Pyruvate Review

 

Pyruvate is a three-carbon (triose) ketoacid produced in the end stages of glycolysis. It can be reduced to lactate in the cytoplasm or oxidatively decarboxylated to acetyl CoA in the mitochondrion (13). Pyruvate is used as a dietary supplement targeting both sedentary and active individuals. The most popular claims for pyruvate center around its purported ability to:

1. "significantly" increase fat and weight loss.
2. improve exercise endurance capacity.
3. effectively reduce cholesterol.
4. serve as a potent antioxidant.
These contentions are based mainly on extrapolations of preliminary or inconclusive evidence. Simply put, pyruvate is a product of sugar metabolism. It is a compound that occurs naturally in the body and can be found in foods like red wine, cheese and beer. Propopents claim pyruvate can speed up metabolism, but mainstream medical research has not shown this to be the case. It is probably not helpful or harmful, just expensive.