Exercise and diet may be the staple to any successful weight loss plan, and essential for a healthier body but now new evidence claims that exposure to cold weather can actually help you reach a healthier weight.

According to a study published in the journal Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism, researchers suggests that regular exposure to mildly cooler air may help assist people lose weight by increasing the amount of energy a human uses to keep their normal temperature. The warm and cozy temperatures at home or the office in your environment may be responsible for continued weight gain, instead overweight patients can add “temperature training” to their weight loss routine.

The human body withstands cold temperatures by shivering, which produces heat for the individual. Studies have shown that people exert up to five times more energy when shivering, compared to those who are at rest or not shivering. Reasoning for weight loss is due to the activation of a type of body fat called brown fat, which burns calories in response to cold temperatures. Triggering the brown fat can be difficult in warmer climates, but for people who can regulate indoor temperature, calories can be burned up when energy is exerted to combat the cold.

Researchers found that over time people adjust to the cold, in process called cold acclimatization. Participants who spent six hours a day for 10 days at 59 degrees Fahrenheit, people had more brown fat and shivered less when exposed to lower temperatures.

Controlled exposure to the cold can properly activate the brown fat for weight loss. A previous study from Japan found that people successfully decreased body fat after spending only two hours a day for six weeks in a room of 62 degrees Fahrenheit.

What there is to take from all of this is that researchers do not want you to shiver endlessly to initiate weight loss from increased energy, but a milder cold between 62 and 77 degrees may help eliminate body fat.

Weight loss from diet, exercise and cold exposure may help slim down to your overall weight loss goal but there may be some problem areas that appear sagging or droopy. For these situations, body contouring or a body lift may be appropriate to eliminate excess skin after weight loss. This procedure can correct the effects of major weight loss that restore proportion in the abdomen, upper torso or lower body.

If you are looking for a solution to complement your weight loss success, then a body lift from board certified plastic surgeon in Sudbury can help you look and feel better in your slim body contour.