Chitosan is a fiber, similar in many respects to the cellulose in foods. But the human body cannot digest Chitosan, so it passes harmlessly through the body. Since the Chitosan is not assimilated by the body, it obviously adds absolutely no calories to the diet.

In the stomach Chitosan turns into a gelatin-like substance that grabs on and holds tightly to saturated fat. Stuck in this Chitosan gel by the electrostatic “cling” between its positive charge and the fat’s negative charge—very much in the way lint sticks to wool-the fat cannot be absorbed. Instead, it is carried through the upper and lower intestines and right out of the body. It is as if, suddenly, the fat became as nondigestible as Olestra (the new nonabsorbable fat, which recently became available for use in
some snack foods). Fat attached to Chitosan has as much impact on the body as fat left on the dining room table!

Early impressive evidence that this phenomenon really works came from a series of animal experiments. At least 18 such studies have been conducted at research centers in various

countries. The first major study2 was conducted by J. L. Nauss, J. L. Thompson, and J. Nagyvary of Texas A&M University in 1983. In a carefully controlled project, these three scientists proved that for each gram of Chitosan a group of rats ingested, they excreted 4-5 more grams of fat than the control group.

But since other fibers can also pull dietary fat from the body, some researchers wondered if there was really anything special about Chitosan. Four Japanese scientists3 used laboratory animals to compare the effects of Chitosan to 22 other fibers, including pectin, guar, carrageen, and others that have been used for weight loss. The animals were divided into 23 groups. During the test period, the groups were fed identical diets, except that each received a different fiber. The amount of food they ate was measured daily, and they were weighed every 3 days. Their feces were collected during the last 3 days of the study period for analysis.

In their 1994 paper describing the results of this study, the researchers reported that “Chitosan markedly increased the fecal lipid excretion and reduced the apparent fat digestibility to about half, relative to the control.”4 In other words, the animals that were given Chitosan digested smaller amounts of the fat that they ate (and more fat exited their bodies with their stool).

These facts looked interesting, but left open the theoretical (although unlikely) possibility that the fat accompanying the Chitosan on its journey out of the body was not fat the animals had eaten, but was instead “pulled” from elsewhere in the body. However, when the researchers analyzed the fat, they confirmed that “the fatty acid composition of the fecal lipids closely reflected that of dietary fat.” This essentially proved the point: the theory that Chitosan was indeed binding up the fat that had just been eaten before it could be digested and clog up arteries or cause other trouble. Clearly, the scientists pointed out, this study “suggests that Chitosan specifically inhibited the digestion and absorption of dietary fat.”

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