Here’s an unconventional way to shed those extra pounds: exposure to cold and consuming chemicals found in chili peppers could help burn fat, according to a recent study published in the journal Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition & Metabolic Care.
In the study, researchers exposed eight people with little or no brown fat cells to moderately low temperatures of 17 degrees Celsius for two hours daily, over the course of six weeks.
Compared with the control subjects, the cold-exposed people had about 5% less body fat at the end of the study, and also burned more energy when exposed to cold.
Yoneshiro's team also observed that individuals who ate spicy food for the same amount of time burned more energy even if they didn’t lose any more "white fat".
By the end of the study, researchers concluded that those who regularly ate chili-based food managed to burn more energy and fat than those who didn't. A previous study that lasted 12 weeks found the capsinoid ingestion led to significant body fat decreases in mildly obese people.
Capsinoids appear to induce brown fat in the same way as cold, by "capturing" the same cellular system that the body's nervous system uses to increase heat production, Yoneshiro said.
"The most interesting thing about this study from a treatment point of view is the capsinoids," said Jan Nedergaard, a physiologist at Stockholm University in Sweden who wasn't involved in the study. Reduction of fat from cold exposure was expected, he said, but "as everybody realizes, that's a difficult thing to put into practice."
Capsinoids come from "sweet" chili peppers that don't taste hot, but produce some of the same physiological effects -- for example, producing sweat.
Luckily, the -ber months are here so you don't have to worry about the weather. Just add a bit of spice to your meals, and you may be well on your way to burning more calories.
Source: http://www.livescience.com/