Conjugated Linoleic Acid Proven to Help You Lose Fat and Build Muscle

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a fatty acid found in meat and dairy products. However, since animals for the most part are not allowed to graze outdoors anymore, CLA in meat and dairy products have fallen tremendously.

Not only is CLA a fatty acid, it is a trans fatty acid. Not all trans fats are created equal. Man-made trans fats are dangerous. Naturally-occurring trans fats, i.e. conjugated linoleic acid, is good.

Conjugated linoleic acid has been shown to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. This naturally-occurring trans fat reduces total and LDL (low-density lipoprotein) levels and suppresses cholesterol-induced atherosclerosis.

Animals are confined in factory farms and fed grain. The confinement and diet are contrary to nature. Instead of meat and dairy products being high in omega-3 fatty acids and CLA, they are high in omega-6, low in omega-3 and low in CLA.

Unless meat and dairy products are organic in origin, CLA in sufficient quantities for health benefits cannot be obtained through diet alone. It must be taken in supplement form.

Conjugated Linoleic acid has been documented by many studies to build lean body mass (muscle) and burn fat. In a study published in the The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 149 women and 31 men were given either CLA or a placebo daily. In a 3 month period the subjects who were given CLA lost an average of 5 pounds of body fat and gained 2 pounds of muscle.

Many decades of study has discovered that conjugated linoleic acid helps to prevent the fat enzyme lipoprotein lipase from breakng down dietary fat. This means that this fat cannot be stored as body fat. CLA also reduces the number and size of adipocytes or fat cells.

CLA reduces inflammation. In a University of British Columbia study, people with mild-to-moderate asthma experienced a complete normalization of their air passages with CLA usage.

A daily dosage of 3.4 grams should be taken. If taken in supplement form, make sure that the manufacturer uses Tonalin. Tonalin is the highest form of CLA available.

A sound nutrition and exercise should be in place in conjunction with CLA usage (See also...).

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) has been shown to be a lethal cancer-fighter in animal studies. In these studies, as little as 0.5 percent CLA in a diet can reduce cancerous tumors by more than 50 percent. CLA can reduce the risk of several cancers such as breast, prostate, colorectal, lung, skin, and stomach.

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