Allulose-New Hope in the Obesity Battlefield

Obesity is a serious problem in modern society, and its prevalence continues to increase worldwide. Obesity not only increases the incidence of a series of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and chronic kidney disease, but also damages brain microglia and increases the risk of depression and anxiety.

How to enjoy the joy of sweetness while avoiding the trouble of obesity?

"Sugar substitutes" have become an important research topic. Sugar-free and low-sugar products have gradually become synonymous with health and fashion, and sugar substitutes have also emerged. D-allulose is a new sweetener and a very low-content hexose in nature. It exists naturally in a few foods. In 1940, allulose was first discovered in wheat leaves. Since then, small amounts of allulose have been found in some fruits (such as figs and raisins) as well as maple syrup and brown sugar. As a sugar substitute, D-allulose has low calories, low GI value, nerve protection, inhibition of blood sugar increase, and reduced fat accumulation. It has potential benefits in solving metabolic diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Here we focus on its weight loss effect.

Allulose can promote fat burning during exercise. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial proved that D-allulose can promote fat burning during exercise. In order to study the mechanism of D-allulose affecting obesity-induced insulin resistance, researchers conducted gene set enrichment analysis on mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD). The results showed that supplementation with allulose improves obesity-induced insulin resistance by alleviating the damage of macrophage and mitochondrial function.

Some researchers studied the effect of D-allulose on adipocyte differentiation. The experimental results showed that D-allulose inhibited adipocyte differentiation and lipid accumulation by regulating adipogenic transcription factors, and had anti-obesity potential. D-allulose can inhibit the differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes into mature adipocytes.

In addition, researchers have also studied synbiotics composed of D-psicose and probiotics. The study showed that compared with probiotics or allulose alone, synbiotic mixtures containing allulose were more effective in inhibiting diet-induced obesity and its complications by regulating lipid metabolism, indicating that allulose may become a prebiotic for studying two probiotics. This new synbiotic mixture containing allulose helps to improve the harmful effects of diet-induced obesity and contribute to the development of the food industry.

Allulose and "magic weight loss drug"

"Magic weight loss drug" semaglutide can stimulate insulin secretion, inhibit glucagon secretion to delay gastric emptying and reduce appetite, and ultimately achieve the effect of lowering blood sugar and reducing weight. Recently, a series of studies on the indications of semaglutide have shocked the outside world. Many research results show that in addition to the most basic weight loss effect, it can also deal with symptoms such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, alcohol addiction, and dementia.

Some experimenters explored the effect of taking D-allulose on weight loss, and studied the mechanism of weight loss using healthy and obese diabetic animal models. The results showed that D-allulose is a GLP-1 releaser that acts through vagus nerve afferents to limit food intake and hyperglycemia.

The popularity of GLP-1 drugs reflects the huge potential of the weight loss market, and the functionality of allulose has potential application prospects in the development of functional weight loss products. With the gradual deepening of research and the continuous improvement of market awareness, the application field of allulose is expected to continue to expand and the market demand is expected to continue to grow.