Chris Shugart
Double Fat Loss Without Hunger
A new form of protein doubles fat loss in study participants, even if they aren't trying to diet. Here's what you need to know.
If we could get rid of one thing, we could all get ripped. Any diet plan would be easy to follow, and we'd have visible abs all year long. What's the one thing we'd have to remove? Hunger.
This is mostly why the new weight loss drugs work so well. GLP-1 receptor agonists mimic the hormone GLP-1, which slows gastric emptying and promotes satiety. Of course, those drugs have an ever-growing list of drawbacks and side effects.
We've recently learned that omega-3s from fish oil play a big role in controlling hunger. And now, new research shows that a modified form of collagen appears to double the fat loss in study participants, mainly by controlling appetite.
The Engineered Collagen Study
Before I get your hopes up, this enhanced form of collagen doesn't appear to be on the market yet, but there's a way to simulate its effects, which we'll get to below.
This special form of collagen protein was engineered to resist digestion and swell up in acidic conditions, like your stomach. In the lab, it expanded by more than 1900%. That means it absorbs almost 19 times its weight in water. Then you poop it out, largely undigested.
To test it out, overweight adults were recruited for a 12-week study. Half were provided with collagen-infused soy protein bars. They ate these bars 45 minutes before lunch and dinner, along with about 9 ounces of water. The placebo group just drank the water. Both groups received info about healthy eating, but neither group was placed on a specific diet.
Here's what happened: Both groups lost fat, but the collagen consumers lost twice as much – 6.6 pounds compared to just 3.3. They also saw a greater reduction in waist circumference. Why? They unconsciously ate less because their appetites were suppressed.
The only problem I have with this study involves the control group. They should've been given calorie and protein-equivalent bars that didn't contain the special collagen, like a legit placebo. Each collagen bar contained 90 calories and about 10 grams of protein. Is it possible that the bar eaters lost more fat because of the protein-preloading effect and not the collagen itself?
Maybe. But the researchers' other investigations into this indigestible and expanding collagen look legit. It definitely makes a person feel fuller, which naturally decreases calorie intake. But the additional protein sure didn't hurt.
Another Way to Get These Effects
This new form of collagen absorbs about 19 times its weight in water. However, we already have an inexpensive supplement that absorbs 10 times its weight in water, which isn't too shabby. It's psyllium husks, the fiber found in Metamucil.
Like this new collagen, psyllium increases gastric volume expansion and satiety. Add around 10 grams of a slow-digesting protein (better than the soy used in the study), and we could get very close to the results shown in the research above.
Here's how I'd make it:
How to use it:
Drink two servings per day, one about 45 minutes before lunch and one about 45 minutes before dinner.
Remember, using a similar approach, the study subjects lost almost 7 pounds in 12 weeks without actively dieting and without exercise. Psyllium isn't as filling as this new collagen appears to be, but the micellar casein in Metabolic Drive is highly satiating, much more so than soy (or whey). I bet we'd get similar results.
References
- López-Yoldi, Miguel, et al. "Anti-Obesity Effects of a Collagen with Low Digestibility and High Swelling Capacity: A Human Randomized Control Trial." Nutrients, vol. 16, no. 20, 19 Oct. 2024, p. 3550, doi:10.3390/nu16203550.
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