Pyruvate Review

 

The following, by clinical exercise physiologist Bill Sukala, is an excerpt from an article that appears at www.williamsukala.com/pyruvate.html

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.

Our take: If you've taken any biology or chemistry classes, "pyruvate" may ring a bell. It's a natural compound found in the body - an element of the chemical process of metabolizing (breaking down) glucose for energy. Pyruvate is not itself a stimulant - but it contributes to increasing energy by initiating a chemical reaction in metabolism called the "Krebs Cycle", which produces the energy molecule - called ATP - that our muscles need to keep going.

There is much ado about pyruvate - claims and promises that higher levels of it in the body can increase metabolism, decrease appetite and aid in weight loss. Unfortunately it's much ado about nothing - there is no solid evidence to support these claims. Few studies on pyruvate's effectiveness for weight loss have actually been conducted, and those that have suggest its effect is not very impressive. In one study, overweight women (200 pounds plus) took 30 grams of pyruvate while on a 1000 calories a day diet for 21 days. The control group of women stuck to the 1000 calories a day with no pyruvate supplements. The pyruvate group lost what amounted to an average of only 3.5 pounds more than the control group. And with respect to the claim that it decreases appetite, note that this claim is based on a single study performed on laboratory rats. There has been no similar appetite study on humans.

The bottom line: as a weight loss supplement pyruvate is just more snake oil. Leave pyruvate to the bio and chem books, save your money, eat smart and get active.