For thousands of years, apple cider vinegar has been used as a health tonic with various health benefits.
Also, it is believed that it can help you lose weight.
This article will show you the relationship between apple cider vinegar and weight loss.
What Is Apple Cider Vinegar?
Apple cider vinegar is made using a two-step fermentation process.
First, the apples are cut and mashed together with yeast so that their sugar turns into alcohol. Later, bacteria are added so that the alcohol turns into acetic acid.
In fact, 5% of apple cider vinegar is made up of oily acid. It also contains water and other acids, such as malic acid.
Acetic Acid Has Various Benefits for Fat Loss
Acetic acid is a short-chain fatty acid that converts to acetate and hydrogen upon entering the body.
According to animal studies, the acetic acid in apple cider vinegar helps you lose weight by:
- Suppresses appetite: According to a study, it suppresses centers in your brain that control appetite, which reduces food consumption.
- Lowers blood sugar levels: a study conducted in rodents found that it helps improve the ability of the liver and muscles to take sugar from the blood. Additionally, acetic acid was found to lower insulin levels.
- Burns fat: A study conducted on rats with a high-fat diet were supplemented with acetic acid and found to help burn fat.
- Improves the metabolic process: in a study, rats were exposed to acetic acid and an increase in the enzyme AMPK was found, which helps to improve the functioning of the metabolic process.
- Reduces fat storage: in another study carried out on obese rats, they were treated with acetic acid, and it was found that it protected them against weight gain and helped them reduce the accumulation of fat in the belly.
While studies in rats look promising, the effects have not yet been proven to be the same in humans.
Apple Cider Vinegar Increases Fullness and Reduces Calorie Intake
According to research, apple cider vinegar can promote feelings of fullness, which helps reduce calorie intake.
In a study of 11 people, consuming vinegar after meals helped lower the blood sugar response by 55%. This leads to 200-275 fewer calories per day.
Another study found that consuming apple cider vinegar with a starchy meal delayed stomach emptying, prolonging feelings of fullness.
However, people with type 1 diabetes can have a complication called Gastroparesis, which delays stomach emptying.
For that reason, the consumption of apple cider vinegar is not recommended for people with Gastroparesis.
It May Help You Lose Weight and Body Fat
A 12-week study was conducted on 144 obese Japanese people. They consumed either one tablespoon of vinegar, two tablespoons, or a placebo.
They were allowed to continue their daily diet, but they restricted their alcohol consumption.
Those who consumed one tablespoon of vinegar per day had the following benefits:
- Reduction in triglycerides: 26%
- Reduction in body fat percentage: 0.7%
- Weight loss: 2.6 pounds
- Reduction in waist circumference: 0.5 in
Those who consumed two tablespoons of vinegar per day had the following benefits:
- Reduction in triglycerides: 26%
- Reduction in body fat percentage: 0.9%
- Weight loss: 3.7 pounds
- Reduction in waist circumference: 0.75 in
Those who took the placebo had a 0.9-pound weight gain and increased waist circumference.
While this human study found a positive effect of apple cider vinegar on weight loss, more research is still needed to verify the results.
Other Health Benefits
There are other benefits that apple cider vinegar provides:
Lowers blood sugar and insulin levels: Found to help lower blood sugar and insulin levels after eating high carbohydrate meals.
- Improves Insulin Sensitivity: A study conducted on people with type 2 diabetes found that apple cider vinegar improves insulin sensitivity by 34%.
- Lowers fasting blood sugar: Another study conducted on people with type 2 diabetes found that it helps to reduce fasting blood sugar twice.
- Improves PCOS symptoms: According to a study conducted on women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the consumption of vinegar summarizes ovulation.
- Reduces blood cholesterol levels: according to studies carried out on rodents, apple cider vinegar helps regulate the levels of HDL and LDL cholesterol in the blood.
- Lowers Blood Pressure: Animal studies found that it helps lower blood pressure by inhibiting the enzyme responsible for constricting blood vessels.
- Kills harmful bacteria and viruses: One study found that vinegar reduces the number of certain bacteria by 90% and certain viruses by 95%.
How to Add It to Your Diet
An easy way to incorporate apple cider vinegar is a salad dressing and olive oil.
You can also mix it with water and drink it.
The recommended daily dose is 1 to 2 tablespoons mixed with water.
It is not advisable to consume more than that dose since it can have adverse effects such as erosion of the tooth enamel, nausea, or heartburn.
