P is for Policosanol, in the PAGG Stack Supplement
Policosanol is probably the least well known of the ‘four horsemen’ supplements of fat loss, that is the PAGG stack supplement, as launched to the world by Tim Ferriss in 2010 in his Four Hour Body book. With worldwide bestseller success and popular acclaim achieved, more and more people are enjoying the significant weight loss and body recomposition benefits that the PAGG stack has to offer, and want to understand more about the individual elements that comprise it.
Policonsanol is only taken in a single dose in the PAGG stack – the recommended stack is actually AGG (Alpha-lipoic acid, aged Garlic extract, Green tea flavanols) 3x per day, although most people refer to the supplement stack generically as PAGG regardless. It is only taken in small amounts too – just 23mg is what Tim Ferriss recommended (and the precise dose included in the Pareto Nutrition PAGG stack supplement), which is taken in the bedtime dose – PAG (Policosanol, Alpha-lipoic acid, and aged Garlic extract – the Green tea flavanols, which some people find has a stimulating effect, is omitted from the final dose on Tim Ferriss’ most recent recommendations).
Ferriss started experimenting with policosanol due to its better known actions on cholesterol levels – it is used extensively in Cuba, where it is considered a ‘natural statin’ (it raises high density cholesterol and lowers low density cholesterol). Although the Cuban state-funded studies have been subject to methodological criticism, it is still hugely popular there and taken by many people daily as a general health tonic and curative, with anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties. What no one had investigated in detail before was a side effect of policosanol reported in the Cuban studies in the 1980s, that of weight loss.
Other benefits of policosanol have been indicated for postmenopausal women, who are at greater risk of heart disease – again this focuses around the cholesterol-lowering benefits. People with diabetes are also predisposed to high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease, and policosanol may also help here – despite being derived extensively from sugar cane, policosanol itself (a waxy substance) has no viable carbohydrate value itself, which is an important issue for diabetics seeking safe food supplementation.
Policosanol may also inhibit blood clotting, working in a similar way to aspirin. This is of benefit to many people at potential risk of thrombosis, but does account for the warnings stated by Pareto nutrition and other responsible supplement retailers, that policosanol should not be taken in conjunction with other blood thinning medications – such as warfarin and heparin.