A new kind of pill may soon prevent us from going too much. And it would not be a drug, but a small vibrating device to swallow like a tablet, before going to the table. An alternative method currently developed by a MIT team.
A vibrant pill capable of activating the satiety signal
When you eat, the mechanism is quite simple: once satisfied, your stomach sends signals to your brain that create a feeling of satiety, which helps you realize that it is time to stop eating.
“I was wondering if we could activate the stretch receptors in the stomach by making them vibrate and making them perceive that the whole stomach had been dilated, in order to create an illusory sensation that could modulate hormones and eating habits”explains Shriya Srinivasan, a former MIT graduate student, now a deputy professor of bio-engineering at Harvard University.
The engineers then invented a new way of taking advantage of this phenomenon, using an unmanageable capsule that vibrates in the stomach. These vibrations activate the same stretch receptors which normally detect that the stomach is distended, thus creating an illusory feeling of satiety.
The animals tested eat 40% less!
The capsule the size of a multivitamin includes a vibrating element powered by a small silver oxide battery. When it reaches the stomach, acidic gastric liquids dissolve a gelatinous membrane which covers the capsule, thus completing the electronic circuit which activates the vibrating engine.
For the time being, the device is not yet tested in humans. But on pigs, it shows positive effects: when the pill begins to vibrate, it activates the mechanic, which send signals to the brain by stimulating the vagus nerve and releases the same hormones as after a meal. Result: by activating the pill about 20 minutes before animals receive food, they consumed on average 40 % less than when the pill was not activated. The animals also gained weight more slowly during the periods when they were treated with the vibrant pill.
The current version of the pill is designed to vibrate for about 30 minutes after its arrival in the stomach, but the researchers plan to adapt it so that it stays in the stomach for longer periods, where it could be lit and extinct according to your needs.
In animals, the pills crossed the digestive tract in four or five days. The study also revealed that animals had no sign of obstruction, perforation or other negative impacts when the pill was in their digestive tract, which is always good to know.
A non -pharmacological alternative
For researchers, the vibes pill (for “Ingestible Vibration Bioelectronic Stimulator”) may well offer the new interesting approach to control its weight in the future. A non -invasive approach to counter obesity, without bariatric surgery, and which evacuates naturally.
“It could be really interesting in the sense that it would provide an option that could minimize the side effects that we observe with other pharmacological treatments” Announcement Shriya Srinivasan. Recently, the initial enthusiasm aroused by Wegovy and Ozempic injections was a bit altered by the occurrence of unpleasant side effects.
“”For many populations, some of the most effective therapies against obesity are very expensive. On a large scale, our device could be made at a fairly profitable price “she said. “”I would like to see how it would transform care and therapy for people working in global health contexts that may not have access to some of the most sophisticated or costly options available today“.
Researchers are now planning to explore the means to facilitate the manufacture of their capsules, which would make it possible to envisage clinical trials in humans. Such studies would be important to learn more about the safety of devices, as well as to determine the best time to swallow the capsule before a meal and how frequency it should be administered.