Oxytocin helps weight loss

Saturday July 4, 2015 (foodconsumer.org) -- A new animal study recently published in American Journal of Physiology confirmed early findings from rodent studies that oxytocin is effective in reducing body weight in animals with diet-induced obesity.

The study of rhesus monkeys found two doses, 0.2 and 0.4 mg per kg were effective at reducing food intake and body weight but did not induce side effects like nausea or diarrhea.

In the study, rhesus monkeys were allowed to consume 15% fructose-sweetened beverages and chronic administration of oxytocin in a dose of 0.2 mg per kg for two weeks and 0.4 mg per kg for two additional weeks.  As a result, the body weight was reduced by 3.3% or 0.6 kg.

The low dose of oxytocin suppressed 12-hour chow intake by 16% while the higher dose of oxytocin lowered 12-hour chow intake aby 27% and 8-hour intake of fructose-sweetened beverages by 18%.

Oxytocin also increased energy expenditure during the dark cycle by 14% and increased concentrations of free fatty acids and glycerol and reduced the level of triglycerides suggesting that oxytocin boosted lipolysis.

The study concluded oxytocin reduces body weight in diet-induced obese rhesus monkeys through reduced food intake and increased energy expenditure and lipolysis. (David Liu)

James E. Blevins , James L. Graham , Gregory J. Morton , Karen L. Bales , Michael W. Schwartz , Denis G. Baskin , Peter J. Havel, Chronic oxytocin administration inhibits food intake, increases energy expenditure, and produces weight loss in fructose-fed obese rhesus monkeys,  American Journal of Physiology - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology Published 1 March 2015 Vol. 308 no. 5, R431-R438