Everyone is looking for that magical pill to help them lose weight. Even though no such pill exists, several herbs can help improve your metabolism and help with weight loss. They provide a thermogenic effect to increase your metabolism. Other herbs reduce hunger, so you can naturally reduce your calorie consumption. Using weight management herbs in conjunction with a diet and exercise program can maximize your weight loss efforts while minimizing unwanted side effects.
How to Boost Your Metabolism
Metabolism is the chemical reactions that allow the body to extract energy from food and use it as fuel. Simply put, metabolism is the rate at which calories are consumed, broken down into useable energy, and then used by the body. Several factors can affect metabolism, including body size, gender, age, and genes.
- Increased Muscle Mass – For example, muscle cells need more energy than fat cells, which means individuals with more muscle typically have a faster metabolism.
- Sex hormones – Testosterone generally leads to more muscle mass and less body fat, which means men often have a faster metabolism than women.
- Age—You may lose muscle as you age, which can slow your metabolism. Your metabolism declines by 5 to 10 percent each decade.
One of the best ways to increase your metabolism and aid your weight loss efforts is to include exercise in your daily routine. As you build muscle, your metabolism gets a significant boost. To maximize your weight loss efforts, try to get at least 60 minutes of exercise each day. Initially, completing 60 minutes of exercise may seem impossible, so it may be better to break your exercise down into three 20-minute bursts.
Herbs for Weight Loss
If you have ever tried to follow a strict diet, you know how difficult it is to stick with it. One way to ensure you can stick to a diet is to prepare delicious and nutritious foods. Herbs and spices not only flavor your food but can also aid in your weight loss efforts. Five common herbs can boost your metabolism and help you lose excess weight.
Turmeric
Turmeric is a bright yellow spice loved for its flavor, color, and medicinal properties. Turmeric’s active compound is curcumin. Curcumin enhances fat loss, decreases belly fat, and enhances weight loss efforts. Curcumin blocks the synthesis of fat. Turmeric is a warming spice that increases your body’s temperature to boost metabolism.
Turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties that reduce systemic inflammation. It can also suppress fat tissue growth and regulate glucose levels by lowering insulin resistance. Finally, turmeric increases bile production, which the body uses to emulsify fat.
Ginger
Ginger is a Southeast Asian plant used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries. Its main compound is gingerol, which provides many medicinal properties in this potent yet delicious herb.
Ginger provides powerful anti-inflammatory effects and helps reduce oxidative stress in the body. Ginger supplements can help significantly reduce body weight and waist-to-hip ratio. Ginger also helps reduce BMI and insulin levels. Research has shown that ginger increases metabolism while reducing systemic inflammation.
Oregano
Oregano is a potent, fragrant herb used in Italian cooking. Its delicious terpenoids, terpenes, and phenols, including carvacrol, thymol, and rosmarinic acid, contain potent compounds and antioxidants that can help you lose weight and feel great.
Carvacrol may boost your weight loss efforts. It works by affecting specific proteins and genes in the body that are responsible for controlling fat synthesis. Oregano also helps reduce systemic inflammation and pain to exercise more.
Fenugreek
Fenugreek has been used in alternative medicine for many years and is also an herb used in many Indian dishes. This household spice gives dishes a sweet, nutty flavor. One tablespoon of fenugreek seeds provides iron, magnesium, and manganese to support health. Fenugreek may also help with metabolic conditions like diabetes. One study found that eating 50 milligrams of fenugreek powder can improve glucose and insulin function and reduce harmful cholesterol levels.
Thanks to its fiber content, fenugreek helps control appetite. Reduced hunger and food intake can aid in weight loss. Finally, fenugreek helps reduce systemic inflammation, which can interfere with the body’s ability to convert food into energy.
Ginseng
Ginseng is another herb commonly used in alternative medicine. Researchers have extensively studied this root plant, and studies have proven time and time again that it can help boost metabolism and aid in weight loss. When people combine ginseng with daily exercise and a healthy diet, they lose more body fat and weight than those who depend on exercise and diet alone.
Ginseng affects fat and cholesterol metabolism through its effects on adiponectin, leptin, and insulin. The active compounds in ginseng (ginsenosides) stimulate fat loss at a molecular level, which helps decrease hunger and maintain insulin levels. Finally, ginseng increases your energy levels and reduces fatigue. When you take ginseng regularly, your body’s detoxification system becomes more efficient at clearing free radicals from the body and reducing oxidative stress on the body.
It is essential to know that herbs can provide many medicinal benefits and enhance the flavors of foods. Herbs like turmeric, ginseng, and oregano help strengthen your body’s ability to burn fat, increase metabolism, and reduce cravings.
