A new study conducted by researchers at UC Berkeley suggests that grapefruit juice could replace metformin, a drug used to treat Type 2 diabetes; the fruit may also be helpful in preventing weight gain as well as decreasing blood glucose levels.

Published October 8 in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS ONE, scientists studied the relationship between grapefruit consumption and weight gain in mice. The test subjects that were fed a high-fat diet gained 18 percent less weight when they drank “clarified, pulp-free” grapefruit juice compared with the control group that only consumed water, UC Berkeley News Center reports.

Even more interesting, the mice that drank grapefruit juice had “improved levels of glucose, insulin and a type of fat called triacylglycerol compared with their water-drinking counterparts.”

Weight loss has been associated with grapefruit consumption since the 1930s and was considered a trendy Hollywood diet; however, the supporting research was “not well-controlled” and “contradictory,” scientists say.

“There are many active compounds in grapefruit juice, and we don’t always understand how all those compounds work” – Andreas Stahl

Researchers admit that the latest study was funded by the California Grapefruit Growers Cooperative but insist that the association had no influence whatsoever over the findings. Both of the study’s lead scientists say they entered into the research with skepticism…

Read more at Grapefruit juice protects against weight gain and diabetes – NaturalNews.com.