While it is common knowledge that the body breaks down fat to use as fuel, there is still a lot mystery surrounding the process. Some of us are predisposed to store less fat, while others gain and lose weight quickly based on exercise and diet. Science is always looking for better ways to burn fat in the body. The diet and weight loss market is almost a 60 billion dollar industry. FLP-7 could be shedding some light on how the brain controls weight loss through hormones.
Lipolysis is the breakdown of lipids. This process is induced by several different hormones in the body including glucagon, epinephrine, norepinephrine, ghrelin, growth hormone, testosterone, and cortisol.
New research is showing promise from another hormone, Serotonin. While serotonin has been thought to have purpose an appetite suppressant, scientists recently discovered another pathway that serotonin could aide fat loss.
New Hormone Horizon
Researchers from The Scripps Research Institute identified a new hormone they called FLP-7. The researchers studied round worms which interestingly share a very similar metabolic system to humans. The researchers tested one gene after another to attempt to rule out any genes not involved in the process of burning fat.
Old News New Use?
According to the researches the mammal (including humans) version of FLP-7 had actually been identified 80 years ago. Previously it was linked to muscle contractions but never linked to fat metabolism, until now.
The big break through in this new research was that they discovered a hormone that can regulate fat loss which is not influenced by the intake of food.
What the researchers hope to do with this new information is to further study and manipulate FLP-7. So far, they have found no variance in the function of the worms when FLP-7 levels were increased. The worms functioned normally while burning more fat.
What This Means For You?
While this can be considered a big breakthrough, it is by no means set to revolutionize the process of fat loss or turn the weight loss market upside down. You won’t be able to go to the local supplement store and grab a bottle of FLP-7 ……yet.
This discovery is literally brand new, so much so that the press release of the finding just came out in January 2017. Furthermore, there have been no human studies and if they ever get to that point, it would likely be years from now. Any supplement worth anything undergoes extensive research before ever being formulated and sent to market. Clinically validated supplements like creatine have undergone hundreds if not thousands of studies over decades.
What Does The Future Hold?
The good news about FLP-7 is that it established a further development in the understanding of human metabolism. Hormones, metabolic rate, genetics, food intake, and exercise all fit together like a big puzzle. The reality is, there are no revolutions in metabolic function, the methods and pathways in which it functions from fat burning to energy production have always been there. What science can do with FLP-7 is to identify and discover. This way, we can understand the body further and use the information to live healthier lives. Who knows, maybe one day this discovery will contribute to reducing obesity.
For now, you can keep up to date on emerging research while doing things already firmly established to burn fat.
Fitness Tips on Burning More Fat
- Eat clean, avoid processed foods and excess sugar
- Exercise to expand calories at least four times a week
- Use clinically validated supplements.
Tim
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