Weight-loss hormone

Better Nutrition, May, 2004

It's a paradox. Growth hormone, of all things, may be just what obese individuals need to help them shed pounds--and grow smaller.

Obese people have lower-than-normal levels of growth hormone in their bodies, concludes a study published February 6, 2004 in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. The researchers say the goal of weight loss is to lose the fat but retain the muscle--but so far, no drugs have been able to help people achieve that feat.

In earlier studies, high doses of growth hormone caused unwanted side effects such as swelling, hypertension, joint pain and glucose intolerance. But using low doses, 39 people lost an average of 5 pounds each and kept the weight off for 9 months.

The study found that weight loss was entirely due to loss of body fat, not muscle. And the area reduced was the trunk, not the hips or extremities. Nutritionists link trunk fat to heart disease.

{32 Million estimated number of Americans who follow some kind of high-protein, low-carb diet

SOURCE: Harris Interactive}