The number of fat cells in the body of a grown-up is constant and doesn’t change even if one gains weight, claim scientists at Karolinska Institute, Sweden. A study conducted by them have shown, that adipocytes (fat cells that accumulate and store fat) propagate only when one is a child, and then the number of these cells doesn’t change.
For the study the scientists have selected some samples of fat tissue of 687 people of different ages. It has been found, that the number of adipocytes increases only till one is at the age of 20. Then this number stays the same, but the weight changes influence only the size of the adipocytes. It’s also notable, that fat cells permanently regenerate and new fat cells substitute the old ones. Scientists claim, that these findings are going to be very useful is obesity treatment.
