Scientific Name:
Orthosiphon stamineus
Local Name:
Misai kucing, Kumis kucing, cats whiskers, rau meo, cay bac, remujung, moustaches de chat, yaa nuat maeo
Orthosiphon stamineus (Misai Kucing or Cat's Whiskers) is a plant whose leaves make a health tea, used mostly for its anti-inflammatory and urinary health properties. It appears to be a large source of both Rosmarinic Acid and methylated flavonoids.
Orthosiphon stamineus (Misai Kucing or Cat's Whiskers) is a leaf that is commonly brewed as a tea for a variety of purposes, but said purposes (beyond just liking the taste of the tea) tend to revolve around treating inflammatory disorders or treating ailments of the urogenital tract. It originates from the oceanic region and was introduced to mainland Asian countries and the West sometime near the beginning of the 20th century.
It is currently in preliminary stages of research and a lot of research is a bit complicated since it all originates from one research group located in Malaysia and needs to be replicated independently of the country from which it originated from (potentially a problem for scientific validity, since some studies investigating local herbs tend to be over promising in their effects and this excessive promise is attenuated a bit when other research groups look at it).
Nevertheless, there appears to be promise for this herb as a fat burner since the 70% ethanolic extract has been noted in two studies to stimulate leptin production in fat cells and increase in leptin have been noted in serum following oral ingestion of the leaf; reductions in food intake have been noted at only higher levels of intake, but are still thought to be associated with leptin.
While there is potential for this leaf as an antiinflammatory agent and diuretic, it has no practical research for the former that shows promise and while the evidence for the latter is a bit promising in rodents (does not exceed reference drugs in potency) the lone human study on the topic failed. There is one very promising study on colon cancer which definitely needs to be replicated by another research group, since reasonable oral intakes of the leaves potently suppressed colon tumor growth in mice.
All in all, pending future research this can be a potential new non-stimulatory fat burner for lean persons especially; we need quite a bit more evidence to confirm this though.
Things to Note
The diuretic properties seem to be associated with increased urinary potassium and decreased urinary sodium, which may not be a good thing for hypertensives who are not on a high potassium and low sodium diet. But this needs to be further verified through study.
Recommended Dosage
There is not enough information to get an ideal dose, but at this moment it seems that a 70% ethanolic extract would be the most prudent supplemental dosage for the production of leptin in the body. Since this has been noted in a highly variable range (as low as 20mg/kg in mice, as high as 450mg/kg in rats) it is uncertain what the best oral dose to take would be. Nonetheless, human equivalents for the above range are:
The diuretic effect has been noted with tea, and thus brewing a tea from the leaves may be sufficient.
The Facts on Leptin
It's been called the "obesity hormone" or "fat hormone" - but also the "starvation hormone". When scientists discovered leptin in 1994, excitement arose about its potential as a blockbuster weight loss treatment. Even today, the Internet is loaded with sites that sell leptin supplements. Any truth to those pitches? And what exactly is leptin?
WebMD asked two experts on leptin to discuss how this hormone affects weight and appetite, as well as other aspects of health. One of them is Robert H. Lustig, MD, professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco and a member of the Endocrine Society's Obesity Task Force.
"Leptin is not our obesity hormone. Leptin is our starvation hormone," says Lustig.
Leptin is a protein that's made in the fat cells, circulates in the bloodstream, and goes to the brain. "Leptin is the way your fat cells tell your brain that your energy thermostat is set right," Lustig says.
"Leptin tells your brain that you have enough energy stored in your fat cells to engage in normal, relatively expensive metabolic processes," he says. "In other words, when leptin levels are at a certain threshold -- for each person, it's probably genetically set -- when your leptin level is above that threshold, your brain senses that you have energy sufficiency, which means you can burn energy at a normal rate, eat food at a normal amount, engage in exercise at a normal rate, and you can engage in expensive processes, like puberty and pregnancy".
But when people diet, they eat less and their fat cells lose some fat, which then decreases the amount of leptin produced.
"Let's say you starve, let's say you have decreased energy intake, let's say you lose weight," Lustig says. "Now your leptin level goes below your personal leptin threshold. When it does that, your brain senses starvation. That can occur at any leptin level, depending on what your leptin threshold is."
"Your brain senses that and says, ‘Hey, I don't have the energy onboard that I used to. I am now in a starvation state,'" Lustig says.
Then several processes begin within the body to drive leptin levels back up. One includes stimulation of the vagus nerve, which runs between the brain and the abdomen.
"The vagus nerve is your energy storage nerve," Lustig says. "Now the vagus nerve is turned on, so you get hungrier. Every single thing the vagus nerve does…[is] designed to make you take up extra energy and store it in your fat. Why? To generate more leptin so that your leptin can re-establish its personal leptin threshold... It causes you to eat and it causes you to get your leptin back to where it belongs."
Orthosiphon stamineus
Local Name:
Misai kucing, Kumis kucing, cats whiskers, rau meo, cay bac, remujung, moustaches de chat, yaa nuat maeo
Orthosiphon stamineus (Misai Kucing or Cat's Whiskers) is a plant whose leaves make a health tea, used mostly for its anti-inflammatory and urinary health properties. It appears to be a large source of both Rosmarinic Acid and methylated flavonoids.
Orthosiphon stamineus (Misai Kucing or Cat's Whiskers) is a leaf that is commonly brewed as a tea for a variety of purposes, but said purposes (beyond just liking the taste of the tea) tend to revolve around treating inflammatory disorders or treating ailments of the urogenital tract. It originates from the oceanic region and was introduced to mainland Asian countries and the West sometime near the beginning of the 20th century.
It is currently in preliminary stages of research and a lot of research is a bit complicated since it all originates from one research group located in Malaysia and needs to be replicated independently of the country from which it originated from (potentially a problem for scientific validity, since some studies investigating local herbs tend to be over promising in their effects and this excessive promise is attenuated a bit when other research groups look at it).
Nevertheless, there appears to be promise for this herb as a fat burner since the 70% ethanolic extract has been noted in two studies to stimulate leptin production in fat cells and increase in leptin have been noted in serum following oral ingestion of the leaf; reductions in food intake have been noted at only higher levels of intake, but are still thought to be associated with leptin.
While there is potential for this leaf as an antiinflammatory agent and diuretic, it has no practical research for the former that shows promise and while the evidence for the latter is a bit promising in rodents (does not exceed reference drugs in potency) the lone human study on the topic failed. There is one very promising study on colon cancer which definitely needs to be replicated by another research group, since reasonable oral intakes of the leaves potently suppressed colon tumor growth in mice.
All in all, pending future research this can be a potential new non-stimulatory fat burner for lean persons especially; we need quite a bit more evidence to confirm this though.
Things to Note
The diuretic properties seem to be associated with increased urinary potassium and decreased urinary sodium, which may not be a good thing for hypertensives who are not on a high potassium and low sodium diet. But this needs to be further verified through study.
Recommended Dosage
There is not enough information to get an ideal dose, but at this moment it seems that a 70% ethanolic extract would be the most prudent supplemental dosage for the production of leptin in the body. Since this has been noted in a highly variable range (as low as 20mg/kg in mice, as high as 450mg/kg in rats) it is uncertain what the best oral dose to take would be. Nonetheless, human equivalents for the above range are:
- 110-4,900 mg for a 150lb person / up to 4.9g for 68kg person, ie 72mg/kg
- 150-6,500 mg for a 200lb person / up to 6.5g for 90kg person, ie 72mg/kg
- 180-8,100 mg for a 250lb person / up to 8.1g for 117kg person, ie 69mg/kg
The diuretic effect has been noted with tea, and thus brewing a tea from the leaves may be sufficient.
The Facts on Leptin
It's been called the "obesity hormone" or "fat hormone" - but also the "starvation hormone". When scientists discovered leptin in 1994, excitement arose about its potential as a blockbuster weight loss treatment. Even today, the Internet is loaded with sites that sell leptin supplements. Any truth to those pitches? And what exactly is leptin?
WebMD asked two experts on leptin to discuss how this hormone affects weight and appetite, as well as other aspects of health. One of them is Robert H. Lustig, MD, professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco and a member of the Endocrine Society's Obesity Task Force.
"Leptin is not our obesity hormone. Leptin is our starvation hormone," says Lustig.
Leptin is a protein that's made in the fat cells, circulates in the bloodstream, and goes to the brain. "Leptin is the way your fat cells tell your brain that your energy thermostat is set right," Lustig says.
"Leptin tells your brain that you have enough energy stored in your fat cells to engage in normal, relatively expensive metabolic processes," he says. "In other words, when leptin levels are at a certain threshold -- for each person, it's probably genetically set -- when your leptin level is above that threshold, your brain senses that you have energy sufficiency, which means you can burn energy at a normal rate, eat food at a normal amount, engage in exercise at a normal rate, and you can engage in expensive processes, like puberty and pregnancy".
But when people diet, they eat less and their fat cells lose some fat, which then decreases the amount of leptin produced.
"Let's say you starve, let's say you have decreased energy intake, let's say you lose weight," Lustig says. "Now your leptin level goes below your personal leptin threshold. When it does that, your brain senses starvation. That can occur at any leptin level, depending on what your leptin threshold is."
"Your brain senses that and says, ‘Hey, I don't have the energy onboard that I used to. I am now in a starvation state,'" Lustig says.
Then several processes begin within the body to drive leptin levels back up. One includes stimulation of the vagus nerve, which runs between the brain and the abdomen.
"The vagus nerve is your energy storage nerve," Lustig says. "Now the vagus nerve is turned on, so you get hungrier. Every single thing the vagus nerve does…[is] designed to make you take up extra energy and store it in your fat. Why? To generate more leptin so that your leptin can re-establish its personal leptin threshold... It causes you to eat and it causes you to get your leptin back to where it belongs."
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