Fact Check: ‘AI doctor’ claiming soaked raisins can reduce belly fat without exercise is wrong

Hyderabad: Does consuming soaked raisins help reduce fat and how long does it take for the effect to show? A video featuring an AI-generated 3D model of a ‘doctor’ is doing rounds on the internet raising these questions.

The video claims that consuming soaked raisins would help cut belly fat overnight without the need to do any exercise.

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is misleading as although raisins have properties that help in weight loss, consuming soaked raising alone is not going to help in reducing belly fat. Maintaining a healthy weight requires at least 30 minutes of walk or exercise.

We reached out to Dr S Vijay Mohan, MD, senior consultant physician, Care Hospitals, and the HoD for the Department of Internal Medicine, to debunk the claim.

Calling the claim, ‘absolutely wrong’, he said, “Excess body fat takes months or years to form and takes longer to disappear. Raisins are dry fruits and have many health benefits like almonds, pistachios and apricots, as they contain vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Regular physical exercise helps in improving heart and lung function and also helps in dissolving fat. Consuming a low-carb diet regularly along with physical exercise will help lose weight. Raisins alone do not reduce weight and cannot replace daily physical exercise. A brisk walking of 20 to 30 minutes daily maintains the cardiorespiratory fitness as advised by many cardiologists all over the world.”

Can raisins aid in weight loss?

Raisins are nothing but a dried version of grapes. As they get dried their natural sugars become concentrated which gives raisins the sweetness. Being high in natural sugar, raisins are high in calories and should be consumed in moderation.

Raisins are rich in antioxidants, iron, potassium, copper and manganese which help your cells fight harmful molecules called free radicals. Raisins come in a variety of ranges and types. As it does not contain water content, you might end up overeating them. So, raisins are a good addon but you have to stick to smaller portions to avoid adding too many calories to your diet.

The health benefits of raisins are plenty such as providing better heart health, lower risk of chronic diseases like diabetes and osteoporosis, better gastrointestinal health as raisins are high in fibre and lastly, they lower the risk of anaemia.

However, overeating raisins might possess certain risks as well such as unwanted weight gain and stomach discomfort.

According to a study, incorporating an 80-90 g portion of raisins (half a cup) into the daily diet may be favourable for human health. However, it should be noted that there is no scientific evidence to back that raisins alone aid in losing belly fat.

The study, while investigating the health benefits of raisins, found that despite their high sugar content, raisins are a source of beneficial components and a healthy snack. Due to their composition, they contribute to a better diet and their consumption before a meal could be favourable for regulating appetite in normal-weight healthy subjects.

Eating raisins may reduce hunger and affect dietary intake by altering hormones influencing satiety, thus diminishing the energy intake of the meal, which in turn could help to maintain correct body weight.

Hence, it is evident that despite raisins having several health benefits there is no evidence eating raisins alone assists in reducing belly fat.