Research
Energy balance
Current estimates of brown adipose tissue (BAT) contribution to total energy expenditure are likely significant underestimates because 18FDG PET/CT underestimates true BAT volume, especially in obese individuals.
Standard scans might underestimate your brown fat, especially if you are overweight. This means your body might have more potential for cold-induced calorie burning than currently thought.
ModerateQualifiesMEDIUM confidence
Therefore, the current estimates of total BAT thermogenesis, largely relying on total BAT volume using 18FDG PET/CT, may underestimate the true contribution of BAT to total energy expenditure.
Why this rating
Based on the authors' interpretation of methodological limitations of PET/CT.
Source
Brown Adipose Tissue Energy Metabolism in Humans
André C. Carpentier et al. · Frontiers in Endocrinology · 2018
DOI 10.3389/fendo.2018.00447
narrative_reviewCited 312×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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