Number of fat cells / autophagy

DorothyB

I think we have all read / heard that fat cells produce estrogen. I've also read many places that when you lose weight, you don't lose fat cells. I guess they just get smaller?

I've also read that during autophagy, the body cleans up old / damaged cells.

My question is - does autophagy reduce the number of fat cells in the body? I tried googling it, but the results were all too scientific and I couldn't understand them

Thanks!

Euphoriaa

It's an interesting question. It is true that fat cells reduce their size (not their number) when a person loses weight. However, fat cells, like any body cell, are programmed for apoptosis. If you mantain low your weight, your fat cells will decrease their reproduction rate, since the body tends to save energy. That means that excess lipid cells that die will not be replaced.