What is Raspberry Ketone?
Chemically speaking, raspberry ketone is a naturally
occurring phenol; you may have heard the term ‘polyphenols’ used in a health
food store from time to time. Phenols are
often found in berries, teas, olive oil, chocolate, coffee and various other
fruits, vegetables, nut, herbs and spices.
They are commonly used as a selling point for many of these to
consumers. They have been found to have
antioxidant properties in some studies, but when consumed in food, the vast
majority of the antioxidant is not absorbed in the body. In controlled studies, they have been found
to have antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory effects, but when consumed
by humans, these effects are not so clear.
Phenols have been shown to have cancer preventing properties, while also
having the opposite in controlled studies.
When actually consumed by humans they do not appear to cause cancer, but
they have been shown to prevent it.
Raspberry ketone is the key chemical that makes raspberries
smell like raspberries. It is used in
perfumes and as a food additive for this reason. It takes something like 50-200 pounds of
raspberries to get you one 100mg dose of the substance, so clearly the stuff you
buy for $20 or so per bottle is not made from raspberries. The artificially produced raspberry ketone
has been deemed safe by the FDA and there are no known side effects. However, people with diabetes, heart
conditions or other pre-existing health problems should consult their physician
before taking this as a supplement.
How does Raspberry
Ketone Reduce Body Fat?
Raspberry ketone appears to have a few different effects on
the body that may reduce body fat. Raspberry ketone has been shown to prevent increases in body weight by helping metabolize
fats by increasing the breakdown of lipids within fat cells through
norepinephrine. This can increase
thermogenesis, increasing body temperature resulting in increased fat
burning. It has also been shown to
reduce the body’s production of pancreatic lipase. This is a digestive enzyme needed to break
down fats in our foods preventing the body from absorbing fats altogether. Furthermore, raspberry ketone is believe to
help control your bodies use of adiponectin,
a protein hormone that in turn regulates various metabolic processes such as
glucose regulation and fatty acid breakdown.
This should allow your body to breakdown the fat within the fat cells more
efficiently; resulting increased fat burning (this is the effect discussed on The
Dr. Oz Show).
Does Raspberry Ketone Work?
This is the million dollar question. There is a high level of confidence that this
is a healthy supplement with no side-effects, but should we spend the cash on it
as a “miracle fat burner”? The answer is
unclear from a clinical standpoint because there are no clinical studies on
humans that I can find. But testimonies
have come from far and wide saying that there are noticeable effects on body
fat when the supplement is taken, along with a healthy diet and exercise. For those of you looking to lazily lose your
belly, simply by taking a new pill, this product probably isn’t for you. But if you are already living a healthy
lifestyle and don’t have any pre-existing medical conditions, I can’t think of
any reason not to add this to your routine.
Many people swear by the stuff and that usually doesn’t happen for most “miracle
fat burners.” Most are shown to either be
unhealthy for various reasons or they simply don’t work. You can find the supplement for a very
reasonable cost online and at local health food stores. I’m buying some today and I will update this
article soon with my personal results and thoughts.
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