Review of Jarrow 7-Keto DHEA capsules, 100mg each

Jarrow 7-Keto DHEA is the first 7-Keto DHEA supplement I've tried. This particular supplement is a naturally occurring metabolite of DHEA. According to the label, it will give you many of the benefits of DHEA without the side effects.

Wikipedia says, "7-Keto-DHEA (also known as 7-Keto, 7-ketodehydroepiandrosterone, or 7-oxodehydroepiandrosterone) is a steroid produced by metabolism of the prohormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). 7-Keto is not directly converted to testosterone or estrogen, and has thus been investigated as a potentially more useful relative of DHEA."

Wikipedia provides three references for that one small passage. I think we can trust that citation.

The biggest selling point of DHEA-related supplements is "weight loss," which, translated into English, is "body fat reduction." You can lose weight by having your leg amputated or just sitting around until your muscles atrophy. That is not at all the same as changing your body fat composition such that your body fat decreases and/or your ratio of fat to lean mass decreases.

This fat loss thing is also what so much of the marketing hype is about. I personally cannot test for this particular benefit and expect the test to be fair.My body fat ranges between 5% and 6%, a range in which fat loss is nearly impossible. Yes, professional body builders go lower but the effort to get there involves some extreme behaviors.

The literature on DHEA's fat loss benefits shows that DHEA is a very effective fat loss supplement. So, what is there to review about Jarrow's version of this? Several things:

• Product packaging. I lean toward simply returning something that requires the Jaws of Life to open. I do not buy something with the goal of never opening the package it comes in. Jarrow does properly seal the bottle for consumer safety, but they do this intelligently under the assumption the customer might actually want to consume the supplement contained therein.
   
• Capsule quality. I've seen capsules that fall apart. This is bad. So I shook the heck out of the Jarrow container. No capsule failure, there. I've also seen capsules so thick that they don't look like they'll ever dissolve. I can pinch these and tell they aren't going to last long in my stomach's acid bath.
   
• Nausea effect. My major test was to try this with and without food, to see if it made me feel nauseated. Nope. I feel just fine, no matter when I take this.
   
• Dosage. Back to Wikipedia, I see Professor Emeritus Dr. Lardy (interesting name, considering the fat loss benefits of this supplement) conducted a study using 100mg. This supplement contains 100mg.

I mentioned earlier that I don't get much bang from fat loss supplements, because I'm already so lean. It's also true that people who aren't in that range will see no noticeable benefit without making some changes. For example, reduce portion size. Or do the large compound exercises that put your endocrine system into fat-burning mode.

Think of 7-Keto DHEA as a multiplier. If you make some changes in your diet, they will be more effective when you use this supplement. Similarly, if you have been doing isolation exercises on machines at the gym and change to doing large compound exercises such as squats, your results will be more significant if you are using 7-Keto DHEA.

There is no magic potion in a bottle, and there are no shortcuts. Building a leaner body is much like building a faster car. Changing from isolation exercises to large, compound exercises is like dropping in a bigger engine. Adding 7-Keto DHEA to the program is like adding a turbocharger.

If you want a leaner physique, try this supplement and see how it works for you.

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