Trapping and Eliminating the Cholesterol in Your Bile Acid

The first biological mechanism which Bios Life uses to optimize cholesterol levels is called: "Bile Acid Sequestration." This complicated-sounding word, in fact, means that Bios Life is able to trap (sequester) bile acids in the gastro-intestinal tract.

How Does It Work?

Bile acids are biological molecules that our body uses to digest fat from our diet. They are made by the liver using cholesterol as a building block. Once the bile acids are formed they are transported to the gall bladder, where the mixture of acids, cholesterol, and other molecules are concentrated into bile.

Fat coming into the gut triggers the gall bladder to excrete the bile into the GI tract where it can do its job in aiding the digestion of fat. When the fat is digested, the bile acids are not just simply excreted in the feces, our body efficiently recycles them. They are re-absorbed into the blood stream and broken down into their various components so that they can be re-utilized.

The cholesterol that is used for this whole process originates from the total pool in the body, and after re-absorption, the total concentration of cholesterol in the body stays the same. That explains why normal fat digestion through bile does not alter the cholesterol concentration in our system.

Now Imagine Taking Bios Life Just Before Your Meal...

A major part of Bios Life is naturally occurring fibre. Fibre is a normal plant component. It is an important part of the skin of an apple, for example, or the bark of a tree. Fibres are carbohydrates but they are not absorbed into our blood stream. They can't be digested because our digestive system lacks the enzymes to break down fibres. That means they move through our digestive system without influencing what's going on inside our body.

The Role of Fibre

There are two kinds of fibre: soluble and insoluble. Looking at the apple again: the skin contains mostly insoluble fibre, whereas the flesh of the apple contains a lot of pectin, which is an example of soluble fibre. Whether fibre is soluble or insoluble determines its biological effect.

Insoluble fibre is known for its digestive benefits. It helps to bulk the feces and can serve as food for friendly bacteria, thereby improving our immune system. It also "scrubs" out the inside of our intestinal tract, resulting in cleansing.

Soluble fibre, on the other hand, dissolves in the stomach content and becomes a thick gel-like substance. It is the same thing that happens if you let Bios Life stand in a glass of water for a period of time, only much quicker.

The First Mechanism of Bios Life Traps and Removes Cholesterol

If one takes Bios Life before a meal, the fibre has time to form the gel in the GI tract before the food arrives. Once the fat in the food arrives, the normal trigger occurs and excretes bile into the gut. The bile acids help in digesting the fat, but now the fibre gel traps the bile acids along with the cholesterol, so that it can't be re-absorbed. The bile acids no longer return into the blood stream but are excreted in the feces. The recycling mechanism is thus broken and the total cholesterol amount in the body will be reduced.

Fibre is also fermented in the colon by bacteria to yield short-chain fatty acids, such as acetates, propionates, and butyrates that inhibit cholesterol synthesis by the liver. This cholesterol lowering effect of fibre is so well-established that the Food and Drug Administration allows the use of a health claim in relation to the reduction of the risk of heart disease on a product if it contains a meaningful amount of soluble fibre. That is very special since the FDA only allows these kinds of health claims for a very limited number of dietary ingredients.

The Fibre Found in Bios Life

Bios Life contains five different highly soluble fibres: pectin, guar gum, gum acacia, locust bean gum, and oat fibre. Gum is a scientific term for soluble fibre. These fibre sources have been specifically selected for their cholesterol lowering potential. What is also special is that calcium carbonate is added to this fibre mixture. The calcium carbonate is not there for its nutritional value, but for the gel formation. Upon contact with the acidic environment of the stomach, the calcium carbonate starts to release carbon dioxide and this bubbling disperses the fibre quickly through the gastric fluid. The fibre matrix is therefore formed quickly and efficiently. This aspect of Bios Life is patented. Consequently, no other fibre products can combine soluble fibre with mineral carbonates.

The American Heart Association advises the public to consume 25 - 30 grams of fibre per day to promote heart health. Unfortunately, the public only consumes about 12 grams, so there is a big gap. Bios Life can help fill this gap.

Fibre has been researched in many clinical trials all over the world. Unicity has performed a clinical trial with Bios Life at the Cleveland Clinic. This study was published in the international journal Metabolism. The Cleveland Clinic showed that the Bios Life fibre matrix, was able to reduce LDL, the bad cholesterol, and increase HDL, the good cholesterol, by meaningful amounts. It also improved two other risk factors for heart disease: ApoB and Homocystein.