Scientific Study

Abstract: Obesity is a multifactorial disease characterized by an excessive weight for height due to an enlarged fat deposition such as adipose tissue; which is attributed to a higher calorie intake than the energy expenditure. The key strategy to combat obesity is to prevent chronic positive impairments in the energy equation. However; it is often difficult to maintain energy balance; because many available foods are high-energy yielding; which is usually accompanied by low levels of physical activity. The pharmaceutical industry has invested many efforts in producing antiobesity drugs; but only a lipid digestion inhibitor obtained from an actinobacterium is currently approved and authorized in Europe for obesity treatment. This compound inhibits the activity of pancreatic lipase; which is one of the enzymes involved in fat digestion. In a similar way; hundreds of extracts are currently being isolated from plants; fungi; algae; or bacteria and screened for their potential inhibition of pancreatic lipase activity. Among them; extracts isolated from common foodstuffs such as tea; soybean; ginseng; yerba mate; peanut; apple; or grapevine have been reported. Some of them are polyphenols and saponins with an inhibitory effect on pancreatic lipase activity; which could be applied in the management of the obesity epidemic.