Studies suggest that liposuction causes a rebound in fat gain, but not necessarily back to the areas where you lost it.
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You cant get something for nothing especially when it comes to weight loss.
A new study by Brazilian researchers shows that when patients lose fat through liposuction a popular cosmetic surgery that sucks away fat cells from under the skin it tends to come back. Worse, it gets redistributed deep within patients abdomen, where it can cause more damage to health than did the subcutaneous fat it replaced.
The good news is that theres a way to maintain lipos slimming effect: good old-fashioned exercise.
In the study, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, researchers at the University of So Paulo recruited 36 healthy but inactive women aged 20 to 35. The women were not obese, but all volunteered to have 2.5 to 3 lbs. of abdominal fat removed through liposuction.
By six months after surgery, half of the women had regained fat largely as visceral fat, the type that accumulates around organs deep within the abdomen and is known to cause metabolic changes that increase risks for heart disease and diabetes. These women gained 10% more visceral fat than theyd had before surgery.
The other half of the participants didnt gain back the fat. Why? Because they had been randomly assigned to start exercising after surgery. Compared with their counterparts who remained sedentary after liposuction, these women started a four-month workout regimen, involving both cardio and weight-lifting three times a week. Not only didnt they gain back the fat, but they ended up with less fat in their bodies overall. They also got physically fitter and showed improved insulin sensitivity.
(MORE:Study: A 20% Fat Tax Would Improve Public Health)
Why liposuction may trigger visceral fat gain isnt fully understood. The authors speculate that people may expend less energy after the surgery, which leads to fat gain. Because the body is finely tuned to defend its fat stores, it will try to compensate for the abrupt loss of fat. But exercise may mitigate that drive and recalibrate how much the body thinks it should weigh.
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After Liposuction, Exercise Makes Fat Loss Last
