14 DAY TRIAL // Let's face it, there are few people in this world who really and truly like to exercise. Mind you, the fact that, in 2013, our good old planet was home to about 2.1 billion obese individuals more than proves it.
The good news is that scientists are now hard at work trying to come up with a pill that could one day replace the dreaded treadmill and help people lose weight without having to lift a finger. Well, except take the pill, that is.
Even better, the Harvard University researchers behind this project say that they have successfully taken the first step towards the development of such a magical, wondrous pill and that it is just a matter of time until they actually make it.
Using science to fight obesity
In a recent paper in the journal Nature Cell Biology, the Harvard University scientists explain that the obesity pill they hope to develop would work by turning white fat cells, which are harmful to the body, into brown fat cells, which happen to be beneficial.
The researchers go on to detail that what makes white fat cells harmful is the fact that they serve to store energy in the form of lipids. Thus, it's people who pack one too many white fat cells that become obese and can even get type 2 diabetes and all sorts of heart conditions.
What's more, evidence at hand indicates that, the more excess calories a person consumes, the more white fat cells are produced from adult stem cells in the body. In time, this causes people to gain even more weight and become even more vulnerable to health trouble.
By comparison, brown fat cells serve to convert energy into heat and are, therefore, widely regarded as waistline-friendly. As explained by the Harvard University specialists, the idea behind their pill is to fight obesity by tricking the body into accommodating for more brown fat cells than white ones.
Upsetting the production of white fat cells
In their paper in the journal Nature Cell Biology, the researchers explain that they have so far managed to develop a system that makes it possible to zoom in on compounds that can essentially turn white fat cells into brown fat cells. Besides, they have used the system to identify two such compounds.
True, the scientists had to screen about 1,000 compounds before finally pinning down these two, but they suspect that, were they to have access to the libraries of be it only a few pharmaceutical companies, they could soon find many more.
The specialists envision using such compounds that can make white fat cells act like brown ones to develop a pill that fights obesity by compelling the body to burn the extra energy it receives rather than just store it in the form of fat. True, this pill would not recreate the benefits of exercise, put it would come in handy.
“You’re constantly replenishing your fat tissue, so if you were on a medication to convert the cells, each new fat cell would be more metabolically active and would convert to brown fat over time,” researcher Chad Cowan with the Harvard Stem Cell Institute said in a statement.
Admittedly, taking random compounds and putting them together to obtain safe and effective medication is sure to prove quite a hassle. Still, the Harvard University scientists behind this project claim that it is very much doable.
