Introduction

On October 10, during a parliamentary audit, a member of parliament

pointed out that the adverse effects of health functional foods manufactured from garcinia are serious..

This statement was made during a parliamentary audit of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety,,

and Democratic Party member Baek Hae-ryeon

‘reported that over the past 5 years, there have been 1,589 reported cases of adverse effects from body fat reduction health functional foods.‘

.

According to an analysis of adverse cases by ingredient,,

"garcinia was reported to have the most adverse cases among body fat reduction functional materials,,

and emphasized that the ingredient received Level 4 classification four times, in which disease symptoms are determined to have high causality with health functional food consumption."

.

Furthermore, member Baek

“stated that in the 2023 review data,

serious adverse cases occurred after consuming health functional foods containing Garcinia cambogia extract,

and 138 cases of high-severity adverse symptoms such as bloody stools and abnormal uterine bleeding occurred.”

.

While

“excluding 2 cases,,

a conclusion was reached that all 136 cases had a causal relationship with Garcinia cambogia extract.”

"Garcinia cambogia extract

is the top-selling ingredient in the body fat reduction health functional food market,,

and since a very large number of people are using it, the potential harm could be extremely significant,

the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety should take serious action.".

Hello! I'm Haro from Yak-Al..

In previous columns, I provided useful information for those who wished to take garcinia.

.

However, in a recent parliamentary audit,

it was noted that garcinia supplements have many suspected adverse effect cases compared to their prevalence,

and concerns about safety were raised..

Furthermore, at the top of garcinia supplement search results are

’"garcinia side effects" and "garcinia hepatotoxicity."‘ .

This shows that many people have vague fears about taking garcinia supplements,

before consuming them..

So then, is garcinia really a dangerous supplement to take??

In this article, I will explain whether garcinia is truly dangerous,

and at what level it is safe to consume. .

Does Garcinia Have Hepatotoxicity??

In a previous column, I mentioned that there are reports of side effects related to hepatotoxicity among garcinia side effects..

However, after reviewing several studies,,

there is no direct causal link to garcinia hepatotoxicity..

Based on multiple research findings,

it is true that several cases of hepatotoxicity related to garcinia have been reported..

Research mentioning hepatotoxicity cases also acknowledged the fact that there were adverse effects such as liver damage,,

but

clear causal relationships could not be confirmed as to whether these adverse effects

were caused by the garcinia extract itself..

Additionally, in one study, garcinia extract was administered to white mice

to investigate its effects on lipid metabolism,,

and at that time, there were no significant changes in enzyme levels related to liver function..

In other words,, the causal relationship of garcinia hepatotoxicity is not clear..

At the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety,

if you go to the diet category in the food hazard guide,

there is a section related to garcinia.,

According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety's re-evaluation,

there is a possibility of causing liver damage such as acute hepatitis and cardiac disease such as cardiac arrhythmia,

'so those with liver and cardiac disease must consult with a specialist before consumption.’

New precautions were established,,

but it is explicitly stated that there is no conclusive evidence linking garcinia hepatotoxicity..

However,, catechin, the main component of green tea extract commonly used in diet supplements,

has research results showing it can cause hepatotoxicity..

Among these, in particular, EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate))when consumed in high doses,

can cause liver damage..

High-concentration EGCG can cause oxidative stress during metabolism in the liver,

which can lead to liver damage,,

and diet supplements often use high-concentration green tea extract,

so there have been several cases of this adverse effect..

In summary,, garcinia itself has not produced research results showing it causes hepatotoxicity

to date..

However, high-concentration green tea extract taken together with garcinia

is known to cause hepatotoxicity,,

so when taking garcinia extract, you should

adhere to the daily dosage recommended by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety HCA 750-1500mg,

and be especially careful when catechin is included..

** How Much Catechin Is Safe to Consume??

According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety,, the recommended daily amount of catechin is 300 mg..

According to data provided by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety,,

in a male test group administered 800 mg per day, a significant increase in

ALT (one of the liver damage indicators) was reported,,

so high-concentration catechin can cause liver damage..

However, since hepatotoxicity can occur at lower doses as well,

referring to catechin restriction cases in neighboring countries (France and Italy, each at 300 mg or less per day),

consumption of 300 mg or less per day was recommended..

Additionally, since green tea extract also contains caffeine,,

it was recommended to control the amount of caffeine in green tea extract to 50 mg or less..

So then... I understand that there is no causal relationship for hepatotoxicity,…

but is garcinia really safe??

Is Garcinia Really a Safe Health Functional Food??

That said,

it's extremely safe,!

so you can eat it freely,!

the more you eat, the better your diet will beâ!

if you take garcinia supplements with this mindset, it can be very problematic..

According to an analysis by the National Evidence-based Healthcare Institute (NECA),,

from 2004 to 2015, domestically and internationally,

after consuming Garcinia cambogia extract,

there were cases of adverse effects such as acute hepatitis and liver failure..

Additionally, among adverse cases of body fat reduction health functional foods received by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety over the past 5 years,

approximately 33% were related to Garcinia cambogia.

So in other words,,

while the causal relationship has not been clearly established,,

garcinia is not safe..

In fact, garcinia received a level classification at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety based on safety and efficacy,,

and here it received Level 4..

Level 4 means

that serious problems have been found in safety or efficacy,

and discontinuation of use or withdrawal from the market is recommendedâthis is what that classification means..

This means that there are significant safety concerns with the ingredient,,

and discontinuation of use is recommended to protect consumers..

Wait... so should I eat it or not? What exactly are you telling me to do??

My personal conclusion is “"only take it if absolutely necessary.".

If you want to lose weight, of course you should take it..

Recently, an excellent diet treatment called Wegovy has come out,,

but for most people, it is currently too expensive a treatment to afford..

So then, diet and exercise alone may not result in weight loss,

but for those who cannot use obesity treatment medications or don't need that level of treatment,

using diet supplements together is the right approach..

For those of you reading this now, losing weight is currently your top priority,,

not statistically low side effects.?

However, you must not become dependent on diet supplements..

These are not nutritional supplements. Once you achieve your diet goals to some degree,,

you must absolutely discontinue them to prevent side effects from long-term use..

So... you don't need to reject them by saying they're dangerous,,

‘but don't carelessly consume them thinking "it's a health functional food, so it must be safe.".

Medications can help when used appropriately,,

but can be problematic if used inappropriately..

References

Clinical Safety and Efficacy Evaluation of Weight Loss Products, National Evidence-based Healthcare Institute, 2015
Catechins in Dietary Supplements and hepatotoxicity, victor.J.Navarro, Digestive Diseases and Sciences, September 2013
Hepatotoxicity of green tea: An update, Anna M. Witkowska, Applied Sciences, June 2021

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