The Green Coffee Bean - What's the Buzz About?



Image by Ian Hooton



A couple of nights ago, I was out to dinner with my boyfriend's parents when they brought up the topic of green coffee beans.  They had watched an episode on "The Doctors" where the green coffee bean diet has everyone buzzing about it's weight loss effects.  And the most amazing part, they stated that you can lose weight while eating these and not change a damn thing to your daily routine.  No added exercise, no diet changes, nothing... I was sitting there thinking "so where's the catch?" 

I decided to do some research on the topic for myself and I wanted to spill the beans with all of you.  According to a recent study published in the Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity journal followed a group of 16 adults who supplemented with green coffee bean extract for 12 weeks.  The results they found were amazing!  Over the course of the study, subjects lost an average of 17 pounds each (10.5% of their overall body weight and 16% of overall body fat) and no side effects were reported. 

The best part is, the key ingredient is NOT caffiene.  This is not a stimulant that will make your heart race and blood pressure soar like many other metabolism boosters.  The factor that has all of the experts going crazy is an important natural active compund called chlorogenic acid.  They have found that it works by inhibiting the release of glucose in the body while also boosting the metabolism of fat in the liver.  These 2 mechanisms work together to inhibit the absorption of fat and eliminate weight gain. 

Despite all this, I am still hesitant to send all of my clients out to buy these to aid in their weight loss journey.  The truth is, the research on green coffee beans is still in its infancy stage.  Despite the results of this study being rather groundbreaking, it's important to note that this study had some limitations.  First off, it only involved 16 people and was also relatively short.  Not to mention the participants in the study took supplements which is not the same as eating whole foods. 

I am not against those who would like to try the green coffee bean diet, and I'd love to hear about your results, but before we label this the "cure all" to our obesity epidemic, we need to see more extensive research or it will prove to be just another fad that will fade out within a couple months.

I'm always open to listening to different opinions... let me know what you think about the green coffee bean!

Em