This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 29th, 2008 at 9:13 am and is filed under Weird stuff. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Of mice and (fat) men
Oz boffins have made a “breakthrough” in the creation of a future fat-burning pill, reports the BBC.
After removing a certain enzyme from fat cells in mice, the scientists found that the rodents turned roadie-like stick-thin. They still pigged out on mouse-equivalents of cream cakes but - with no more exercise than normal - were found to be 20 percent lighter than normal mice and had up to 60 percent less body fat.
This will be manna from heaven for folks who love scoffing (manna from heaven? yum) but don’t want to exert themselves.
Of course, drug companies which can bring this sort of super-drug to market will drip gold.
Yet, as is well known but rarely heeded, a sedentary lifestyle is a proven killer. Popping a pill may shed some poundage but won’t make an athlete out of a couch potato. The only health-sustaining way to fight fat is to eat less and exercise.
As regular cyclists will attest, it’s the last bit that’s most important. Cycle for long enough and you could eat like a Tongan monarch yet stay slim.
Want to see an ‘as live’ database showing number of cars and bicycles being produced right now, along with number of people dying of starvation today tracked against dollar amounts spent on diet products? World-o-Meters is the place.