d-chiro inositol for endurance and weight loss?

Okay, so I'm reading up on PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) which is probably the most common female metabolic disorder with endocrinological manifestations. It has a male equivalent, but because it's more likely to make women infertile and have masculinizing effects, it's more likely to be recognized in women.

Basically, the disease is strongly linked to things like insulin resistance, heart disease and an inability to lose belly fat.

D-Chiro-Inositol is looking like a good (partial) treatment for women with PCOS and some have suggested that a cause of PCOS may be the inability to make d-chiro-inositol from myo-inositol in sufficient amounts. It helps reverse insulin resistance. This still needs more support, but considering how much trouble people have in losing belly fat, and how important insulin sensitivity is to losing that weight, this could be a nice find for the population in general. In healthy individuals, it's possible that the cheaper myo-inositol might be converted to D-Chiro-Inositol. Or myo-inositol may just contain some d-chiro-inositol.

So then I found this, which suggested that tartary buckwheat extracts might improve the stamina of endurance athletes[/url]. Interesting stuff, even though they don't seem to explore any form of inositol as the causitive agent. Carob is also supposed to be a good source of d-chiro-inositol. Chickpeas are also good. Rice bran has some form of inositol, but I don't know if it's d-chiro or not.

http://www.ergo-log.com/tartarybuckwheat.html

http://www.ehow.com/list_5960312_list-fo...sitol.html

Carob is traditionally used for obesity and high cholesterol.

Web MD writes;

Quote:How does it work?

Carob contains chemicals called tannins, which decrease the effectiveness of certain substances (enzymes) that help with digestion. Carob might cause weight loss, reduce blood sugar and insulin levels, and lower cholesterol levels.

http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplement...Name=CAROB

I don't know if I buy the explanation, but at least it supports the cause and effect portion of things.

The present study clearly demonstrated that oral administration of DCI-enriched TBBE could lower plasma glucose, C-peptide, glucagon, triglyceride, and BUN, improve glucose tolerance, and enhance insulin immunoreactivity in KK-A(y) mice.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18921966

There's also some anecdotal evidence that it has helped with acne, which is linked to metabolic issues.

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/archiv...55865.html


p.s. URL insertion seems broken for this site.