7-Keto (DHEA) metabolite Additional Information:
How Does It Work?:
Made in the adrenal glands and synthesized from pregnenolone, the body's “master hormone,” natural DHEA is the precursor to more than 150 individual metabolites. One of the most important DHEA metabolites is 7-keto-DHEA. Researchers have learned that both DHEA and 7-keto DHEA provide support of immunomodulatory activities, enhancement of cognition, memory storage and retrieval, and weight management.
As DHEA is the major androgen precursor in humans, men have 30 percent higher DHEA levels than women throughout their lives. In both men and women DHEA levels rise through childhood and adolescence until about the age of 20, then begin to slowly decline around the age of 30. By the age 80, there is an 80 percent reduction in DHEA. Researchers have demonstrated that 7-keto-DHEA declines with age in a similar manner.
To support healthier aging, it was suggested that DHEA supplements might maintain plasma levels at a more youthful level. However, as a hormone precursor DHEA can convert to estrogen, progesterone, and many other metabolites that have been repeatedly and consistently associated with certain health risks in older individuals. In contrast to DHEA, recent rigorous toxicology, pharmacokinetic, and human safety studies have demonstrated that 7-keto-DHEA:
Does not convert to estrogen, testosterone, or other steroid hormones.
Does not increase or decrease hormone levels.
Cannot accumulate in the body over time.Is free of any serious side effects.Another major biochemical difference is that, in contrast to DHEA, 7-keto DHEA is much better able to induce thermogenic enzyme activity.* Thermogenic enzymes increase the metabolic rate during periods of calorie restriction and diet modification. Research has shown that 7-keto-DHEA is 2.5 times more active than DHEA at inducing the activity of these thermogenic enzymes.
Memory Storage and RetrievalOnce digested, supplemental 7-keto-DHEA enters the bloodstream and interacts with specific neurotransmitters to support health memory storage and retrieval. In an animal study, Dr Lardy and fellow researchers trained young mice in the use of a water maze. They found that a single injection of 7-Keto (at 24 mg/kg of body weight) reversed experimentally induced memory loss. The scientists then fed 7-Keto or DHEA to older mice that had learned the maze. They discovered that memory of the water-maze training was retained during a four-week test period in the mice receiving 7-Keto but not in those treated with DHEA.
Thyroid Function
Use of 7-Keto to safely support healthy thyroid function has been established. Thirty study participants with BMI > 30 were instructed to exercise three times per week for 45 minutes, eat 1,800-calories each day, and take 100 mg of 7-Keto or a placebo twice daily. Although the participants' levels of T3 did not exceed the normal range, the 7-Keto group had a significant increase in levels of T3, a thyroid hormone that plays a major role in determining a person's metabolic rate.
Immune ResponsesCommunication between immunomodulators and 7-keto-DHEA may result in healthy immune system responses. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 22 women and 20 men over the age of 65 took either 100 mg of 7-Keto twice daily or a placebo. Patients in the 7-Keto group had significant increase in immune helper cells and a significant decrease in immune suppressor cells. The study also demonstrated that 7-Keto was well tolerated and had no serious adverse effects.
Thermogenic Action
Thermogenesis, the creation of heat, is a form of energy produced during metabolism. Nutritional support of thermogenesis may boost the body's metabolic rate. Researchers have determined that 7-Keto supports the activity of thermogenic enzymes.
Two clinical trials, both published in peer-reviewed scientific journals, demonstrated 7-Keto's effectiveness in healthy weight loss.* Each of these studies were double blind and placebo controlled and performed in population of overweight men and women over a period of 8 weeks. The results of each study confirm that administration of 7-Keto at a dose of 100 mg twice daily when combined with a program of diet and exercise will result in a three-fold increase in weight loss and fat loss compared to placebo.
Supported by 45 research papers and lab research and five clinical trials, the 7-Keto in 7-KETO provides significant dietary support of proper immune response, healthy thyroid function, memory storage and retrieval, and safe weight loss.
