"A seaweedbased fiber supplement taken daily before meals helped people lose weight in a new study.  But that was only the case among people who stuck with the diet study over a few months. More than onefifth of people dropped out when they couldnt tolerate the supplements taste texture and side effects.  Researchers have explored the potential of seaweed as an appetite suppressant but so far products havent panned out.  There have been problems in the past to develop something that tastes acceptable said Dr. Arne Astrup one of the studys authors from the University of Copenhagen and a member of the advisory board to SBiotek a Danish company that provided funding for the study.  Previous seaweedbased supplements were slimy and caused bloating and they also had a fishy taste. The new supplement used in this study is less unpleasant  but theres still room for improvement said Astrup.  The supplement is based on the seaweed extract alginate a thickening agent and a common ingredient in foods like soups and jellies. Its also increasingly used by the weightloss industry marketed as an appetite suppressant.  Packaged in powder form and mixed with liquid alginate expands in the stomach to form a thick gel mimicking the effect of a large meal.  This gel is really like a pudding that will last in the stomach for hours gradually degrading and disappearing Astrup said.  For the study the researchers randomly divided  generally healthy but obese people aged  to  into two groups.  One group was given packets of the gel supplement containing  grams of fiber and the other got a seaweedfree placebo drink. Neither the researchers nor the participants knew who was receiving the seaweed supplement.  In terms of calories flavor and appearance the placebo and treatment drink were identical.  For three months study participants drank the supplements dissolved in two cups of water  minutes before each meal. They were also told to cut back on calories. By the end of the trial sixteen people had dropped out of the study including  out of  from the seaweed group according to findings published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.  Among people who stuck with the trial those on the fiber supplement lost  pounds on average compared to  pounds in the placebo group. But when all  original participants were included in the analysis the researchers found no significant difference in weight loss between the two treatment groups.  TREAT FINDINGS WITH CAUTION  Previous studies have shown eating a highfiber diet can help reduce the hunger pangs that may lead to overeating and derail a healthy diet plan.  Still the new results should be treated with caution according to Dr. Maria Vazquez Roque who has worked on alginatebased gels at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville Florida but was not involved in the study. Just looking at the effect of the supplement on people who finished the treatment can bias the findings she said.  For Mette Kristensen one of the studys authors the message seems clear If you actually comply with the treatment you do have the improvement in weight loss.  However effects on blood pressure were less promising. Systolic blood pressure  the top number on a blood pressure reading  fell by almost six points on average in the placebo group over the week study but by just over one point in the treatment group. At times during the trials systolic blood pressure increased in the alginate group by one to two points.  According to the researchers the higher sodium content of the alginate drink  a little over one gram per dose or about half a teaspoon of salt  could have offset any potential bloodpressure reducing effect of the supplement. The American Heart Association recommends that adults eat less than . g of sodium per day.  Questions remain about the safety of the fiber supplement over the long term. Five people taking the fiber gel left the study due to problems with stomach bloating nausea and diarrhea. Two people taking a placebo supplement which didnt contain the seaweed fiber experienced similar problems.  There are many different types of alginate said Richard Mattes who has studied the effect of alginate fiber on appetite at Purdue University in West Lafayette Indiana  so the trick is to find the right alginate in the right dose.  And just feeling less hungry due to a supplement wont make you lose weight unless you eat fewer calories said Mattes who was not involved in the new study.  The research group is working on a new supplement that uses  percent less alginate with less sodium better taste and fewer side effects than the current formula Astrup told Reuters Health.  Alginate as an aid to weight loss is already commercially available in pill form and costs around  for a sevenday supply. These supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration said Vazquez Roque.  SOURCE bit.lyLSuLvS httpbit.lyLSuLvS American Journal of Clinical Nutrition online May  ."