UNITED KINGDOM — Scientists are studying a molecule that might help us burn 'bad' fat.<br /><br />Humans have two types of fat, white and brown. White fat stores energy and acts as a thermal insulator. However, excessive amounts could lead to diabetes, heart disease and certain types of cancer. Brown fat, on the other hand, burns calories to generate heat. <br /><br />Scientists from the University of Cambridge detected a molecule in mice called BMP8b. This protein controls the activation of brown fat in the brain and body tissue of mice. <br /><br />According to their study published in the journal Nature, they analyzed mice that had been bred to produce higher levels of the molecule in fat tissue. <br /><br />Researchers discovered that increased levels of the protein caused white fat to become beige — or turn brown —burning more calories and generating more energy as a result. <br /><br />They concluded that it could be possible to create a drug that alters fat function in humans just as the BMP8b protein does in mice. <br /><br />But until that happens, you better hop on that treadmill and start working those brown fat cells yourselves.
