A Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Evaluation of the Effects of RW94 on the Body Weight of Both Overweight and Obese Healthy Volunteers

SummaryRW94 is a naturally occurring common inorganic substance and a permitted additive in the food industry which binds to and precipitates free fatty acids in vitro. Our preliminary clinical trial showed a statistically significant increase in the quantity of faecal fat excreted by volunteers who had consumed RW94, showing that the fatty acids were also precipitated and not absorbed in vivo. It is therefore anticipated that RW94 will aid weight loss by preventing the absorption of some of the dietary fat.Five grams of RW94 were administered orally after each main meal to half of a group of 32 overweight or obese, but otherwise healthy, volunteers, the others receiving a placebo of maize starch. There was a statistically significant (p < 0.05) reduction in the mean weights of the RW94 group relative to their controls at three weeks, and this reduction was maintained throughout the remainder of the six-week trial period.In accordance with our previous findings, there was a higher incidence of abdominal d...