A recently done small study suggests that a drug already used to manage overactive bladder, may help weight control by improving the metabolic potency of brown fat.
In comparison, while white fat stores energy for the body, brown fat uses energy to produce body heat. Previous studies have shown that the process of converting energy to body heat by brown fat helps maintain body weight and guard against obesity. In this recent study, the researchers found that Mirabegron (Myrbetriq) could boost the metabolic rate of the body.
In this study, researchers selected 12 healthy lean young men with average age of 22 years, and gave each participant dosage of 200mg/day and 50mg for the overactive bladder.
The drug functions by activating the beta-adrenergic receptors found on the surface of brown fat cells, and relax the overactive muscle of the bladder.
The lead researcher of the study, Dr. Aaron Cypess, of the U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease, relates that study findings indicate that the drug the heart rate increased in participants, from the range of normal to abnormally high, at up to 14 beats.
The research team also noted that when the activity of the drug reached the peak level, the metabolic rate also rose by up to 13% on average which is equivalent to about 203 calories. However, Dr. Aaron Cypess dismissed the notion that the study findings meant men would continually lose 203 calories every day over the long-term.
Dr. Cypess conducted this research while he was working in Joslin Diabetic Center and at Harvard Medical School. Furthermore, Dr. Cypess maintained that since this study had very small sampling, more studies are needed to get enough evidence to fully establish the link. He also mentioned that he hopes to conduct another study with a larger group of participants including women.
