Fat Loss Studies Reveal Crucial Component for Losing Fat

Components Crucial to Weight Loss

Many fat loss studies have been conducted through the decades. Most recently, blueberries have been found to help with increasing fat oxidation rates. Exercise is a proven treatment for obesity through the years without much debate. There is some confusion, and debate, with the amount of fat that is lost between diets centered on fat, protein, and carbohydrates when compared with one another. 

Exercise

Exercising produces the hormone irisin, which burns the white fat cells that store fat, and creates brown fat cells that keep burning calories after your done exercising, and according to Dr. Komaroff of Harvard Health, "We already have a proven treatment that profoundly protects our health: exercise" (Publishing, Harvard Health). Brown fat is shown to increases survival rate in cancer, lowers risk for heart disease, and lower your blood pressure (Society, American Physiological).  

According to 149 systematic reviews and meta-analyses from 2010 - 2019, for exercise programs focused on obese patients for weight loss, discovered significant fat loss with exercise (Bellicha, Alice, et al.). 

Recent studies have revealed blueberries help burn fat while exercising as "fat oxidation rates increased by 19.7% after cycling for 20 minutes, 43.2% after 30 minutes and 31.1% at 40 minutes" after eating 1 cup of natural blueberries a day for two weeks, most likely due to the antioxidant anthocyanin (New York Post)

Resistance training has extraordinary benefits for fat loss as a breakthrough study out of the University of Kentucky discovered a brand-new role for extracellular vesicles in losing fat and improving fat metabolism (Science Daily). Resistance training increases your metabolism and involves free weights, body weight, or any type of training that involves some type of resistance (Scott). 

Proper Diet

Obesity is attributed to an excess of calories taken in compared to the calories lost, such as when exercising, and macronutrients assist with burning calories while at rest with proteins losing the most, then carbohydrates, and lastly fat (Howell, Scott, and Richard Kones). Does this mean a diet higher in protein, followed by carbohydrates, and then fat is the proper way to eat?

Fat loss studies revealed eating diets high in protein, when compared with diets high in carbohydrates, help the most with body composition and have shown not much of a difference in weight loss (Institute of Medicine (US) Subcommittee on Military Weight Management). According to the American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism study, proteins provide a greater calorie loss while at rest than carbohydrates. Does this mean if the studies were done over a long period of time, the diets higher in protein would experience a greater fat loss than carbohydrates, since not much of a difference was shown within the Institute of Medicine (US) Subcommittee on Military Weight Management study?

A low-carb diet produced more weight loss than a low-fat diet according to researchers from John Hopkins. Only adding to the confusion. 

Conclusion

Exercise is a crucial component for losing fat. It is scientifically proven to burn fat while exercising and at rest. Eating food that increase fat oxidation helps as well. Diets high in protein help with losing fat more than carbohydrates and fat. This portion seems to be debatable among researchers however as diets centered on fats, proteins, or carbohydrates have mixed results in regard to loss of fat within different studies. Regardless, eating the right portions of healthy fats, healthy carbs, and healthy proteins along with a proper exercise routine, will help your body feel its best. 

Works Cited

Institute of Medicine (US) Subcommittee on Military Weight Management. “Weight-Loss and Maintenance Strategies.” Nih.gov, National Academies Press (US), 2019, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK221839/.

Bellicha, Alice, et al. “Effect of Exercise Training on Weight Loss, Body Composition Changes, and Weight Maintenance in Adults with Overweight or Obesity: An Overview of 12 Systematic Reviews and 149 Studies.” Obesity Reviews, May 2021, doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/obr.13256.

Publishing, Harvard Health. “Major Fat-Burning Discovery.” Harvard Health, 1 June 2012, www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/major-fat-burning-discovery.

New York Post. “Blueberries Could Help You Burn Body Fat: Study.” Nypost.com, 20 Mar. 2023, nypost.com/2023/03/20/blueberries-could-help-you-burn-body-fat-study/.

Science Daily. “New Study Offers Insight on How Resistance Training Burns Fat.” ScienceDaily, 9 Aug. 2021, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210809144126.htm.

Scott, Jennifer R. “How to Start Resistance Training.” Verywell Fit, Verywellfit, 17 Oct. 2006, www.verywellfit.com/what-is-resistance-training-3496094.

Society, American Physiological. “Brown Fat May Help Improve Cancer Survival Rates.” Medicalxpress.com, 22 Mar. 2023, medicalxpress.com/news/2023-03-brown-fat-cancer-survival.html.

Howell, Scott, and Richard Kones. “‘Calories In, Calories Out’ and Macronutrient Intake: The Hope, Hype, and Science of Calories.” American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 313, no. 5, Nov. 2017, pp. E608–12, doi:https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.00156.2017.