Patent Grant
9220741
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a weight loss formulation, and more particularly, to a formulation comprising a known combination of herbal extracts to which is added further ingredients to enhance weight loss.
2. Description of Related Art
A product called Weighlevel™ marketed by Sprunk-Jansen A/S contains a mixture of the extracts of four plants that have been used in traditional folk medicine as a weight loss product. The four plants are Lady's Mantle (Alchemilla vulgaris L.), olive leaves (Olea europaea L.), cumin seed (Cuminum cyminum L.), and wild mint (Mentha longiflora L.). Reported studies have demonstrated the efficacy for weight loss of a daily regimen of three 310 mg tablets taken with meals, each tablet containing the following amounts of these plant extracts:
Said, O., et al., “Weight Loss in Animals and Humans Treated with ‘Weighlevel,’ a Combination of Four Medicinal Plants Used in Traditional Arabic and Islamic Medicine,” Evid Based Complement Alternate Med, Vol. 5, pgs. 421-28 (2008) (available at http://ecam.oxfordjournals.org); Said, O., et al., “A Double Blinded-Randomized Clinical Study with ‘Weighlevel,’ a Combination of Four Medicinal Plants Used in Traditional Arabic and Islamic Medicine,” The Open Complementary Medicine Jour., Vol. 2, pgs. 1-6 (2010). (The formulations in both studies also contained 7 mg of Vitamin C and 148 mg of tricalcium phosphate).
However, there appear to be no reports of enhancing the weight loss effects of the tested Weighlevel™ herbal formulation by incorporating other ingredients in combination with extracts of Alchemilla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora.
It is an object of the present invention to provide various formulations of the above combination of Alchemilla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora, with one or more additional ingredients to enhance weight loss.
It is a further object of the invention to provide methods of administering such formulations to enhance weight loss in individuals using them.
The present invention includes numerous specific formulations that comprise Alchemilla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora, to which additional ingredients have been added to increase the weight loss efficacy of previously known products such as Weighlevel™.
It is believed that the use of Alchemilla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora, particularly in combination with other ingredients such as those used in formulations according to the present invention, may further enhance weight loss in overweight but otherwise healthy individuals. That is, the studies reported in the Said et al. papers mentioned above included a large proportion of subjects on medications for ischemic heart disease, diabetes mellitus, and/or hypertension. Said et al. 2008 at page 7; Said et al. 2010 at page 3. It is possible that such medications interfere with the efficacy of such formulations in maximizing weight loss.
In addition, there is evidence that a formulation including Alchemilla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora in combination with other ingredients according to the present invention will cause subjects to lose more weight over the same period than the Weighlevel™ product reported in the Said et al. papers. It is also believed that weight loss is even further enhanced in female subjects.
Formulations according to embodiments of the invention comprise a mixture of Alchemlla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora, to which additional ingredients have been added to increase weight loss efficacy. The additional ingredients may include, but are not limited to, Gamma-oryzanol, Caffeine, Cirsimarin, Fucoxanthin, Guggulsterones, Evodiamine, Forskolin, Sclareolide, Chromium, Hydroxycitric acid, Pinolenic acid, Conjugated linoleic acid, Potato protein, Raspberry ketone, Capsaicin, Synephrine, Dehydroepiandrosterone, Phenylethylamine, Orlistat, Glucomannan, or Vitamin C, or sources thereof, as well as herbal ingredients such as Guarana, Yerba Mate, Damiana, Green tea, Green coffee bean, Cinnamon, White kidney bean, Garcinia Cambogia, Nopal Cactus, Hoodia, Yohimbine, Malpighia glabra, Eurycoma Longiflolia, Carailuma Fimbriata, Citrus aurantium, Gymnema Sylvestre, Lyceum barbarum, Aloe Vera, Cayenne, Pomegranate, Blueberry, Billberry, or extracts of such herbal ingredients, and plant sources of antioxidants. Other ingredients may be used as well in accordance with the specific embodiments disclosed hereinbelow.
Preferably, one of the additional ingredients includes caffeine or a source thereof. Suitable sources of caffeine include caffeine anhydrous, Coffea Arabica, Coffea canephora, Camellia sinensis, Ilex paraguariensis, Guarana, Theobroma cacao, and kola nut.
Other embodiments include specific formulations that comprise a mixture of Alchemilla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora, with additional ingredients to enhance weight loss, and further comprising vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and other nutrients which are commonly known in the art.
In all of the specific formulations of the invention described herein, the form specified (capsules, caplets, or tablets) were made by requesting a commercial supplier to manufacture the capsules, caplets, or tablets from the ingredients listed under each formulation using methods well known to those skilled in the art of medication and dietary supplement manufacture. That is, one skilled in such art will be able to make the capsules, caplets, and tablets described below without further explanation. In all cases, the particular excipients are chosen by the supplier to provide the desired form. Formulations according to the invention may also be in the form of a powder to be mixed with water and consumed as a beverage. One or more flavoring agents may be added to the powder as desired.
In all of the following formulations, the weight and weight percentage of in the tables is stated per the recommend serving size for each formulation. In all cases, the Lady's Mantle (Alchemilla vulgaris), olive leaves (Olea europaea), cumin seed (Cuminum cyminum), and wild mint (Mentha longiflora) are present in the same proportions to each other as set forth the two Said articles noted above. That is, the proportions of these four ingredients in all cases are:
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
This formulation was prepared in the form of powder capsules. The recommended serving size is two capsules. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
Formulation No. 2
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
This formulation was prepared in the form of liquid capsules. The recommended serving size is two capsules. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
Formulation No. 3
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
This formulation was prepared in the form of liquid capsules. The recommended serving size is two capsules. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
Formulation No. 4
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
biennis) - seed
This formulation was prepared in the form of liquid capsules. The recommended serving size is three capsules. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
Formulation No. 5
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
This formulation was prepared in the form of caplets. The recommended serving size is two caplets. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
Formulation No. 6
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
glabra) - fruit
This formulation was prepared in the form of tablets. The recommended serving size is two tablets. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
In tests using this formulation 13 subjects (eight females and five males) took two tablets three times daily with water before meals, for the length of time indicated in the following table (weights are in pounds), with the tabulated results:
The next table summarizes the average percentage weight loss achieved by Formulation No. 6 against results reported in Table 2 of the 2010 Said et al. paper for a comparable length of time, namely about two months (percentage weight loss=average weight loss÷average start weight).
The 2008 Said et al. paper reports an overall average percentage weight loss of 13.2% after three months, but the charts in Figure 5 indicate a lesser reduction in body mass index after two months than at three months. From those charts it appears that the body mass index of overweight people (Figure 5(A)) decreased from 28.5 to 26, or 8.7% (2.5÷28.5) after two months, while the body mass index of obese people (Figure 5(B)) decreased from 32.1 to 29, or 9.7% (3.1÷32.1). This study did not report separately for males and females.
Formulation No. 7
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
frutescens) - fruit
This formulation was prepared in the form of liquid capsules. The recommended serving size is two capsules. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
Formulation No. 8
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
This formulation was prepared in the form of powder capsules. The recommended serving size is two capsules. It is expected that users will take three servings per day.
Formulation No. 9
A formulation was prepared with the following ingredients:
This formulation was prepared in the form of soft gelatin capsules. The recommended serving size is two capsules. It is expected that users will take three servings per day
Those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the principles underlying the present invention has application to a wide variety of compositions comprising a mixture of Alchemilla vulgaris, Olea europaea, Cuminum cyminum, and Mentha longiflora and additional ingredients to enhance weight loss.
In that connection, only selected preferred embodiments of the invention have been depicted and described, and it will be understood that various changes and modifications can be made other than those specifically mentioned above without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which is defined solely by the claims that follow.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application No. 61/376,098, filed Aug. 30, 2010, which application is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20090214680 | Giuliano et al. | Aug 2009 | A1 |
| Entry |
|---|
| Visentainer et al., Vitamin C in Barbados cherry Malpighia glabra L. pulp submitted to processing and to different forms of storage, 1998, Arch Latinoam Nutr, 48: 256-9. |
| EFSA: Scientific Opinion on the Safety of ‘Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA)-Rich Oil’ (Tonalin® TG 80) As a Novel Food Ingredient; EFSA Journal 2010; 8(5):1000 pp. 1-43). |
| Said, O., et al., “A Double Blinded-Randomized Clinical Study with ‘Weighlevel,’ a Combination of Four Medicinal Plants Used in Traditional Greco-Arab and Islamic Medicine,” The Open Complementary Medicine Journal, 2010, 2, pp. 1-6. |
| Said, O., et al., “Weight Loss in Animals and Humans Treated with ‘Weighlevel’, a Combination of Four Medicinal Plants Used in Traditional Greco-Arab and Islamic Medicine,” eCAM Advance Access published Oct. 24, 2008, pp. 1-7. |
| Said, O., et al.,“Weight Loss in Animals and Humans Treated with ‘Weighlevel,’ a Combination of Four Medicinal Plants Used in Traditional Greco-Arab and Islamic Medicine,” Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, vol. 2011, Article ID 874538, pp. 1-6. |
| Sprunk-Jansen LLC Press Release on WEIGHLEVEL study, Feb. 2010. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20120052137 A1 | Mar 2012 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61378098 | Aug 2010 | US |
