Night Listening | Konjac, as a weight loss tool, is really not a "tax on IQ"!

Konjac has long been known as a perfect weight loss food. It is cheap, very filling, and can be cooked in many ways. But why can eating konjac help you lose weight? Is there any problem if you eat too much?

First of all, it is undeniable that konjac does not have a high calorie content. A 100-gram serving of rice contains 156 kcal, while the same weight of konjac only contains 7 kcal. Not only that, konjac has a chewy texture, and you can feel full after chewing it thoroughly.

96% to 97% of konjac is water, and the main component is glucomannan. Glucomannan is a dietary fiber that expands when it encounters water. Konjac, which is mostly composed of water and dietary fiber, naturally does not have high calories.

Scientists have actually conducted experiments on the weight-loss effect of konjac. In one of the experiments, scientists asked obese people to take glucomannan continuously for 8 weeks, and the vast majority of the participants experienced weight loss.

In another experiment, participants who took glucomannan granules for 4 weeks generally experienced a feeling of abdominal fullness. This is because the glucomannan taken before meals expands in the stomach, increasing the feeling of fullness and reducing appetite.

In addition to weight loss, glucomannan is also helpful for controlling cholesterol and blood sugar levels. However, there are two points to note when eating konjac to lose weight: First, eating a large amount of konjac may cause bloating and diarrhea. Second, because glucomannan has a blood sugar-lowering effect, if you are taking medication or health supplements to regulate blood sugar levels, eating a large amount of konjac and reducing staple food intake may cause hypoglycemia, so be careful.

Review丨Ma Yong, Professor of Wuhan Institute of Physical Education