Giant Wasp Enzymes Enhance Endurance
Japanese Hornet Juice Burns Fat to Improve Stamina Training
Sep 20, 2008
The aggressive Asian giant hornet (Vespa Mandarinia) is responsible for the deaths of up to 40 people each year in Japan. This, the largest of the wasp family, has long been considered nothing more than at best a nuisance, and at worst a danger to humans.
It was after a potentially life-threatening encounter with a giant hornet that Dr Takashi Abe began researching the life-cycle of the wasp. He made the following observations:
- Adult hornets fly up to 80km in search of prey items, usually other insects, to feed their larvae.
- Adult hornets are unable to digest these prey items themselves due to the narrowness of their trunks.
- On feeding their larvae these prey items, the adult giant hornet is rewarded with an enzyme-rich drink secreted by the wasp larvae.
Since this is the only sustenance ingested by an adult hornet, Abe surmised that this must be the source of a hornet's massive stamina reserves. In a less than humane experiment, Abe placed two groups of rats in a bucket of water. One group had fed on the wasp larvae secretion. After several hours, only the rats that had ingested the secretion were still swimming.
A more specific analysis of the hornet larvae secretion revealed that it contained a mixture of many essential amino acids. Abe named this formula VAAM (Vespa Amino Acid Mixture), and replicated it under laboratory conditions. His claim is that VAAM improves athletic efficiency.
How Giant Hornet Juice Works
The human body normally uses its store of glycogen during periods of strenuous activity. VAAM, however, utilizes the body's supply of stored fat for its energy needs. Because abundant stored fat is metabolized in place of the limited glycogen supply, an athlete can train for longer periods.
Athletes Who Use Giant Hornet Juice
Naoko Takahashi took the gold medal in the Sydney Olympics womens' marathon in 2000. The New York Times reported in October that year that: "she drank the stomach juices of giant, killer hornets that fly 100km a day at up to 25 km/hour. Naoko Takahashi, from Japan, consumed the hornet juice during training and the race itself after scientists discovered that it had astonishing powers to boost human stamina."
In an interview with US heavyweight boxer Brian "The Beast" Minto in January 2007, Boxing News asked: "What supplements do you take?" "Hornet Juice," was Minto's response. Minto has lost only two of over thirty professional bouts, and is currently ranked 11th by the World Boxing Organization.
Availability of Giant Hornet Juice
This Japanese wasp enzyme formula is currently marketed in a manufactured synthetic form as an energy drink that supplements endurance. There are three main brands:
- VAAM (Vespa Amino Acid Mixture): Available only in Japan, this is Dr Abe's original interpretation of the formula. In Japan, it is as commonly available as any other energy drink.
- Hornet Juice: Sold as a performance enhancing sports drink in powder form.
- Diet Amino: A weight loss supplement that concentrates on the fat burning properties of the combined giant hornet enzymes.
Does Giant Hornet Juice Work?
An independent study of VAAM, undertaken at Kanazawa University, was published in abstract on PubMed. The conclusion was: "...that ingesting the supplement before starting exercise has a significant effect on the respiratory exchange ratio and ratings of perceived exertion... but not on oxygen uptake, heart rate, and plasma lactate concentration."
This research suggests that, taken as a supplement, giant hornet juice does increase performance endurance without detrimental side effects.
 |
 |
