What is Pyruvate?

Pyruvate, or pyruvic acid is a biochemical involved in the Krebs cycle, or citric acid cycle (a series of enzymatic reactions in aerobic organisms, involving oxidative metabolism of acetyl units, and producing high energy phosphate compounds, which serve as the main source of cellular energy), that facilitates ATP, or Adenosine-5'-triphosphate (a nucleoside triphosphate used in cells as a coenzyme) production.

According to Mallet RT, et al. 2005, pyruvate is a natural metabolic fuel and antioxidant in myocardium (heart tissue) and other tissues. Pyruvate is naturally present in blood circulation, at concentrations that vary between 0.1 to 0.2 mM (millimolar).

Cardioprotective Benefits of Pyruvate

Pyruvate provides a variety of cardioprotective benefits in considerable amounts, such as, increasing cardiac contractile performance and myocardial (heart muscle) energy state, providing endogenous (having an internal cause) antioxidant systems, also protecting myocardium from ischemia reperfusion injury (injury which occurs during the restoration of blood flow to a tissue under low oxygen state), and oxidant stress.

As an intermediate in the Krebs cycle, pyruvate is an important source of energy for myocardium. A study that aimed to demonstrate the effect of intracoronary pyruvate in patients with congestive heart failure, had found that pyruvate was a favourable inotropic substance (a substance that affecting the contraction of muscle, especially heart muscle). (Hermann HP, et al. 1999)

Continuing above study, Torres CA, et al. 2013 claimed that pyruvate was having the potency as inotropic agent. The study is the first to demonstrate that a leftward shift in myofilament (filament of myofibril, or muscle fibril (a basic rod-like unit of a muscle) constructed from proteins) calcium sensitivity is an important mediator of the inotropic effect of pyruvate, in which will bring for future development of therapeutic strategies in the management of heart failure.

Pyruvate as Weight Loss Supplements

Pyruvate has been claimed and used as dietary supplement to assist in weight reduction by enhancing metabolism. Pyruvate is also called sodium pyruvate, calcium pyruvate, potassium pyruvate, magnesium pyruvate, or dihydroxyacetone pyruvate. The effectiveness of pyruvate, which often marketed with the name of calcium pyruvate, supplementation during training on body composition, exercise capacity, and metabolic responses to exercise, had been studied in 2005.

In this double blind and randomized study, 23 women received either 5g of calcium pyruvate, or a placebo twice daily for 30 days, while participating in a supervised exercise program. The result data were different when analysed using ANOVA (analysis of variance, a collection of statistical models used to analyze the differences between group and their associated procedures), or MANOVA (multivariate analysis of variance, a statistical test procedure for comparing multivariate of several groups).

The data from ANOVA revealed that subjects which received calcium pyruvate, gained less weight, lost more fat, and tended to lose a greater percentage of body fat, with no differences observed in fat free mass. However, when body composition data were analyzed by MANOVA, the changes were not significant.

Moreover, the study found some evidence that calcium pyruvate supplementation may negatively effects the benefits of exercise on HDL (good cholesterol) values. The study concluded that calcium pyruvate supplementation during training did not significantly affect body composition, or exercise performance, in which may negatively affect some blood lipid levels. (Koh-Banerjee PK, et al. 2005)

For burning your belly fats, the recommended dosage for pyruvate supplements are 1000mg a day before meals. Daily intake of fruits, vegetables, and reducing meat consumption are also suggested. According to Amazon's Genetic Solutions Calcium Pyruvate 500mg 120 caps verified purchased reviews, most customers are very helpful after using pyruvate supplements.

However, the most important thing is that, you should consult with your doctor before taking any pyruvate supplements, in order to give another suggestion, regarding to your medical records.