Many of us know from the experience of dieting that weight loss is a feat.

Despite all the efforts made, it may seem that the diet does not work, and the arrow of the scales moves exclusively to the right.

A new study explains why the human body resists attempts to lose weight through diet.

The pages of the journal eLife reported that the mechanism of resistance to the diet is present not only in humans, but also in the brothers of our smaller. It was on the mice that amazing experiments were conducted by Cambridge researchers.

According to Dr. Clemence Blouet, in some people the diet does not work because of the peculiarities of the hypothalamus neurons - the ancient part of the brain that regulates metabolic processes in the body.

Recall that the hypothalamus is responsible for the production of hormones and the regulation of key physiological functions - maintaining temperature, hunger, libido, sleep.

The hypothalamus contains the so-called agouti-related neuropeptides (AGRP), involved in the regulation of appetite. When AGRP-neurons are "on", we want to eat when they are inactive - the appetite disappears almost completely. AGRP-neurons equally affect both humans and other mammals.

The possibilities of AGRP-neurons in mice.

Dr. Blue with the help of genetic engineering disconnected and included AGRP-neurons in rodents, watching their physiology. The findings were amazing.

To do this, DREADD technology was used: the animals were injected with a design receptor hM3Dq, which reversibly altered the activity of genes when taking the drug. The mice were studied literally from the inside: the rodents were equipped with temperature sensors, energy consumption counters and other high-tech equipment.

It turned out that during fasting (diet) activation of AGRP-neurons allows the body to perform the usual work at a lower cost of energy.

In other words, the restrictive diet simply increases the efficiency of our body, forces us to spend less money and reduces attempts to lose weight!.

Because of the cunning adaptive mechanism, mice do not lose weight, and the diet does not work. When animals are finally allowed to eat their fill, energy costs increase again.

"Disabling (suppressing) AGRP-neurons for a few days significantly activates the metabolism in mice and promotes weight loss," say the authors.

The secret of losing weight is in our brain.

As you can see, the secret of losing weight is not in the amount of a portion. And not even in physical activity. It lurks in tiny AGRP-neurons, somewhere in the depths of our brain!.

"The results obtained indicate that the group of neurons coordinates the appetite and energy costs of the body. If there is enough food, they force us to eat, if the source of food runs low, they make us save and prevent the burning of fats, "concluded Dr. Blue.

From an evolutionary point of view, it is a very useful mechanism designed for the survival of mammals in conditions of hunger. But in the modern world, where the main problem is obesity, and not hunger, this mechanism is only hampered by people.

Co-author of the study, Dr. Luke Burke (Luke Burke) is confident that on the basis of today's discovery will be developed a new way to treat obesity. Disabling AGRP-neurons, you can adjust the metabolism for rapid weight loss. This can be done in all possible ways, including genetic engineering.

medbe. en.