Brown Fat - The Fat That Makes You Thin
Anonymous
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The following is a link to an article published in New Scientist (online).
Some quotes, but whole article is a must read if your into this sort of thing.
Some quotes, but whole article is a must read if your into this sort of thing.
In some mammals, brown fat turns the energy obtained from food into heat, burning up calories without the animal expending any effort. It used to be thought that adult humans had no brown fat, but a raft of new evidence indicates that this is wrong, and it is in fact present and functional in at least some individuals.
Age is one factor. In a recent study, metabolically active brown fat was found in about half of subjects aged 23 to 35, but was present in only two out of 24 people aged 38 to 65 (Diabetes, vol 58, p 803). That team also found that people with less brown fat tended to be fatter.
Many other questions remain, but the old dogma that brown fat is either absent or has no physiological role in adult humans has been overturned. This is likely to open up a whole new set of potential options for weight control. Could drugs that enhance brown fat one day be licensed for the treatment of obesity? If they are proved safe and effective will they eventually become available to those of normal weight in pursuit of the perfect figure?
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