Better than a tummy tuck
Over 50? Can’t lose weight? For millions of women, ‘stiff’ aging cells are trapping toxins instead of burning fat. To the rescue: Experts reveal the surprise nutrient that makes cells so flexible, they release stuck-on fat instantly!
Drop 16 pounds in 10 days— fat literally falls off!
Ever notice how your body doesn’t move quite as easily as it did when you were younger? Maybe you need a few minutes to get going in the morning, or you let out an involuntary groan when you stand up after sitting for too long. We all get a little stiff and creaky as we get older—and it turns out that our cell membranes do too.
The problem: Our cell membranes act as gatekeepers of the metabolism—and when they’re stiff, pounds begin to pile up. A healthy cell membrane should look like a water balloon, flexible and fluid, explains Cate Shanahan, M.D. Healthy membranes are semi-permeable, allowing nutrients in to be used for energy and releasing waste and toxins. But when cell membranes become stiff and rigid
(due to aging and the processed fats in the standard American diet), nutrients can’t get into cells to be burned for energy, slowing metabolism, according to weight-loss expert Ann Louise Gittleman, Ph.D.
Complicating matters, stiff membranes also create a fat-packing hormone imbalance. Just as nutrients get locked out of cells, toxins get trapped inside. “Stiff membranes inhibit cells from removing toxins like xenoestrogens, which mimic estrogen,” Gittleman says. “Since xenoestrogens are 1,000 times stronger than estrogen, they act as fat magnets, increasing fat storage.”
Most women simply don’t consume enough of the compounds that keep cell membranes healthy. Among them: a fat called lecithin. “Cell membranes are composed of the fat you eat,” says Gittleman. “Lecithin is a naturally occurring fat that keeps cell membranes pliable and healthy.” One reason so many of us are deficient in lecithin: “Some of the foods highest in lecithin are also high in cholesterol,” says Dr. Shanahan, pointing to egg yolks, butter and red meat. “We’ve been told for a long time that we shouldn’t eat cholesterol, so these foods fell out of favor.” In fact, Gittleman estimates that as many as 90% of women over 50 aren’t getting enough lecithin to maintain healthy cellular membranes and keep metabolism humming.
Getting more lecithin fires up metabolism. How? The “good” fat makes cell membranes stronger in two ways: First, it breaks down the “bad” fats making membranes stiff, Gittleman explains. Once these harmful fats are destroyed, lecithin— along with other “good fats,” including coconut, olive and avocado oils—replaces them, becoming incorporated into new, healthier, more f lexible cell membranes. All told, this speeds up fat loss. Just ask Kim Wetherell, 55, who lost 30 pounds by adding lecithin powder to smoothies. “It was an easy shift,” she says. “My doctor is amazed!”
Lecithin also helps break down fat stores throughout the body.
“Lecithin melts fat from the thighs, hips and belly,” says Gittleman. In one study, dieters given a lecithin supplement lost more than twice as much body fat as those who took a placebo. The results were so impressive that scientists noted lecithin can “rapidly reduce body mass without any side effects.” And in another study, women who ate a lecithin-rich breakfast for eight weeks lost 34% more belly fat than those who ate the same number of calories without lecithin.
The benefits go beyond weight loss. “Lecithin has been shown to reduce fatigue and menopausal symptoms,” says Gittleman. Other research suggests lecithin improves immunity. And supplementing daily with the compound helped Dani Collette,
65, of Florida, lose 25 pounds off her petite 5'1" frame and improve her stubborn high cholesterol. “After taking lecithin for just three months, my cholesterol was perfect,” she cheers. “It’s a game changer. I’ll never stop taking it.” Ready to try this fat-melting powerhouse? Read on!
“Lecithin melts fat from the thighs, hips and belly, and 90% of women aren’t getting enough”
—Ann Louise Gittleman, Ph.D.