Let Them Eat Cake And Lose Weight Too

Compiled ByJohn Teresko Lose weight while continuing to overeat? That has been demonstrated by mice fed daily low doses of a compound called gAcrp30. Made from a protein patented by the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Mass., the new compound causes profound and constant weight loss even with unlimited access to food high in fat and sugar, researchers said. The compound works differently than most weight-loss drugs, says researcher Harvey Lodish. Instead of preventing the body from absorbing fatty acids in the intestine, the new compound circulates in blood and causes muscles to burn fatty acids faster so they aren't stored as fat. Lodish says the mice showed significantly reduced levels of free fatty acids as well as decreased glucose and triglyceride levels in their blood despite the high-fat diet. Research will determine applicability to the human body.