Brown adipose tissue: lose weight by freezing?

Brown adipose tissue
Lose weight by freezing?

by Stephanie Pingel

March 9th, 2021, 3:58 pm

What is brown adipose tissue?

Brown adipose tissue is a special type of tissue that, unlike classic white fat, uses energy instead of storing it. It is practically the body's own heating system, which helps us to regulate our body temperature, especially in the first few years of life. Because the brown fat cells react to cold: they use energy in the form of calories to produce heat. This process, which is also called thermogenesis, takes place in the so-called mitochondria. The brown fat is mainly located around the spine, in the chest and neck area and above the collarbones.

As a result of thermogenesis, brown adipose tissue has moved into the focus of various researchers. Because theoretically you could use brown fat to specifically reduce excess weight. The problem: Of course, people quickly learn to keep warm in the course of their lives. This is why the mass of brown adipose tissue continues to decrease over time. In order to be able to use the adipose tissue to burn calories, it must first be reactivated.

Studies: brown fat is so useful

More than 50 years ago, the first studies on rats showed that brown fat plays a role in the development of obesity and can burn excess calories. Because the fat cells are not only activated by the cold, but also by the ingestion of food. If the rats were overfed, the animals, which had a lot of brown adipose tissue, were more likely to be protected from obesity.

Tests with humans have since shown that brown adipose tissue can also be activated by meals. Several studies also show that people with a lot of active brown adipose tissue are leaner than those with little brown fat. Also, these people's metabolism is more responsive to insulin, which means brown fat can presumably protect them from type II diabetes as well.

This is how you activate the brown fat

But how can obese or overweight people use thermogenesis to lose weight? Kiel researchers presented a study on this: For a series of experiments, they asked their test subjects to dip their hand in water at 19 degrees Celsius for a few minutes. A special infrared camera created a thermogram of the upper body in which the brown fat was sitting. In this way, heat production can be made visible. The thermogram showed that the warm surfaces immediately became larger when they came into contact with water, but also immediately became smaller again, as soon as the subjects took their hand out of the water.

From this it can be deduced: If you want to activate the brown adipose tissue and use it to lose weight, you should expose yourself to the cold more often. Experts speak of a thermogenic lifestyle here – you could, for example, turn the temperature in the living room to just 19 degrees for a while. After a warm shower, you should also regularly turn the water cold again and endure this cold shower.

Please season well!

But if you don't like the cold at all, you can stimulate the body's heat production in other ways – with the right spices. Certain hot substances such as chilli or ginger stimulate the metabolism and stimulate the body to produce heat. It is therefore best to incorporate these spices into your meals as often as possible – we reveal 7 spices for weight loss here.

Reading tips: We reveal our best weight loss tips here. We also explain how weight loss can work without hunger and weight loss without exercise.

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