 14:10 on April 23rd, 2009

I, too, went to the original research paper after reading this article and it seems that the mode of action is close to that of old fashioned cholesterol binding drugs like questran. I suspect the diarrhoea is similar to that experienced by some people on xenical i.e. due to binding of fat in the gut causing irritant diarrhoea.

Is it cynical of me to doubt the benefit to a culture with supermarket shelves groaning with 500 different types of cream donuts of adding a smidgeon of traditional African dietary fibre?

Oh and I am a traditional western medical practitioner who thinks fat people (including myself) are fat because we eat too much high energy food. Alternative practitioners are as guilty as any drug company/doctor of peddling miracle cures.