Forget about the "lose weight and get rid of cellulite" myth! Medical experts have recently showed that the "orange peel" effect on women's thighs, tummies or bottoms gets even worse when dieting. This rule does not necessarily apply to overweight women who lose some pounds - they really get to look better than when obese. The cellulite problem applies mostly to women who have only a few extra pounds. These ones "win" more cellulite layers on their bodies, even though they might have thought that getting slimmer would shake that "orange peel" off their bodies.

Not having cellulite has become in the past years a real obsession for every woman around the world. Having an attractive smile or beautiful eyes simply does not matter anymore for most women. All they want nowadays is to have a slim, slender and toned body without any trace of cellulite. This "anti-cellulite" fashion has been mostly "triggered" by all those pictures in fashion magazines presenting many stars' bodies and their "orange peel" looks.

Noting that most of women associate cellulite loss with losing weight diets, US researchers investigated the facts and found that this common belief is not just false; it is the other way around. Their study has been published in the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Journal, the medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. It presents the findings of an investigation conducted on 29 women who offered as volunteers and to take part in medically supervised weight loss programs.

The weight loss program included low calorie meals, liquid diets, medication and bariatric surgery (weight loss surgery, including gastric bypass and banding). At the end of the study, 17 of the patients noticed an improvement in the appearance of their skin and noticed their "orange peel" effect has been diminished. However, the other 9 participants in the study found that their cellulite layer got worse instead of being reduced.

Results also showed that cellulite has greatly diminished in subjects who have been more than plumy when the study began and lost a large amount of weight during the weight loss program. On the contrary, the "orange peel" effect worsened in women who were rather slim at the beginning of the study and lost a small weight throughout the program.

"Cellulite is not specific to overweight people but excess weight may worsen the condition. We found that weight loss in overweight patients improved the appearance of cellulite, but for a few it actually worsened the condition. Although the appearance of cellulite diminished for the majority of patients, weight loss did not totally eradicate the condition. The dimples appear to be permanent features that lessen in depth as the pounds come off," stated John Kitzmiller, plastic surgeon and co-researcher of the study.

Douglas McGeorge, president-elect of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) said that cellulite is something common in women and some just cannot get rid of it as hard as they may try: "It is not always to do with being overweight. As we age, we lose skin tone and cellulite looks worse. There is no cure as yet for cellulite in anybody - it is part of life."