Lactobacillus Rhamnosus Supplementation has Significant Effect on Weight Loss and Maintenance in Obese Women

Lactobacillus Rhamnosus Supplementation has Significant Effect on Weight Loss and Maintenance in Obese Women

Lactobacillus rhamnosus is a bacterium that naturally exists in the body, mainly the intestines. This “good bacteria” is a primary ingredient as a probiotic which help promote health and limit the activities of harmful bacteria in the intestines and elsewhere.

In a double-blind, placebo-controlled study, researchers from the Faculty of Medicine at Laval University in Quebec, studied the impact of this bacterium on weight loss and maintenance in obese men and women over a 24 week period.

In the first twelve weeks of the study the subjects were put on a weight loss program and the second twelve week period was designed to help prevent the regaining of the lost weight.
The subjects were split into two groups and one group consumed the Lactobacillus rhamnosus along with the moderate weight loss diet while the second received placebo (a fake pill) along with the moderate weight loss diet for the first 12 weeks.

After the first 12 weeks of the study, the average weight loss of the women in the Lactobacillus group was significantly higher than the women who consumed a placebo. The men tended to lose less weight. The women on placebo lost 2.6kg on average in the first 12 weeks, which is 5.72 pounds of fat loss on average. Women in the probiotic group lost 4.4kg over the same 12 weeks, or 9.68 pounds - significantly more fat loss.

This study concludes that the Lactobacillus rhamnosus supplementation helps obese women to achieve a large amount of sustainable weight loss. *This study was published online on April 28, 2014 in the British Journal of Nutrition.