The study was the work of researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center conducted by Dr. C. Ronald Kahn, Head of the Joslin Section on Obesity and Hormone Action and the Mary K. Iacocca Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

 

It involved 1,972 people who underwent nuclear (PET) or X-ray (CT) imaging scans during a three-year period for a variety of reasons. The researchers found significant brown fat deposits in 7.5 percent of female patients and in over 3 percent of male patients.

 

Furthermore, they discovered that people who are overweight or obese as measured by higher Body Mass Index were less likely to have substantial amounts of brown fat. Patients taking beta-blockers and patients who were older were also less likely to have active brown fat. Also, people who were thin and had normal blood glucose levels also had more brown fat than other people. This finding suggests that brown fat is involved in regulating body weight and that higher levels of brown fat may protect against obesity.

 

“The fact that there is active brown fat in adult humans means this is now a new and important target for the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes,” Kahn said in a statement.