Wouldn’t it be great if scientists developed a weight-loss pill that actually worked, without any horrible side effects?
Well, scientists from the University of Bonn in Germany claim they may soon make that dream come true.
The scientists insist they have created a drug that actually “sets fat on fire” by promoting the production of healthy brown fat.
Research shows that white fat soaks up calories and stores them in the hips, thighs, and abdomen, increasing the risk of diabetes and heart disease.
So, the group set out to find a way to convert unhealthy white fat into healthier brown fat—and they say they’ve found the key.
During their research, the German scientists came across a particular enzyme, known as soluble guanylate cyclase, which is said to trigger the conversion of calories into brown fat rather than white fat.
The scientists used mice to carry out their experiment, treating some in the group with higher levels of soluble guanylate cyclase.
As it turns out, the scientists were right to think the conversion could be done. In the end, the mice that were given higher levels of soluble guanylate cyclase converted more of their calories into brown fat.
The discovery has made its way over to Britain, where one professor in particular, named Tom Sanders, believes the German scientists may have hit the weight-loss jackpot.
As an expert in nutrition and diet at King’s College London, Sanders admits that he is taking the study’s findings with a grain of salt.
“There has been a lot of renewed interest in the browning of adipose tissue and the findings have relevance to type 2 diabetes risk because it is excess white fat that is associated with type 2 diabetes. However, this study was done in mice where brown adipose tissue plays a much more important role in maintaining energy balance than humans,” he said.
Sanders also points out that he would be interested to see if this particular weight-loss pill has any adverse side effects on blood pressure, as many other candidates have in the past.
Do you think this pill will work? Tell us in the comments!
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