The world is obsessed with dieting and weight loss, yet few people actually know how fat disappears from the body.
What happens to body fat after weight loss?
The most common misconception is that fat is converted into energy. The problem with this theory is that it violates the law of conservation of mass, which governs all chemical reactions.
Some also believe that fat turns into muscle, which is impossible, while others assume that fat is eliminated from the body through the colon.
If none of these are true, then where does the fat go?
The correct answer is that fat is converted into carbon dioxide and water. The carbon dioxide is exhaled, while the water mixes with the bloodstream until it is eliminated from the body through urine or sweat, according to Professor Andrew Brown.
If someone loses 10 kg of fat, 8.4 kg is exhaled through the lungs, while the remaining 1.6 kg is converted into water.
The researchers pointed out that the only way to intentionally increase the amount of carbon dioxide the body produces is by moving the muscles.
It's also worth noting that the body exhales 200 grams of carbon dioxide during sleep, which is roughly a quarter of the daily target for weight loss.