Data published in Nutrients indicated that 12 weeks of supplementation Limosilactobacillus fermentum K7-Lb1, L. fermentum K8-Lb1 and L. fermentum K11-Lb3 from Austria-based Slimbiotics led to significantly greater reductions in fat mass compared to placebo.
Interestingly, results from the double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-arm randomized trial also showed that the probiotic supplement led to increases in bone mineral density, which supports the potential anti-osteoporotic effects of Limosilactobacillus probiotics. The authors urged caution in interpreting these results, however, noting that bone mineral content and bone mineral area decreased over the 12 weeks.
“Probiotic supplementation was associated with numerically greater reductions in fat mass, BF% [bpdy fat percentage], and measures of central adiposity than placebo, although many between-group differences did not reach statistical significance,” wrote the researchers. “Collectively, these findings suggest that targeted L. fermentum supplementation may provide modest additive benefits during lifestyle-based weight loss interventions.”
Metabolic support
Slimbiotics GmbH was founded in 2019 by Austrian entrepreneurs Helmut Essl and Alexander Schütz with the goal of developing plant-derived, clinically-backed biotics and making them available to consumers looking to support metabolic wellbeing.
Prior to Slimbiotics, Essl was the founder and CEO of HSO Health Care GmbH, a company offering the branded probiotic solution, Astarte, targeting women’s urogenital health. Astarte was acquired by Chr. Hansen (now Novonesis) in 2020.
Slimbiotics is focused on research and commercialization of its Kimere-derived probiotics.
Kimere is an African fermented food, a type of millet-based porridge regularly consumed in a specific region near Mount Kenya in Africa. The naturally-occurring fermentation process of Kimere yields a variety of strains, most notably L. fermentum, and of those the most promising have been isolated.
The discovery of the strains began with a group of medical researchers, including a Kenyan-born PhD student, who were studying native African food sources that could improve the constellation of symptoms related to metabolic health, such as impaired glucose metabolism and insulin resistance.
The strains in Kimere were isolated and characterized by their anti-inflammatory and gut barrier enhancing properties to increase microbial diversity.
Commenting on the new study, Essl told NutraIngredients: “The future of weight management will not be defined by a single solution, and that is precisely where SlimBiotics stands apart. Our scientifically validated pro- and postbiotic strains offer consumers what they are increasingly seeking: solutions that are both clinically proven and naturally derived. We see the SlimBiotics strains as a powerful complement to lifestyle interventions and pharmaceutical approaches, particularly as consumers seek options that support body composition and metabolic health.
“The results of our newly published probiotic study are exceptionally encouraging,” he said. “Together with our two previously published studies, we now have a robust and growing body of clinical evidence demonstrating significant, meaningful outcomes in weight management and metabolic health. These are not incremental findings. They reinforce our conviction that the SlimBiotics strains represent a true breakthrough in this space.”
Essl added that SlimBiotics believes that they are building the scientific foundation for what will become an essential pillar in the future of healthy weight management, one backed not by marketing, but by peer-reviewed evidence.
Study details
The new study included 77 overweight adults with an average age of 35 who completed a 12-week weight loss program. This entailed consuming a 500 kcal/day energy deficit diet and walking 10,000 steps per day. The participants were also randomly divided into two groups: one received placebo and the other received the combination of L. fermentum K7-Lb1, L. fermentum K8-Lb1, and L. fermentum K11-Lb3 at a daily dose of two billion CFUs each (total dose of 6 billion CFU).
The results showed that, while all participants experienced reductions in body weight, fat mass, body fat percentage, and waist circumference over the 12 weeks, the probiotic group lost an average of 2.7 kg more fat than the placebo group.
Additionally, reductions in visceral adipose tissue mass, volume, and area were recorded after six weeks of probiotic supplementation, but the differences were no longer statistically significant after 12 weeks.
“These preliminary findings suggest the possibility of modest additive effects of probiotic supplementation during weight loss; however, the results should be interpreted cautiously and confirmed in larger randomized controlled trials,” concluded the researchers.
Source: Nutrients, 18(12), 1908; doi: 10.3390/nu18121908. “Effects of a Plant-Based Multi-Strain Limosilactobacillus fermentum Probiotic on Weight Loss Outcomes in Overweight and Obese Adults: A Preliminary Study”. Authors: S. Johnson, et al.
