A New Zealand Solution to a Global Problem

A NEW ZEALAND SOLUTION TO A GLOBAL PROBLEM

A little pill is providing an exciting answer to one of the world’s greatest and fastest growing problems: Obesity.

After four years and $12 million of laboratory and clinical research by New Zealand’s Plant & Food Research and Blenheim’s Tuatara Natural Products, it was discovered that a blend of its natural grape and kiwifruit extracts had exciting potential.

Their research showed that specific bio--actives slowed down the rate of digestion of food, and through delivery to a specific section of the intestine at the right time, people felt full after eating less.

The creation: Satisfax® capsules.

Dr Kevin Sutton from Plant and Food Research says the Satisfax® extracts “were amongst the most potent inhibitors of the amylase enzymes involved in digestion of food carbohydrates that we found amongst the 900 natural extracts we tested”.

They believed that meant people would eat less, snack less and lose weight.

To prove it, the team called for volunteers for the “100 Fat Mates” clinical weight--loss trial through Tuatara’s home town paper in Blenheim.

Within three days, 400 people had enrolled on Tuatara’s website, representing over two per cent of Blenheim’s population aged 18--60 years old.

“The world is clearly looking for weight--loss products which are proven to work,” says Tuatara director Neil Charles--Jones.

“We were very grateful for the fantastic response from the Blenheim community."

Dr Glenn Vile, Tuatara Natural Product’s Chief Technical Officer says the aim of the trial – designed by independent clinical specialists, with the format and protocol approved by the Ministry of Health ethics committee – was to examine whether the Satisfax® capsules would lead to weight loss when taken regularly over eight weeks.

Participants accepted into the trial were healthy individuals, 18 to 60 years of age, with a BMI between 30 to 40.

Participants were asked not to change their diet, exercise or their lifestyle.

Most reported eating less of the same food and were now able to exercise.

Of the 52 triallists who took the recommended dose for the full eight weeks 46 lost weight, averaging close to 3kg, with the top 26 losing an average of 5kg.

Two lost over 10kg.

“The success of Satisfax® as a weight management tool is beyond our expectations,” Dr Vile says.

“Satisfax® did not work for everyone, but overall we can be very confident that -- for most people – Satisfax® has proven to be a very valuable tool to assist weight loss and weight management."

One 100 Fat Mate participant Louise says: “I have tried every diet, diet shake and pill out there from Lemon diets to cabbage diets and nothing worked until now.

What is more amazing to me is that it seems such a simple concept.

You feel fuller so you eat less.

No other pill or shake I have tried has even come close to that except Satisfax® and I recommended it to everyone that asks."

Independent bio--statistician Professor Chris Frampton analysed the results of the clinical trial.

“Trial participants who complied with the recommended dose lost an average of 2.9 kg over the 8 weeks, with the maximum loss being 13.3 kg,” Professor Frampton says.

“The 95 per cent confidence interval for the mean weight loss is 2.1 kg to 3.7 kg, indicating that on average a weight loss of at least 2 kg occurs."

Prof Frampton also reported that 84 per cent of all participants planned to continue with Satisfax® after the trial to manage their weight.

Director Charles--Jones remains upbeat: “Satisfax® has real potential to be another fantastic story of the development of a New Zealand solution to a global problem."

www.satisfax.co.nz

ENDS

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