Stoking the fire
As we both know all too well, there's no magic solution for weight loss -- and anything the promises "quick and easy" results, whether it be a crash diet or a lip gloss (as I told you about last month), is, unfortunately, nothing more than a gimmick. But that's not to say there aren't things that can help boost the effects of what we know DOES work: healthy eating and exercise. There are lots of nutrients that can help take your efforts one step further, and the most recent to make the news is one that has been best known for its ability to protect your vision. Astaxanthin is a naturally occurring pigment that has been found to be a potent antioxidant, rivaling the effects of vitamin E in terms of fighting free radicals. Previous research has shown that it may be even stronger than lutein and zeaxanthin, two other vision-promoting antioxidants. But this recent study measured astaxanthin's effects on fighting fat, not free radicals or vision loss. The researchers divided mice into four groups: no exercise, no exercise with astaxanthin, exercise, and exercise with astaxanthin. After four weeks, the researchers found that the mice who were exercising and taking the astaxanthin burned more fat than the mice who were just exercising. They believe that the astaxanthin helped the mice burn fat for fuel rather than glucose. Again, it's not a magic bullet. But taking astaxanthin certainly won't hurt you. In fact, its antioxidant properties can only help your vision and your whole body. And if it also helps you get more bang for your exercise buck along the way, so much the better. Astaxanthin supplements are available in most natural food stores and vitamin shops. Sources:
"Astaxanthin may boost muscle endurance and fat loss," NutraIngredients (www.nutraingredients.com), 2/5/08
"Astaxanthin improves muscle lipid metabolism in exercise via inhibitory effect of oxidative CPT 1 modification," Biochemical & Biophysical Research Communications 2008; 366(4): 892-897 | 
