Arginine Could Be Used In Diet Drugs Of The Future

the findings could play an important part in the battle against obesity

New research done by the AgriLife Research Centre in Texas has added the weight to the hypothesis that the compound arginine, which is an amino acid could play a part in reducing the amount of fat in humans.

The research which was done using obese rats saw that when they were given dietary supplements containing arginine after a three month period a significant effect on the level of obesity was recorded. The researchers also said that no adverse effects were reported on two different groups of rats who were fed either a high fat diet or low fat diet.

The researchers speculated that the arginine was responsible for increasing the lean tissue growth. Other research done with pigs noted that arginine stopped the growth of fat and boosted muscle. The researchers also said that the metabolic change associated with dietary arginine could be translating into a better insulin resistance and more efficient muscle protein synthesis.

Dr Guoyao Wu who led the research for AgriLife Research said that the findings could play an important part in the battle against the chronic levels of obesity being reported in the United States of America and in also in the European Union. The research which was published in the respected Journal of Nutrition is the first part of a research initiative which will follow on with further studies using humans suffering from obesity. The research was funded by the American Heart Association and involved a group of researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine as well as the Texas A&M Health Science Centre.

Certain naturally occurring and healthy foods such as watermelons, seeds and nuts as well as most types of fish and shellfish have high levels of arginine.