Citrus Extracts Help Promote Healthy Metabolic Function

Previous studies of bitter orange (Citrus aurantium), containing the alkaloid p-synephrine, have suggested potential utility for weight management.  Sidney J. Stohs, from Creighton University (Nebraska, USA), and colleagues tested the potential of p-synephrine alone, or p-synephrine plus the citrus flavonoids naringin and hesperidin, on the metabolic rate of 50 study subjects.  Results showed that the p-synephrine alone increased the metabolic rate by 7%, ascompared to placebo. When 50mg of p-synephrine was consumed with 600 mg naringin and 100 mg hesperidin, the metabolic rate was almost 18% higher than the control group. No adverse effects to heart rate or blood pressure were observed.  The researchers propose that: “This unusual finding of a thermogenic combination of ingredients that elevated metabolic rates without corresponding elevations in blood pressure and heart-rates warrants longer term studies to assess its value as a weight control agent.”