The truth about Forskolin – Don’t believe in the hype
There’s this recent trend about a weight loss supplement called Forskolin. Many people are hyping it to be the all-purpose cure for all of your problems. Is there any truth to this?
The famous Dr.Oz speaks highly about the product saying that it’s, “lightning in a bottle.” What a remarkable claim.
What he meant was that forskolin can be used as a way to lose a lot of weight. However, the truth is that forskolin might actually have other benefits besides melting weight.
There’s a huge list of benefits associated by the consumption of Forskolin. Here is the list.
- Can reduce various heart conditions
- Can be used to treat asthma
- Helps to reduce obesity
- Treats colon cancer
- Treats glaucoma
- Link to treating Parkinson’s disease
- Minimizes urinary infections
- Skin protection
- Helps recovering hearing loss
That’s an impressive list of benefits. It’s a wonder that Dr.Oz didn’t mention any of that. There are a variety of medical studies that have been conducted to show that forskolin has a wide range of health benefits if applied properly.
Your 2015 Guide to Forskolin
The world of medical supplements is a dark one. You really don’t know whether you are being given the right information. There’s a lot of misinformation out there which leads people to being misled and potentially risking their health. And, when things don’t work out people don’t believe in science anymore.
That is why a guide for things like Forskolin is needed. It’s critical for you to read information that is accurate and not biased. This will allow you to make an informed decision about your needs. Hopefully, you’ll be able to gain some information by reading this article.
Forskolin is a promising supplement within the health niche. Unlike, other guides out there I will present you with adequate scientific research. No anecdotal evidence or magic promises of instant results. There will be none of that here. You’ll get the facts and make the judgment for yourself.
The popularity of forskolin occurred because of Dr.Oz’s opinion on the matter If, you look at the Google trends data – interest in forskolin spiked significantly after Dr.Oz recommended it to his audience.
This alarming spike in interest of this supplement is exactly the reason why this guide exists in the first place. People need to understand the facts related to this product before they start burning their money on a pipe dream.
Majority of interest in the product is coming from the United States, Australia and Canada. Dr.Oz is directly responsible for this interest in forskolin. Just take a look at any random forskolin product on Amazon. The main reason that is cited to buy the product is because of Dr.Oz’s recommendation.
He’s a well-respected doctor and because of that people trust his judgment. What’s interesting to see is his battles with the FDA over numerous claims he has made on the show. Click here to read more about that.
A Pure Review of Pure Forskolin Extract
So let’s begin with the basics.
Forskolin is a plant that does all sorts of different things to your body. That is what according to drugs.com says. It has a wide range of effects on your body and can treat all sorts of problems that you might have. As more and more information is coming forskolin can apparently be the miracle drug that everyone believes it to be. Just for different purposes. (Hint: Not only for weight loss.)
It’s an extremely powerful supplement. Scientists believe that it treat all sorts of medical ailments that people are facing.
Some ailments that forskolin is believe to minimize or reduce are heart problems, cancer and even hearing loss. Even people who are into weight lifting swear by this product. They claim that cuts weight and even increase testosterone. There isn’t enough research yet but as more and more data is conducted – we’ll see the full extent of what forskolin can do.
What’s the magic behind forskolin?
That’s a good question to ask. What’s the “secret” to this plant? It’s been shown that it increases your AMP levels in your body. We’ll discuss the science behind this jargon later. Let’s get this out of the way first.
There really is no need to mention any application used during ancient times. That really isn’t an accurate indicator of whether a particular supplement works or not. It’s interesting to note that this herb was used in ancient times for a variety of applications. However, this historic reference is instantly disqualified because the scientific method wasn’t even created during the time it was even used. How unfortunate.
In recent history here is what forskolin was used to treat:
- Digestion problems
- Neck problems
- Headaches
- Sexually transmitted diseases
- Cancer
- Problems with the heart
- Problems with blood
- And so much more.
Forskolin is extracted from a plant called Coleus Forskohlii. The reasons behind why forskolin works so remarkably well to treat all these ailments is extremely difficult to explain. Forskolin works at the micro level which involves understanding cells. So, the reasons behind why the plant works can be better understood if you look at how people have used it.
Can forskolin change your body composition?
There’s this study that is called the Godard study.(1) It proved that taking regular amounts of forskolin actually caused people to lose weight. Testosterone increased after a few weeks. This was tried on a sample of obese men. It has also shown that forskolin can be used for the treatment of obesity. Fascinating stuff. It appears there is some truth to the miracle drug.
Ironically, people who are skinny and healthy that has taken forskolin has been shown to not work at all. There isn’t a sufficient study that makes that claim. More research needs to be done on that matter.
There isn’t enough scientific research on the application of forskolin. So, it is important to remember that we shouldn’t jump to conclusions with this plant. Just because lots of people are raving about the plant doesn’t mean it is scientifically true. Proper research needs to be conducted. This means that Dr.Oz’s word really doesn’t mean much. Despite, his bold claim there really isn’t scientific evidence that backs his claims. That’s how it works.
Can forskolin treat UTIs (Urinary Tract Infections)
It appears that the most promising research with forskolin is the use of treating UTIs. (2) There was a study conducted on mice that has shown promising results for the application of humans. It’s important to remember that just because it worked well with rodents – doesn’t mean that it will work with humans as well. You can read the study here.
The common way of treating UTIs is through the use of antibiotics. Unfortunately, a nasty side effect of that treatment is the UTI coming back for round two. Seriously. 33% of women have reoccurring UTIs despite using antibiotics.
The issue is how the organism interacts with the infected area. E. Coli (the source of UTIs) can mess with the receptors within your bladder cells and release tiny little sacs that messes with your bladder even further. The sacs that the E. Coli released stays behind when the bladder is removed. The bacteria gets to rampage your bladder since it can hide within the little sacs that it stored in your bladder. Thus, making the use of antibiotics pointless. The bacteria can grow back at any time and attack your body at full force.
What forskolin does is increase your AMP levels. The empty sacs get drawn out when there is increased AMP levels. It helps the bladder get bigger.
Through, extensive research it has been found that forskolin can drastically increase the level of AMP in your body. As a side effect you get increased testosterone (which is why weightlifters love this stuff.) When the rats were experimented on their AMP levels increased and almost eradicated the E. Coli in their bodies.
Based on this research the use of forskolin can be used to treat UTIs. It’s a dramatic find.
The next claim – Can it help it treat people with hearing problems?
It’s pretty well known that other wildlife like bids and fish can recover their hearing loss much faster than mammals. Any bird or fish that gets hearing damage can be easily recovered. On the other hand mammals that experience the same level of hearing loss can actually be permanent.
There was a study conducted by the University of Virginia. The study showed that forskolin actually increased mammal’s ability to recover from hearing loss. Without the use of forskolin this damage to the ears could actually be permanent. It appears that forskolin can give you the same amount regenerative abilities that bird and fish have.
What has been found is that hearing loss can be attributed to losing a lot of hair cells. When birds are constantly given forskolin they actually regenerate their hair cells. This led to recovering their hearing loss.
The researchers in the study wanted to know if the same can be applied to the use of mammals. The study did it on rats. What has been found is that if you give some exposure to rats – regeneration occurs. However, it doesn’t work if you give them too much exposure. Rats who were exposed to the forskolin saw their AMP levels to improve drastically. This means that more hair cells regenerate and therefore reduce hearing problems.
More and more research is being conducted into this promising supplement. (1) This is great for people who want to better understand this interesting supplement.
Is Forskolin Right for Weight Loss?
The one consistent fact that can be determined is that forskolin definitely increases your AMP levels drastically. It has been shown to reduce weight for obese men but not for skinny people. Not enough research has been done on the use of forskolin for skinny people.
It also has been shown to treat UTIs effectively. This will change how antibiotics is prescribed for this ailment.
Because forskolin increases your AMP levels the many claims that people make about forskolin might not actually be far-fetched. It definitely has many unique properties that needs to be studied more.
Dr.Oz might have made an absurd claim at the time he said it but it appears that science is actually catching up to what he said. Perhaps, science will prove that he was right along.
Or maybe not.
References
- Dhasakumar S. Navaratnam, Henry S. Su, Sean-Patrick Scott & J. Carl Oberholtzer. Proliferation in the auditory receptor epithelium mediated by a cyclic AMP−dependent signaling pathway. Nature Medicine 2, 1136 – 1139 (1996) doi:10.1038/nm1096-1136. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v2/n10/abs/nm1096-1136.html on June 1y, 20155
- Brian L Bishop, Mathew J Duncan, Jeongmin Song, Guojie Li,David Zaas, Soman N Abraham. Cyclic AMP–regulated exocytosis ofEscherichia coli from infected bladder epithelial cells. Nature Medicine 13, 625 – 630 (2007)
Published online: 8 April 2007 | doi:10.1038/nm1572. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v13/n5/full/nm1572.html on June 17, 2015. - Godard MP, Johnson BA, Richmond SR. Body composition and hormonal adaptations associated with forskolin consumption in overweight and obese men. Obes Res. 2005 Aug;13(8):1335-43. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16129715 on June 17, 2015.