If weight loss is one of your goals in 2018 and you are planning on introducing apple cider vinegar to your diet, we spoke with a dietician and a doctor to explain whether drinking the rumoured weight-loss aide and general health booster every morning actually works.

First things first: Whether you do or don’t want to lose weight is totally personal; if you want to, great, but if you don’t, that is perfectly fine as well.

If weight loss is one of your goals in 2018 and you don’t know where to start, you’re not alone. Ask around and you will find so many hoping to shed some pounds this year — and preying on these doe-eyed resolvers will be all manner of ‘fast weight loss solutions.’ They’ll guarantee instantaneous results or promise to make the pounds melt off without you having to change a thing. The reality is, losing weight in a safe, healthy, and effective way is a lot more complicated than that.

“Weight loss requires lifestyle changes, no matter how much we might wish for quick answers. It requires work, adaptability, and a whole lot of patience. There’s so much that goes into it,” Dr Sanjay Aggarwal, a general physician at Holistic Healthcare Centre in Delhi, said.

But, according to Dr Aggarwal, if there’s one weight-loss elixir that is already in your kitchen pantry (and if it’s not there already, it deserves to be) is Apple Cider Vinegar. If the vitamins and minerals alone are not enough reason to have you hooked — It’s rich in vitamins E, A, and P and magnesium, iron, calcium, the list goes on and on — studies have shown that it might help keep you from feeling hungry by slowing stomach emptying.
If you’re looking to shed a few pounds, Dr Aggarwal said it’s time to start using apple cider vinegar, as it can support weight loss, and also improve digestion and constipation. All you have to do is drink it every morning on an empty stomach.

“Most weight loss fads are not healthy, but few that suggest drinking apple cider vinegar and honey, which contains some natural sugars and nutrients, in a glass of water, can help. The acetic acid in vinegar slows the rate at which your body digests starch and helps regulate sugar spike caused by eating them,” Aggarwal said.

The honey-apple cider-water combination is not new, and it’s not a health miracle either, if that’s all you are taking in. But in can help you shed weight, if combined with a balanced diet, Dr Anupam Dey, a Kolkata-based dietician said.
“If your stomach is empty and you’re introducing an acid, it’s going to cause irritation, which can make you feel full and not want to eat. Apple cider vinegar lowers the glycemic index of high-carb foods like pasta, meaning it can help you feel fuller longer by slowing the release of glucose into your bloodstream,” he said.

Moreover, the pectin in apple cider vinegar has been known to move things along when bellies get backed up, according to Dr Dey. In conclusion, he said, “Adding honey and vinegar to an already healthy diet does have weight loss benefits, improves your digestion and it will do no harm, as long as you watch your total calorie count.”