Harmony Hub Health
Functional Medicine, Hormone Health and Weight Loss with Michele Postol, CRNP
Harmony Hub Health
The Bitter Truth About Appetite: Inside Calocurb Clinical
Hunger shouldn’t feel like a constant negotiation. We take you inside a practical, plant-based approach to appetite control that taps the gut’s own language—bitter signaling—to lift satiety hormones and make smaller portions feel natural, not forced. Drawing on clinical research and hands-on protocols, we unpack how a delayed‑release hops extract (amarosate) interacts with TAS2R receptors to elevate GLP‑1 and CCK within an hour, slow gastric emptying, and reduce cravings without stimulants or jittery side effects.
You’ll hear why a simple Saturday post sparked overwhelming interest, and how that momentum led us to map out a clear starter ramp, maintenance dosing, and safety guardrails. We break down who tends to benefit most—snackers, volume eaters, intermittent fasters, and anyone easing off GLP‑1 injections—and where we draw firm lines: pregnancy and breastfeeding, active GI inflammation, and type 1 diabetes. We also explore a notable 2022 finding showing improved post‑meal glucose without increasing insulin, likely through slower absorption and enhanced insulin action, and how that can calm energy dips that drive reactive snacking.
Our focus stays practical: clean ingredients, GMP manufacturing, allergen‑free formulation, and how to stack this tool with protein-forward meals, fiber, resistance training, and sleep for durable results. If you’re curious whether your cravings are hormonal, nutrient-driven, or habit-based, we share how functional testing and a measured protocol can turn down the food noise and support steady progress. Ready to try a gentler, smarter way to feel full faster and eat with more ease? Subscribe, share this episode with a friend who’s battling cravings, and leave a review telling us your toughest time of day—let’s tackle it together.
Find me at www.harmonyhubhealth.com
Email me at michele@harmonyhubhealth.com
Welcome to Harmony Hub Health, where my mission is to provide comprehensive, affordable, integrative care that addresses the root cause of health issues. At the Hub, the focus is on individual patient journeys. I strive to optimize health, vitality, and longevity, fostering a community where each person can thrive in body, mind, and spirit. All right, so I had to make a last-minute change in my um episode this week. Um, silly, on a Saturday morning, I made a post that was kind of hinting at one of Harmony Hub Health's new weight loss programs that's going to be launching this month. And the response was overwhelming. I didn't expect that. Um, but you know, of course, I do try to offer services that are in high demand, and this definitely was a high demand. So we're going to go ahead and talk about this Calicurb Clinical today, um, because of all of the interest. So if you've ever wished your willpower came in a bottle, you're not alone. And today I'm going to talk about Calicurb Clinical by Orthomolecular. This is a supplement that is making waves in functional medicine for its ability to naturally trigger satiety hormones like GLP1, CCK, and PYY. So it's marketed as a way to tell your brain, hey, I'm full before you eat that extra slice of pizza. Doesn't that sound too good to be true? But I'm gonna break it down. And here's a spoiler: it it's not a magic wand. The hero ingredient is amarisate. So it's a bitter extract made from New Zealand hops. Yes, the same plant used to flavor beer, but instead of frothy pints, scientists figured out that when you deliver this extract to your small intestine, not your stomach, it lights up your bitter taste receptors. So they put this double dosing of amorasate and it's released into the small intestine from a delayed released capsule. So the amorasate stimulates bitter taste receptors, that's known as TAS2Rs, um, on the enteroendocrine cells to release gut hormones GLP1 and CCK at six times the baseline level. These hormones act centrally and locally to increase your satiety, reduce cravings, and slow down gastric emptying, all of which promotes fullness and a reduction in energy intake. Orthomolecular has done a phenomenal job because this is a medicine that works in one hour, it's manufactured in the United States, it's 100% plant-based, it's GMO-free, and it's made in GMP facilities. And just having twice the dosage of amorousate, it provides simplicity and efficacy. It's amazing. So the higher dose of amorousate in the single capsule increases contact with those TAS2Rs at the gut surface, releasing greater levels of appetite-suppressing hormones. The bitterness tells your gut to pump out the satiety hormones. So the theory is the more hormones you have, the less hunger, the fewer cravings, and the smaller portions you eat. So you can think of it as hacking your biology's natural fullness button. And there's only three ingredients: there is some rosemary extract for stability, and there's a neutral oil carrier. No caffeine, no stimulants, no artificial junk, just bitter botanicals doing their thing. And yes, I have pages and pages of the clinical research. I'm not going to bore you through all of that, but this is not also something that just developed overnight either. So don't think they just made it yesterday. Plant and food research. It's a government-owned research institute for the development of a gut-targeted plant-based nutraceutical for appetite control. They thought that, you know, the hypothesis was that bitter taste receptors would be found in the gut and was based on historical evidence that bitterness modulates the appetite. Samples taken during endoscopic procedures and proved that TAS2Rs are present throughout the gut and stimulate the secretion of appetite-suppressing hormones, the GLP1, the CCK, and the PYY. The TAS2R concentrations are elevated at the gastric fundus and your terminal ilium if you know your anatomy. So then a human enterendocrine cell model was developed, and over 1,000 different plant extracts and compounds were tested for their TAS2R signaling. Amarosate, an extract from a specific hops cultivar, was identified as a potent activator and it demonstrated dose-dependent increase in that TAS2R signaling and dose-dependent increase in gut hormone release of the GLP1 and CCK. So to maximize GLP1 release, amorousate was formulated with an inert oil that enhances gut dispersion and allowed for greater TAS2R activation. And these ingredients were encapsulated in these delayed released LyCAPS for further human clinical trials. And in the clinical trials, participants who took the calicurb reduced their food intake by 18% at their very next meal. So hunger dropped by 30% and cravings by 40% within 60 minutes. Research also shows that bitter compounds can activate that entero endocrine cell in the gut to release GLP1, the same family of hormones targeted by blockbuster weight loss meds like semaglutide. So it's not osempic in a capsule, but it might be very helpful in your toolkit. So the patients that I think would really benefit from this are the perpetual snacker. So if cravings hijack your day, Calicurb can help reduce snack attacks. Or if you are a volume eater, this helps you feel full faster so you don't overportion. Um, those exploring natural satiety support. A lot of people don't want stimulants or shots, um, but they still need that help with their appetite. And, you know, the whole functional medicine world as part of a comprehensive program with diet, lifestyle, and lab monitoring. So I made a post. I was hoping to find just 10 people that would want to hear about this and think, oh, maybe I'll want to try that and I could offer it at a discounted price just to get, you know, a reaction to see, you know, was it effective? I was gonna do it along with them. And my phone blew up. My computer blew up. I was trying to take my son for a haircut, and my phone was just going nonstop. So I thought, okay, this is real. This is gonna be big, and I'm so excited to bring this to you at Harmony Hub Health. And what I love is that orthomolecular makes it as easy as possible. So you start with a starter pack, and the pack onboards the body to the increased activation of these natural satiety hormones. So the starter pack has 10 um capsules that are 125 milligrams, and then it has 50 of the 250 capsules. So you kind of do an up ramp so your body can get used to it. Um, you know, the first two days you only take one capsule one hour before a meal. Then for the next two days, you take it twice a day, one hour before meals. By day five, you are taking it twice a day, one hour before meals, but you're taking two of the 125 milligrams. And then day six and seven, you're gonna take a 250 milligram capsule twice a day, one hour before meals. And then you'll go up to two of those 250 milligram capsules a day. You want to take them on an empty stomach with a large glass of water. After the starter pack, then you would continue on the 250 milligram twice a day maintenance pack. And the maintenance pack just has 60 of the 255 milligram capsules, and you take one capsule twice a day, one hour before meals. Of course, no supplement goes without side effects. So taking calicurb for the first time may cause a mild laxative effect, which should stop after 24 to 72 hours if you have it. And the effect is based on the presence of um the activity of the cells responding to the amorousate stimulation, which is why it's advised to gradually increase the dose over five days. And if you are um pregnant or breastfeeding, I would not give this to you. I don't think you should take it if you have any form of gastrointestinal inflammation or inflammatory bowel disease like Crohn's or ulcerative colitis. There's other programs we could do at Harmony Hub Health. Um, and it's not indicated for any patient with type 1 diabetes. The protocols I am making for Harmony Hub Health are for general weight management. Um, it's also gonna be used as an off-ramp and maintenance for those patients that want to stop their GLP1 receptor agonist, like the semaglutide or the Wagovie. Um, it's gonna be great for perimenopausal waking or premenstrual appetite control. You can use it with a GLP1 receptor agonist if you need some extra support. Um, and it's also great for those doing intermittent fasting or some type of time-restricted eating. Okay. The dosing um would be a little bit different based on requirements, and those are going to be in the Harmony Hub Health Protocols. And I am still just blown away that Calicurb Clinical only has three ingredients, just three. Amaracate, a specific variety of New Zealand hops, um, prepared using freshly picked hops and extracted by CO2 extraction. It's gonna have inert vegetable oil that's GMO-free and pesticide free, and then rosemary extract, which is a natural preservative. They're gonna be manufactured as a patent, delayed, release LyCap at the Lonza facility in Greenwood, South Carolina. Lonza is um National Sanitation Foundation, Therapeutic Goods Administration, and Food and Drug Administration approved. The product does not have any wheat, any gluten, any dairy, any lactose, no eggs, no yeast, no soy, no artificial colors, no artificial sweeteners, and no artificial flavors. What caught my attention was a 2022 study that demonstrated an acute improvement in postmeal glucose levels despite no increases in insulin release. So this is likely due to the gut hormones GLP1 and CCK delaying the rate of gastric emptying, and that causes, you know, slower glucose absorption into the blood. And secondly, GLP1 can also potentiate insulin action, so that improves glucose clearance from your blood. This is gonna be a great tool at Harmony Hub Health, and I'm not going to market this as a quick fix, but it is gonna be part of a comprehensive strategy to retrain metabolism and calm that constant food noise. If you're curious if your cravings are hormonal, nutrient-driven, or just plain habit, that's where functional medicine testing shines. So I am super excited to see what everyone thinks. If you are interested in learning more about Calicurb Clinical, you can check out my website, www.harmonyhubhealth.com. You can email me at M I C H E L E at harmonyhubhealth.com. You can find me at Facebook at HarmonyHub Health. You can see me virtually. You can even come and see me in person at Monarch Beauty and Spa in Manchester, Maryland. I look forward to telling you all about this. Right now, once you make an inquiry, I will send you my Calicurb clinical form that you will fill out. I'll see if you are a good candidate, and then I will get you on the wait list for when this releases in just a couple of weeks. The information in this episode is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Calicurb clinical is a clinically studied nutritional supplement, not a prescription medication, although you can only get it from a licensed professional. Individual results may vary, and any supplement or wellness protocol should be used under the guidance of a qualified healthcare provider, especially if you have existing medical conditions, take medications, or you're pregnant or breastfeeding. Always consult with your licensed healthcare practitioner before beginning any new supplement or weight management program.