Regular Consumption of Kimchi Reduces Body Fat: Researchers Suggest

The World Institute of Kimchi, South Korea, has been publishing a series of articles on the anti-obesity effects of kimchi in international journals. These articles, based on research studies on the subject, indicate that the regular consumption of kimchi, a traditional Korean fermented food, is effective in reducing body fat and may serve as a promising dietary strategy to combat obesity.

A research study, published in

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Journal of Functional Foods, focused on the anti-obesity effects of kimchi and its impact on gut microbiomes. This study investigated the changes in anthropometric measurements, blood biomarkers, and gut microbiomes of 55 overweight adults, comprising both males and females, with a BMI ranging from 23 to 30 kg/m². The participants consumed 3 kimchi capsules per meal for 3 months. The kimchi capsules contained kimchi powder produced by freeze-drying cabbage kimchi fermented at 4℃ for 2 weeks. The research team analyzed the changes in the body fat composition of the participants and found that the group that consumed kimchi showed a 2.6% decrease in body fat, but the control group that did not take the kimchi capsules exhibited a 4.7% increase in body fat, showing a statistically significant difference between the two groups.

Further, the analysis of the microbiomes of the participants revealed that kimchi consumption resulted in an increase in the abundance of the beneficial gut bacterium, Akkermansia muciniphila*, and a reduction in the number of Proteobacteria, which are associated with obesity.

The successful completion of this clinical trial on the body fat-reducing effects of kimchi indicates that a steady consumption of kimchi is effective in alleviating obesity symptoms through the modulation of the gut microbiota.

Reference: Lee, W., Kwon, M. S., Yun, Y. R., Choi, H., Jung, M. J., Hwang, H., ... & Hong, S. W. (2024). Effects of kimchi consumption on body fat and intestinal microbiota in overweight participants: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-center clinical trial. Journal of Functional Foods, 121, 106401.