Eat konjac to lose weight? Expert: The secret to eating smart and not hurting your body is...

The Japanese trend of eating "konjac" to increase satiety has not only spread to Taiwan in recent years, but has also attracted many friends who want to lose weight. They are desperately replacing staple foods with konjac, just to effectively reduce calorie intake and get slim quickly! However, does konjac really have such a magical effect in assisting weight loss? How should we eat to achieve nutritional balance and avoid harming our body? Let the nutrition experts tell you!

Konjac is low in calories and high in fiber. Moderate use in cooking can increase satiety and promote bowel movements.

Wang Jinkun, president of the International Health and Nutrition Society and professor of the Department of Nutrition at Sun Yat-sen University Medical School, said that the chewy texture of konjac actually comes from the plant konjac, which belongs to the Araceae family. The konjac commonly sold in the market is made by grinding the konjac bulb into powder, adding alkali, heating it to solidify it into shape, and then removing the alkali with a large amount of clean water.

From a nutritional point of view, every 100 grams of konjac contains 97 grams of water, the remaining 3 grams of dietary fiber, and only 20 calories. The main component of konjac, glucomannan, is a polysaccharide composed of glucose and mannose. It is a member of the water-soluble dietary fiber and is not easily absorbed and utilized by the human body.

In addition, its strong ability to absorb water and quickly expand the intestines means that moderate intake can indeed help increase satiety, stimulate intestinal peristalsis, and promote bowel movements. For those who want to lose weight but cannot resist their appetite, this is indeed a very good low-calorie ingredient.

Eat konjac instead of rice at every meal? Beware of the impact of insufficient sugar intake on your health

Although moderate use of konjac in cooking can help increase satiety and reduce calorie intake. However, it is worth noting that if people are too extreme and completely replace staple foods such as white rice, noodles, and bread with konjac noodles; and do not consume whole grain root foods such as potatoes, corn, and sweet potatoes in moderation, there may be concerns about insufficient sugar (carbohydrate) intake.

In the long run, it may affect the body's blood cell hematopoietic function, causing brain cells and optic nerves to be unable to function normally due to lack of energy, further causing dizziness, lack of energy, inability to concentrate, blurred vision and other discomfort reactions, the severity of which cannot be underestimated.

Don't make the mistake of eating konjac to help you lose weight. Experts: It can replace two meals at most.

Professor Wang Jinkun suggested that if people hope to increase their sense of fullness and reduce calorie intake by eating konjac, in addition to keeping in mind the new fan-shaped daily dietary guidelines, they should also fully consume the six major food groups to maintain a balanced nutrition. It is also important to note that konjac can only be used to replace staple foods for 1 to 2 meals a day, and at least one meal should be filled with natural whole grain root foods such as brown rice, purple rice, white rice, sweet potatoes, corn, etc. that are rich in minerals and essential vitamins for the human body. This is the only way to successfully lose weight and consolidate health.

In addition, Professor Wang Jinkun also reminded that if you want to lose weight successfully, you cannot just go on a diet or eat only a single food when adjusting your diet. For example, the popular weight loss method of not eating starch and only eating meat and protein, although it can indeed make you lose weight quickly and effectively in a short period of time, but if the nutrition is unbalanced, it may cause problems with the body's metabolism in the long run and make you gain weight again faster. And the burning of human fat cannot be achieved without the assistance of starch (sugar). If you don't consume enough sugar, it will not only be unhelpful in reducing body fat, but it will also make you feel exhausted, weak and lack energy during the weight loss process, so you must be careful.