How Do You Freeze Fat Away?
The idea of freezing fat away came about simply enough—as many great innovations do. Scientists noticed that the fat in a child’s cheek seemed to disappear when he or she sucked on a Popsicle, generically known as an ice pop. The medical term for the phenomenon is “cold panniculitis.”
Further research showed that adipocytes (fat cells) were destroyed by controlled cooling. Since fat-containing tissue is more vulnerable to cold than water-rich tissue, the procedure did not damage the surrounding skin, nerves, vessels and muscles.
During the fat-freezing procedure, fat cells experience apoptosis (cell death), which releases cytokines (inflammatory molecules) in the treatment area. This is the body’s way of disposing of dead debris: White blood cells convert the dead fat cells to triglycerides that are metabolized by the liver and eliminated. As the dead fat cells are gradually eliminated, the fat layer becomes thinner.
