Ten years ago, activated carbon was considered a fairly effective way to fight excess weight. Then they were replaced by appetite and various food supplements. However, today, when newfangled drugs have become too expensive or have been completely discontinued, a serious discussion about coal has once again arisen on the Internet. Therefore, let's figure out how this drug works and whether it can really help you get rid of extra pounds at home.
Useful features
Activated charcoal is a drug, not a fat burner. And it helps not so much those who want to get rid of the extra kilos, but those who need a serious cleansing of the body. Therefore, among the positive symptoms of taking the drug, what comes to the fore is not "melted" centimeters on the waist or trouble, but:
- Gastrointestinal stability.
- To remove toxins and other harmful substances from the body.
- Slightly slows down the aging of the skin (due to increased fluid intake).
- Lower cholesterol in the blood and therefore improve the functioning of the brain and cardiovascular system and speed up the metabolism.
- Improves the functioning of the liver, adrenal glands, kidneys and many other internal organs.
- There is no precipitation, as the active components of the drug are not absorbed, but are completely excreted from the body within 8-10 hours after administration.
- To reduce the chance of infection with staphylococci, dysentery and some airborne diseases (for example, influenza).
Instructions for use
In terms of all kinds of diets (which we will consider in more detail below), taking activated carbon is only justified when it is combined with other methods. However, many other references to its use can be found in medical reference books. So those who suffer from:
- Metabolic diseases.
- Stomach disorders, fermentation, flatulence, diarrhea.
- Consequences of severe detoxification.
- Intoxication from alkaloids, salts of heavy metals and other harmful substances.
- Poisoning from various causes.
And this is just a short list of situations when it will be very useful. However, do not forget that you can take the drug not just once, but only in a course after the approval of the doctor, as you may have contraindications to taking it.
Contraindications
Although activated carbon cleaning is practiced everywhere, not everyone should use it. In addition to individual intolerance, the reasons for refusal can be:
- Vitamin deficiency or metabolic disease.
- Insufficient (younger than 14 years) or too high (over 65 years) age of a person losing weight.
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding in young mothers.
- Low blood pressure.
- Presence of gastrointestinal problems: colitis, duodenal ulcers or others.
- The patient takes certain medicines (eg antitoxin).
- Tendency to constipation and bulimia, the presence of intestinal dysbiosis.
- Internal bleeding (regardless of their origin).
As you can see, drinking it is not always helpful. And in some cases, it can even be dangerous to your health. Therefore, if you plan to start losing weight on activated charcoal, be sure to consult your doctor first.
Is a result
Is charcoal effective as a way to lose weight? In search of an answer to this question, let's turn to the experience of those who have already tried these pills on themselves. According to reviews, in two weeks without using additional methods (effective diet, exercise), people managed to lose about 2-4 kg. Moreover, the more the individual's initial weight lost, the better the results he was able to achieve.
However, let's figure out whether activated carbon really promotes weight loss? Not really. It's just that when you start taking these tablets, you increase your water intake accordingly. Having previously filled the stomach with water, one eats less at the next meal. The result is weight loss. In other words, it is quite possible to achieve the same results in the same period of time without taking activated carbon. It is enough to drink a cup of still water at room temperature about 20-30 minutes before a meal.
But what the drug really does well is cleanse the body. After a two-week course, many people notice:
- Improved skin condition: blackheads disappear and oily shine.
- Appearance of lightness in the body.
- Stabilization of bowel function.
However, all this happens only if you take the medicine correctly. If you forget the measurement and when consuming you are guided by the principle "the more, the better, " you can develop a number of complications.
Damage to the body
It seems that we have all known charcoal since childhood - as an excellent remedy for intestinal problems and excessive gas formation. So what negative consequences can we talk about? Let's remember that activated carbon is first and foremost a medicine. This means that its overdose or improper use can cause harm to the body. This can occur in:
Avitaminosis and hypovitaminosis Activated carbon is an excellent adsorbent, but it not only removes toxins from the body, but also nutrients.
External degeneration With long-term use, there is a risk that all the positive effects of "cleansing" will be nullified: clear skin becomes dull and covered with pimples, nails become brittle and hair starts to fall out.
constipation Excessive slowing of peristalsis is a sure companion of severe constipation, which is not so far from diarrhea and hemorrhoids.
Damage to the intestinal walls Two weeks of moderate use of the drug will not cause any negative consequences. However, if you get too carried away, you are sure to have problems with your digestive system.
Reduce the effects of taking other medications Instead of having a rejuvenating effect on the body, the beneficial substances and antibodies contained in the tablets are actively removed along with toxins.
Lower blood pressure and thromboembolism
And all this applies only to perfectly healthy people. How self-medication or "grandmother's" recipe based on activated carbon will affect those who already suffer from chronic diseases, one can only guess. But there is clearly no need to talk about improvements.
Of course, the above does not mean that it is harmful to health. It's just that the benefits will only be noticeable if taken correctly. And it can turn out completely different than you expected.
Doses and rules for drug administration
So, which method of use will give the best effect and will not cause irreparable harm? An exact course can only be prescribed by the attending physician who knows the characteristics of the body. In general, the admission rules are as follows:
- The duration of the course starts from 3 days and should not exceed 2 weeks (the same applies to a diet that includes taking this medicine).
- The number of tablets to be taken per day (at least 3 methods) is calculated using the formula: 1 tablet for every 10 kg of weight. In other words, if you weigh 50 kg, you need to drink 5 tablets a day, if you are 113 kg - 11 tablets.
- The drug should be introduced into the daily menu gradually. If your norm is 7 pieces, it is better to take no more than 5 tablets in the first 2-3 days and gradually increase the dose. The same applies to completing the course.
- The dose is taken within an hour before or after a meal. However, you should not drink it in the morning (when the stomach is still empty), it is better to do it an hour after breakfast.
- After the course is over, be sure to take a break for at least 2 weeks.
- Take the tablets with boiled still water at room temperature. This prevents all kinds of bacteria from entering the body and helps the medicine to start working faster.
- Be sure to contact your doctor at the end of the session so that he can prescribe you a multivitamin treatment (to restore the vitamin balance in the body).
Additionally, if you want to get the most benefits from taking activated charcoal, try to follow these tips:
- Reduce consumption of wheat products and those containing sugar.
- Avoid alcohol completely.
- Remove dishes that contain a lot of sugar, fat and harmful elements from your daily menu.
- Drink water (at least 1 liter for every 30 kg of weight, but up to 2. 5 liters in total).
- Switch from coffee to weak tea without additives.
- Increase your physical activity by making sure that exercise (such as a morning workout, an evening jog, or a swim in the pool) gives you energy and strength instead of completely exhausting you.
Follow these simple rules and losing weight with activated charcoal will definitely benefit you. Even if all the extra pounds do not go away, you will feel much better than before the course started.
Receiver variant
As mentioned before, many people actively start taking the drug in an attempt to lose weight. Therefore, let's look at the most popular methods and evaluate their effectiveness:
Option #1: Modest
Core:The diet of the person who loses weight remains unchanged and further efforts to lose weight are not taken into account. Tablets should be taken in 2 pieces 1, 5 hours - an hour before a meal. The course lasts from 10 days to two weeks.
Result:There will be no significant weight loss (maximum - 3-4 kilos in 14 days). However (if other conditions remain unchanged), the lost centimeters will disappear forever, lightness will appear in the body, bowel function will stabilize and daily activity will increase significantly.
Option #2: The Three Day Diet
Core:For 3 days, the person who loses weight follows a certain diet. Additional movement is not taken into account but is not prohibited.
Day 1 During the day, you can only eat activated carbon with kefir and water. Moreover, the first time you take a few tablets (by weight), wash them down with a glass of warm still water, and after half an hour - a glass of kefir. If you are used to eating more than three times a day, the portion size and number of tablets must be reduced. In this case, the break between meals should be at least 2-3 hours.
Day 2 The current "dish list" is exactly the same as the last day's menu, but with one difference. Kefir is replaced with apples at the rate of one apple per glass.
Day 3 On this day, the diet is the same, but instead of kefir you eat vegetable salad with olive oil dressing or steamed vegetables without salt.
Result:This diet is one of the fast diets, so you can lose up to 5 kg. However, the menu allows for a rather sudden and radical rejection of products, which is not suitable for everyone. As you lose weight, you may experience severe headaches, weakness, and an uncontrollable appetite (which may even cause you to gain weight). Therefore, you should not go for this diet during menstruation or when you are doing things that require extra attention and concentration.
If such a diet was easy for you, you can continue the course and stretch it to 15 days. However, you should stop taking activated carbon and at the end of the diet, be sure to take a multivitamin.
Option #3: Two-Week Activated Charcoal Diet
Core:For 14 days, the person who loses weight eats according to a specific pattern designed to gradually dull the feeling of hunger. At the same time, 30-60 minutes before a meal (except for the second breakfast), he takes activated charcoal (2 tablets) with a glass of warm still water. When evaluating activity, increased exercise is not taken into account.
- Breakfast: a serving (0. 2 kg) of oatmeal cooked in water and a glass of green or black tea without additives. If desired, you can season the porridge with raisins, and with tea you can eat bread with thin cheese.
- Second breakfast: a glass of low-fat kefir.
- Lunch: broth from lean meat (veal or chicken) and 0. 2 kg of boiled vegetables.
- Dinner: fresh fruit salad, seasoned with a tablespoon of sour cream or homemade yogurt.
- Breakfast: buckwheat boiled in water, as well as one hard-boiled egg and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: apple, kiwi or small banana.
- Lunch: vegetable broth and 0. 15 kg of pollock, baked in its own juice without adding spices.
- Dinner: apple and 0. 2 kg of cottage cheese, their fat content does not exceed 7%.
- Breakfast: a plate of freshly cooked rice and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: two small fruits of your choice.
- Lunch: steamed chicken (0. 2 kg) and vegetable salad dressed with low-fat sour cream.
- Dinner: vegetable casserole and a glass of tea.
- Breakfast: a plate of oatmeal cooked with skimmed milk, a glass of tea and a handful of raisins.
- Second breakfast: cucumber and two hard-boiled eggs.
- Lunch: a bowl of lean fish soup. You cannot eat more than 0. 1 kg of the fish itself.
- Dinner: a serving of cottage cheese and a banana.
- Breakfast: 1 medium tomato, sandwich (bread + thin slice of cheese) and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: 0. 05 kg of cottage cheese and a cup of low-fat milk. If desired, you can add some bread.
- Lunch: vegetable soup cooked in meat broth and 0. 1 kg of lean cooked meat.
- Dinner: fresh vegetable salad.
- Breakfast: buckwheat porridge boiled in water (without additives), one hard-boiled egg and cucumber.
- Second breakfast: a cup of low-fat kefir and a small fruit of your choice.
- Lunch: low-fat meat broth (0. 2 kg) and cucumber.
- Dinner: cottage cheese (0. 1 kg), seasoned with a tablespoon of homemade yogurt (without additives).
- Breakfast: oatmeal boiled with milk, 0. 1 kg of homemade yogurt and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: a cup of kefir.
- Lunch: vegetable stew and 0. 1 kg of lean cooked meat.
- Dinner: vegetable salad dressed with homemade yogurt.
- Breakfast: two cucumbers, two sandwiches with low-fat cheese and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: two small fruits of your choice.
- Lunch: chicken broth and 0. 1 kg of vegetable stew.
- Dinner: two cucumbers and a portion of boiled mussels.
- Breakfast: rice boiled in water and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: a glass of kefir and an apple.
- Lunch: a portion of low-fat borscht and 0. 1 kg of boiled chicken breast.
- Dinner: cucumber and tomato salad and 0. 2 kg of boiled shrimp.
- Breakfast: 2 baked apples, a portion of cottage cheese and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: a glass of kefir and bread.
- Lunch: a plate of lean fish soup.
- Dinner: steamed vegetables.
- Breakfast: cucumber, sandwich (bread + thin slice of boiled chicken breast) and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: a glass of fermented baked milk and an apple.
- Lunch: a bowl of low-fat chicken broth.
- Dinner: vegetable salad and 0. 1 kg of cottage cheese.
- Breakfast: a portion of cottage cheese, two cucumbers, one hard-boiled egg and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: two small fruits of your choice.
- Lunch: a plate of low-fat borscht and 0. 1 kg of boiled mushrooms.
- Dinner: boiled chicken breast (0. 1 kg) and vegetable salad.
- Breakfast: buckwheat porridge boiled in water, hard-boiled egg and a glass of tea.
- Second breakfast: a small fruit of your choice.
- Lunch: a plate of vegetable broth and 0. 15 kg of pollock, baked in its own juice without adding spices.
- Dinner: apple and 0. 2 kg of cottage cheese, their fat content does not exceed 7%.
- Breakfast: a portion of oatmeal, boiled in water, and a glass of tea. If desired, you can season the porridge with raisins, and with tea you can eat bread with thin cheese.
- Second breakfast: a glass of low-fat kefir.
- Lunch: a portion of low-fat meat broth and 0. 2 kg of boiled vegetables.
- Dinner: fruit salad, seasoned with a tablespoon of sour cream or homemade yogurt.
Result:Since this diet is classified as moderate, you can stick to it even with increased daily activity. In two weeks, with its help, you can lose about 5-7 kg, which (if you stick to a similar menu, but without coal) will not return in the future.
Black or white: choosing the "right" charcoal
Today there is a wide range of medicines. So, if before you could only buy black activated carbon in the pharmacy, today pharmacists offer, along with it, white carbon tablets. Advertisements for a new trendy product promise buyers a milder effect, that only toxins are removed from the body and the possibility of taking a long-term course (over 2 weeks).
The only thing is that the instructions for use for both drugs are almost identical, and nanorobots (which could reliably determine which element harms the body and which helps) are not included in charcoal. Moreover, if conventional black coal costs a penny, you will have to pay many times more for white coal. Whether such a "game" is worth the candle, you decide for yourself.
Let's summarize the above. As practice shows, activated carbon for weight loss will be ineffective. Without the help of other solutions (diet, exercise), with its help you can lose a maximum of 2-3 kilos. In this case, an overdose of the drug threatens serious problems with the body. However, if you need to cleanse your body quickly, for example after a big party, you will not find a better solution. Moreover, it is always available and cheap.