Fu Brick Tea as a Staple Food Supplement Attenuates High-Fat Diet-Induced Obesity in Mice

Fu brick tea (FBT) is a product of microbial fermentation from primary dark tea, known as raw material tea (RMT). Despite numerous studies on the functional properties of FBT, its weight loss potential as a staple food supplement remains poorly understood. This study investigated and compared the weight loss effects of orlistat, traditional plain noodles (NN), and noodles supplemented with varying amounts of RMT and FBT, with an aim to elucidate their lipid-lowering effects and underlying mechanisms. Experimental trials on high-fat diet-induced mice revealed significant weight loss, lipid-lowering, and hypoglycemic effects upon supplementation with orlistat, RMTN, and FBTN. Moreover, supplementation with orlistat, RMTN, and FBTN effectively restored serum and liver-related index levels, mitigating high-fat diet-induced dyslipidemia. Additionally, these supplements ameliorated liver and kidney damage by inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammatory responses. Furthermore, orlistat, RMTN, and FBTN exert their anti-obesity effects primarily by modulating genes associated with lipid metabolism and inflammatory responses, while also regulating the composition and structure of the gut microbiota. Importantly, FBTN demonstrated a significantly stronger lipid-lowering effect compared to RMTN, particularly at higher tea addition ratios. In contrast, NN supplementation exhibited minimal to no weight loss effects. Based on these findings, it can be inferred that FBT holds promise as a staple food supplement to ameliorate high-fat diet-induced obesity and its associated health conditions.