A trial in 30 obese subjects (25% over ideal body weight) was designed to compare the effect of chitosan with the usual diet and chitosan with a hypocaloric diet on weight and cholesterol reduction.
The double-blind study randomized subjects to a diet of 1200 kcal/day and 1 g of chitosan before each meal, 1200 kcal/ day and a placebo tablet before each meal, or the patient’s usual diet and 1 g of chitosan before each meal.
At the completion of the four-week trial, a sig- nificant reduction in body weight was noted in all three groups.
There was a significant reduction in total cholesterol in both chitosan groups, and triglycer- ides decreased in all subjects on the hy- pocaloric diet. The only adverse effect was constipation in two participants.