A nutrition expert’s guide to choosing natural GLP-1 alternatives to support your weight management journey. Eleanor Faulkner takes a deep dive into researched herbs that can help raise your GLP-1 levels and looks at how adopting positive diet and lifestyle habits can help you make long-term changes.
Weight gain is influenced by many factors, with poor diet and lifestyle habits often playing a major role in the development of obesity. While weight-loss medications have gained popularity over the past year, they rarely provide sustainable long-term results if these underlying behaviours and habits are not addressed.
Many of these medications work by targeting a hormone known as GLP-1 which is a term that’s recently been thrown into the public’s vocabulary. But what exactly is GLP-1, and how does it influence weight management?
What is GLP-1?
GLP-1 is a protein hormone which helps to regulate appetite. After eating food, it gets released naturally in the intestines, especially meals with a high protein, fibre and dietary fat content.
The feeling of fullness felt after a big meal is caused by the release of GLP-1, along with other hormones. This is the body’s natural reaction to prevent overeating. Weight loss medications don’t contain natural GLP-1 but instead contain GLP-1 receptor agonists which mimic this same reaction without needing to eat any food.
Why added sugar impacts GLP-1
Interestingly, research suggests that diets high in added sugars may reduce natural GLP-1 secretion (1). This helps to explain why highly processed sugary foods are easy to overconsume, as they do not stimulate the same satiety signals as whole foods, leaving us feeling less satisfied and more likely to continue eating them which can promote weight gain.
What herbal ingredients can help activate GLP-1 production naturally?
There are a few herbal ingredients which help to support the natural release of GLP-1 and support the mechanisms involved in weight loss and healthy weight management.
Curcumin is a plant polyphenol compound found in turmeric root which has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, hypoglycaemic and lipid-lowering properties. It has also been shown to be involved in metabolic mechanisms like metabolism and GLP-1 stimulation and could help to manage weight in overweight individuals.
An interesting study demonstrated that curcumin significantly increases GLP-1 secretion in GLUTag cells which may help to increase satiety, and slow gastric emptying to help promote the feeling of fullness. In a review of studies involving 1604 individuals with metabolic syndromes and related disorders, curcumin intake significantly reduced BMI, weight and waist-circumference (2)(3).
Olives are a popular fruit used in lots of people’s diets, whether as an oil or just as olives on their own. But they also offer benefits for fat loss. Hydroxytyrosol (HT) is a compound that can be extracted from olive fruit which is considered to be one of the most potent antioxidants to be researched for its benefits on weight loss, due to its antidiabetic mechanisms relating to an increase in insulin signalling.
One study investigated the use of HT in human obesity. It was given to 29 women who were overweight or obese in a dose of 5mg or 15mg/day and compared to placebo. The study found that there was a statistically significant weight and visceral fat reduction in the group receiving the dose of 15mg/day after 4 weeks of the intervention (4).
Cinnamon has also been used to help support weight loss, blood sugar balancing, diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Cinnamon acts in a similar way to insulin and reduces post-meal blood sugar spikes, which helps to stabilise energy levels and reduce sugar cravings (5).
Carob is another natural plant ingredient which can be used in weight management. The ground powder of this plant is high in fibre and is used reduce the feeling of hunger and food cravings. This is thought to occur through improving glycaemic control in post meal states therefore better balancing blood sugar levels (6).
How does diet and lifestyle help with weight management?
We recommend readjusting your food choices to include more whole foods and less ultra-processed foods. Whole foods such as vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, eggs, fish and lean meat tend to be more nutrient-dense and naturally more filling than highly processed foods and help support the natural release of GLP-1 (2).
Whole foods aid with weight management due to:
- Increase feeling of fullness
- Stabilised blood sugar levels to reduce intense cravings
- Reduces overeating due to feeling of fullness
- Contains more fibre and water content
It’s best to work towards removing ultra-processed foods from the diet, as they are often high in refined sugars, unhealthy fats, artificial additives, and low in important fibre and protein. They are made to be hyper-palatable and easy to overeat, leading to increased calorie intake without the feeling of fullness. These foods can also affect hunger hormones like GLP-1 and disrupt blood sugar balance, contributing to sugar crashes and more cravings.
Citrus Cured Smoked Salmon on Sourdough with Avocado - one of the recipes in the Viridian Weight Support programme.
Viridian Weight Support Programme provides recipes which contain whole foods, making them nutritious and help to promote satiety.
Lifestyle tips
Exercise plays an important role in weight loss and long-term weight maintenance, especially when paired with a healthy diet. It’s recommended that adults take part in at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week such as walking or cycling and include strengthening resistance exercises on two or more days to promote muscle growth.
For further information on supplements and diet to help with weight support or for more recipes in accompanying guide in the Weight Support Programme, visit your local health store for personalised advice at www.findahealthstore.com.
Author: Eleanor Faulkner, BSc, is a Nutrition Advisor at Viridian Nutrition. She holds a BSc honours degree in Food Technology with Nutrition.
References
1. Jones, S., Luo, S., Dorton, H.M., Yunker, A.G., Angelo, B., Defendis, A., Monterosso, J.R. and Page, K.A., 2021. Obesity and dietary added sugar interact to affect postprandial GLP-1 and its relationship to striatal responses to food cues and feeding behavior. Frontiers in endocrinology, 12, p.638504.
2. Takikawa, M., Kurimoto, Y. and Tsuda, T., 2013. Curcumin stimulates glucagon-like peptide-1 secretion in GLUTag cells via Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent kinase II activation. Biochemical and biophysical research communications, 435(2), pp.165-170.
3. Akbari, M., Lankarani, K.B., Tabrizi, R., Ghayour-Mobarhan, M., Peymani, P., Ferns, G., Ghaderi, A. and Asemi, Z., 2019. The effects of curcumin on weight loss among patients with metabolic syndrome and related disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Frontiers in pharmacology, 10, p.439144.
4. Fytili, C., Nikou, T., Tentolouris, N., Tseti, I.K., Dimosthenopoulos, C., Sfikakis, P.P., Simos, D., Kokkinos, A., Skaltsounis, A.L. and Katsilambros, N., Effect of long-term hydroxytyrosol administration on body weight, fat mass and urine metabolomics: a randomized double-blind prospective human study. Nutrients 2022; 14. DOI: https://doi. org/10.3390/nu14071525. PMID: https://www. ncbi. nlm. nih.gov/pubmed/35406139.
5. Eijaz, S., Salim, A. and Waqar, M.A., 2014. Possible molecular targets of cinnamon in the insulin signaling pathway. Journal of Biochemical Technology, 5(2), pp.708-717.
6. Gruendel, S., Garcia, A.L., Otto, B., Mueller, C., Steiniger, J., Weickert, M.O., Speth, M., Katz, N. and Koebnick, C., 2006. Carob pulp preparation rich in insoluble dietary fiber and polyphenols enhances lipid oxidation and lowers postprandial acylated ghrelin in humans. The Journal of nutrition, 136(6), pp.1533-1538.
The information contained in this article is not intended to treat, diagnose or replace the advice of a health practitioner. Please consult a qualified health practitioner if you have a pre-existing health condition or are currently taking medication. Food supplements should not be used as a substitute for a varied and balanced diet
