Hormonal
Systemic nonselective beta-adrenergic stimulation via isoprenaline increases whole-body energy expenditure to levels comparable to cold exposure but does not activate brown adipose tissue (BAT) in humans.
Taking beta-agonists to boost metabolism via brown fat activation is likely ineffective in humans. While these drugs do increase calorie burning, they do so through other tissues (like skeletal muscle), not brown fat. Strategies relying on beta-agonists to target brown fat specifically are not supported by this evidence.
We therefore conclude that systemic nonselective b-adrenergic stimulation by ISO at concentrations that increase energy expenditure to the same extent as cold exposure does not activate BAT in humans, indicating that other tissues are responsible for the increased b-adrenergic thermogenesis.
Why this rating
Randomized controlled crossover design with PET-CT imaging, though small sample size (n=10) limits generalizability.
Source
Systemic β-Adrenergic Stimulation of Thermogenesis Is Not Accompanied by Brown Adipose Tissue Activity in Humans
Maarten J. Vosselman et al. · Diabetes · 2012
DOI 10.2337/db12-0288
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