Increase your intake of fruits such as apples, pears, berries, onions and other flavonoid-rich fruits and vegetables to avoid stretching your waistline.
A new study lead by Monica L. Bertoia of Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, MA, has focused on the weight-loss effect of flavan-3-ol, a flavonoid found in green tea.
There are more than 6,000 types of flavonoids, which are naturally present in most fruit and vegetables. Some of the more well-known types include flavonols, flavones, flavanines and anthocyanins.
Bertoia and her team say most previous studies assessing the link between dietary flavonoids and weight loss have only included a small number of participants who were overweight or obese.
The new study assessed how intake of seven types of flavonoids influenced the weight of 124,086 men and women aged 27-65.
Every 4 years between 1986-2011, participants were required to complete a dietary questionnaire, from which the researchers assessed their intake of dietary flavonols, flavones, flavanones, flavan-3-ols, anthocyanins, proanthocyanidins and flavonoid polymers.
The participants’ weight, lifestyle habits and diagnosis of any diseases were assessed through a questionnaire completed every 2 years.
The researchers found that participants who increased their consumption of certain flavonoid types – flavonols, flavan-3-ols, anthocyanins and flavonoid polymers – during the study period were less likely to experience weight gain.
Anthocyanins, flavonoid polymers and flavonols were associated with the least weight gain; every additional 10 mg of anthocyanins, 138 mg of flavonoid polymers and 7 mg of flavonols consumed daily were associated with 0.16-0.23 Ibs less weight gained each 4 years.
These findings remained after accounting for changing factors such as participants’ smoking status, physical activity and other dietary aspects.
The main sources of anthocyanins in the study were strawberries and blueberries, while tea and onions were the main sources of flavonols. Intake of flavan-3-ols and their polymers primarily came from tea and apples.
Although the team note that their findings are observational and there are limitations to their findings, the results could help combat the current obesity epidemic by offering guidance on which fruits and vegetables are best for weight maintenance:
“Higher intake of foods rich in flavonols, flavan-3-ols, anthocyanins, and flavonoid polymers may contribute to weight maintenance in adulthood and may help to refine dietary recommendations for the prevention of obesity and its potential consequences.”
