Stubborn Fat

Localised fat deposits in the abdomen, flanks and under the chin carry a high density of alpha-2 receptors. These receptors actively inhibit fat breakdown in response to the same signals that shrink fat elsewhere.

Fat cells are distributed in a genetically determined pattern. Localised deposits in the abdomen, flanks, inner thighs and under the chin are particularly resistant because they carry a high density of alpha-2 adrenergic receptors. These receptors inhibit lipolysis in response to the same hormonal signals that shrink fat cells elsewhere. The result is that these areas hold onto their lipid content even when the rest of the body is responding to caloric deficit.

Diet and exercise shrink fat cells. They cannot eliminate them. When caloric balance is restored, the same cells are present and available to re-expand. This is receptor biology, not a discipline problem.

Diet and exercise cause fat cells to shrink in volume. What they cannot do is eliminate fat cells. When caloric balance is restored, the same cells re-expand. For areas with a high alpha-2 receptor density, shrinkage is limited from the outset, which means sustained dietary and exercise effort produces less visible change in these specific deposits than elsewhere.

Fat cells destroyed through cold-induced apoptosis do not return. The result is a permanent reduction in fat cell density, not a temporary shrinkage that reverses.

Lipocontrast uses controlled cooling to destroy fat cells through apoptosis, the body's own programmed cell death mechanism. Fat cells are more susceptible to cold-induced apoptosis than surrounding nerves, blood vessels and skin. Over eight to twelve weeks, the immune system clears the destroyed cells. Those specific cells do not return. Circumference measurement and clinical photography at baseline allow objective tracking across the full treatment timeline.