Technical Data
Description
7-Keto® contains the patented form of 7-oxy-dehydroepiandrosterone (7-Keto-DHEA). While it is similar in action to its parent compound dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), 7-Keto-DHEA does not metabolize to the reproductive hormones testosterone or estrogen, making it a safer supplement with fewer side effects.
1 Research on 7-Keto™ has shown it can:
- increase metabolism†1
- promote healthy weight loss, when used in conjunction with healthy diet and exercise†2
- assist healthy thyroid function †1
- promote memory retention and retrieval†1
- support immune system health†1
Glossary
7-keto DHEA - a natural metabolite of DHEA that has been extensively researched for its efficacy and safety.
7-Keto™ - the patented and trademarked brand name of 7-keto-DHEA used in 7-KETO.
Adrenal glands - small glands that sit on top of each kidney and are part of the endocrine system. The adrenal glands are chiefly responsible for regulating the stress response through the synthesis of corticosteroids and catecholamines.
DHEA - the abbreviation of dehydroepiandrosterone, the most abundant steroid hormone in the bloodstream and the precursor of estrogen, progesterone, and other compounds.
Hormones - chemical messenger synthesized by glands, then secreted into the blood stream where they carries a signal from one cell (or group of cells) to another.
Metabolism - the chemical processes occurring within a living cell or organism that are necessary for the maintenance of life. In metabolism some substances are broken down to yield energy for vital processes while other substances, necessary for life, are synthesized.
Metabolites – compounds that are made during metabolic processes; most often necessary for or taking part in a particular metabolic process.
Pre-hormone – a compound that gives rise to a hormone.
Steroid hormones – hormones synthesized from cholesterol. The adrenal androgens are hormones made in the cortex, located on the outside of the adrenal gland, including DHEA.
Introduction
Current understanding of 7-keto-DHEA is primarily due to the work of biochemist Henry A. Lardy, PhD, the Vilas Professor Emeritus of the Institute for Enzyme Research at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Dr. Lardy is renowned for his research on DHEA derivatives and has published over 400 studies in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Dr. Lardy's research has proven that 7-keto-DHEA is chemically distinct from DHEA. Once 7-keto-DHEA is derived from DHEA, it cannot convert back to DHEA; nor can it convert to estrogen, testosterone, or other steroid hormones in the body.
1,2 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.
4 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.
† 1,3,4
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.3 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.5 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.2
- Does not increase or decrease hormone levels.3
- Cannot accumulate in the body over time.
- Is free of any serious side effects.4
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.
†6
Memory Storage and Retrieval
Once digested, supplemental 7-keto-DHEA enters the bloodstream and interacts with specific neurotransmitters to support health memory storage and retrieval.† 1,6 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.†7
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.†1
Immune Responses
Communication between immunomodulators and 7-keto-DHEA may result in healthy immune system responses.†5,6 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.†6 The study also demonstrated that 7-Keto was well tolerated and had no serious adverse effects.6
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.†4,6
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.†8,9
Conclusion
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.†3
Recommendations
Take one capsule two or three times daily.
Precautions
If you are pregnant, nursing, or taking prescription drugs, consult your healthcare practitioner prior to use.
How Is It Supplied?
Storage Recommendations
Store at controlled room temperature, 59° to 86°F (15°-30°C).
References
1. Davidson MH.
Clinical Safety and Endocrine Effects of 7-Keto™ DHEA; Presented at the Experimental Biology 98 Conference, April 19-22, 1998, San Francisco, CA.
2. Weeks C, Lardy H. Henwood S. Preclinical toxicology evaluation of 3-acetyl-7-oxodehydroepiandrosterone (7-keto-DHEA).
The FASEB J. 1998;12:A764.
3. Fleming T., ed. DHEA. In:
PDR® for Nutritional Supplements. Montvale, NJ: Medical Economics Company; 2001: 175-177.
4. Hampl R, Starka L, Jansky L. Steroids and thermogenesis.
Physiol Res. 2006;55(2):123-31.
5. Davison, MH, Weeks C, Lardy H, et al. Safety and endocrine effects of 3-acetyl-7-oxo-DHEA (7-keto DHEA).
The FASEB J. 1998;12A764.
6. Rose KA, Stapleton G, Dott K, et al. Cyp7b, a novel brain cytochrome P450, catalyzes the synthesis of neurosteroids 7alpha-hydroxy dehydroepiandrosterone and 7alpha-hydroxy pregnenolone.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1997 May 13;94(10):4925-30.
7. Shi J, Schulze S, Lardy HA. The effect of 7-oxo-DHEA acetate on memory in young and old C57BL/6 mice.
Steroids. 2000 Mar;65(3):124-9.
8. Kalman DS, Colker CM, Swain MA, Torina GC, Shi Q. A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study of 3-Acetyl-7-Oxo-Dehydroepiandrosterone in Healthy Overweight Adults.
Curr Ther Res Clin Exp. 2000;61:435-442.
9. Colker CM, Torina GC, Swain MA, Kalman DS. Double-Blind Study Evaluating the Effects of Exercise Plus 3-Acetyl-7-oxo-dehydroepiandrosterone on Body Composition and the Endocrine System in Overweight Adults.
Journal of Exercise Physiology online. 1999; 2(4)