Fucoxanthin May Be More Complicated

Some of the brown seaweeds that contain fucoxanthin have been a dietary staple in Asian cultures for many generations. One specific kelp, wakame, is often used to flavor foods, particularly salads and soups. Because the people in this part of the world tend to be healthier than those who live in the western half of the globe, much research is being conducted into the potential health benefits of seaweed. One of the most promising ingredients of the seaweed is the fucoxanthin.

One such study was conducted by a group from the Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, which is part of Japan's Hokkaido University. This group, which was led by Kazuo Miyashita, Ph.D., tested around 200 overweight laboratory rodents. Some of these rodents were fed a traditional diet, while others were given a diet supplemented with fucoxanthin that was harvested from wakame. The goal was to see if there were any significant changes in the health of the animals with the addition of fucoxanthin into their diets. The study was completed in 2006, and that same year the results were presented at the 232nd National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

At the end of the testing period, those rodents who were fed fucoxanthin showed a 5% to 10% decrease in body fat, particularly in the abdominal area. An additional test group was fed fucoxanthin mixed with soybean oil. This group also lost body fat while showing increased levels of DHA in their livers. DHA is an important omega-3 fatty acid. The group that was not fed fucoxanthin in any form did not see these changes.

The researchers performed further tests to try to determine the cause of these changes. The tests showed that the rats and mice that were fed the seaweed extract had stimulated UCP1 proteins. These proteins are found in fat tissue, and stimulating them helps burn fat. The rodents who were not fed fucoxanthin had no reaction in their UCP1 proteins. This was theorized to be the cause of the weight loss in the laboratory animals.

One problem with consuming fucoxanthin as a dietary supplement is the fact that it is nearly impossible to consume enough of it by eating seaweed alone. The problem is that fucoxanthin is tightly bonded with the proteins in the seaweed. While some of the fucoxanthin is absorbed by the body when people eat seaweed, much of it remains bonded to the proteins and passes through the body without being absorbed. For this reason, current lines of research into the potential uses of fucoxanthin are focused on finding ways to effectively extract the carotenoid so that it can be used in supplements. Additionally, some researchers are focusing on using biotechnological methods to increase the amount of fucoxanthin that artificially grown seaweeds contain. This would make it easier for people to consume the ingredient by eating it, while at the same time decreasing the amount of seaweed that would need to be harvested to use the ingredient in supplements.

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