Body fat

Humpback whales may look like gentle giants, but each year they undertake nature's most extreme crash diet, shedding 36% of their mass in less than two months. New insights into their epic annual swim has identified just how huge their fat loss is.

The first human-tested weight-loss drug that burns calories through creatine-based heat generation, without reducing appetite, has successfully completed its Phase I trial. In the trial, participants lost an average of 3% fat mass in two weeks.

For decades now, obesity has been defined by a number on a scale or where you land on the body mass index measure. But a groundbreaking study has found that it’s far more complex, finding 11 distinct biological types, each with their own health risks.

Cutting a single amino acid from the diet caused rapid, drastic weight loss in mice by converting white fat into calorie-burning brown fat. The study reveals a powerful new mechanism for weight loss that doesn’t rely on eating less and moving more.

A new study has found that your belly might reveal more about your brain health than your bathroom scales do, especially if you’re an older man. When it comes to dementia risk, the location of body fat, not just the amount, appears to be a factor.