Chitosan: What is it?

The trend of keeping slim and being on a permanent diet has been with us for many years now. But the truth of the matter is that in recent years that obsession has been tweaked, and it now often varies between healthy eating, being on a diet or changing eating habits and also miracle diets on the pretext of this not only helping us to shed weight but also to cleanse better and to regenerate our bodies. But this is where there is a huge array of nutritional possibilities which need to be questioned, since food cannot be based on trends or on miracle diets.

We can find Chitosan among these products. Chitosan is a fibre obtained from the shells of some crustaceans which prevents the absorption of fat when it is ingested, and which is then naturally eliminated as intestinal waste.

Chitosan is a diet supplement that is prescribed to help reduce body weight, particularly in slimming programmes because its action prevents the absorption of fat contained in the diet, thus reducing the calories we eat.

But since it blocks all fats, both good and bad ones, taking it over a prolonged period of time is not recommended, but rather as an occasional help for our bodies and always under medical supervision, since as is the case with many other products, ingesting Chitosan can have side effects such as flatulence, nausea or heartburn. 

Taking Chitosan should always go hand-in-hand with a healthy lifestyle and a varied diet rich in fruit and vegetables, along with a good exercising routine in line with the patient's needs.

Properties and benefits of Chitosan

• Chitosan in itself has no slimming effect. It avoids weight gain and the building up of fat. 

• It does have a satiating effect. ??

• It helps to maintain cholesterol and blood pressure levels. ??

• Be careful of allergies, since people who are allergic to fish and shellfish are highly sensitive to this type of product, and ingesting it is not recommended.