Via Business Insider, the Holy Grail of dieters:
The researchers have found they can burn off excess fat in specific areas of the body by injecting tiny capsules filled with a modified type of heat-producing cell commonly found in animals and babies. Scientists Discover Shot For Dreaded Double Chin - Business Insider
Points:
- “Thermocytes, sometimes called brown fat, are abundant in many small animals and in human babies where they help maintain body temperature by burning off energy as heat rather than storing it like normal fat. Humans, however, lose these cells as they grow older.”
- “…by transplanting cells from animals such as mice into adult humans, known as xenotransplantation, it may be possible to increase the number of thermocytes in adults and so help them reduce the amount of body fat they carry.”
- “Our goal was to achieve a way of targeting deleterious visceral fat that increases the risk for diseases like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.”
Ponder:
- This is still in animal testing, so the researchers must still prove it works in humans.
- This will probably not eliminate the need for sound diet and regular exercise. Diet has an impact on many other areas of well-being, and exercise helps us maintain physical function into old age.
