After Dr. Oz called raspberry ketones a miracle fat
burner, bottles of the supplement have been flying off the shelves. As we
previously reported, raspberry ketones have been linked with weight loss in
laboratory mice. The effect on humans is not so certain.
The raspberry diet doesn't really involve raspberries at
all. In fact, to get enough raspberry ketones to equal one dose of a
supplement, you would have to eat 90 pounds of raspberries. That is why the
supplements are in such high demand.
The theory behind the raspberry diet is simple: raspberry
ketones boost your metabolism by affecting production of a protein called
adiponectin. This protein plays a role in the complex cycle which regulates our
respiration and energy generation and storage. The raspberry ketones boost your
consumption of calories without requiring increased exercise. Further, a research study
on mice showed that raspberry ketones also caused mice to break down fat cells
more quickly. A very nice double whammy!
So what’s the problem? Maybe nothing, but there has not
been a peer-reviewed human trial to verify that raspberry ketones work the same
in humans as they do in mice. They might, but then again they might not.
The second issue is around the raspberry diet supplement
that is sold in stores. Rather than crushing millions of raspberries and
separating out the ketones, the supplements are made from synthetic chemicals.
The only chemical used in the process that many of us recognize is acetone, and
that’s better used in fingernail polish remover. And there are some small
medical studies that tie these supplements to problems with the
thyroid.
Could Dr. Oz be wrong? That’s hard to believe. He may be
way ahead of the scientists. Or he may have to eat a giant dish of humble (and
raspberry) pie. It may be a good time to wait and see.
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