Background and objectives: Obesity is caused by excessive fat accumulation or abnormal fat distribution and has become one of the biggest health challenges worldwide. Considering the high thermogenic ability of brown fat tissue (BAT) and the plasticity of fat tissue, to induce the browning of white fat tissue (WAT), so increasing BAT activity provides an attractive option for the prevention and resolution of obesity. The aim of the present narrative review was to understand the relationship between diet, BAT, and obesity.
Methods and study design: PubMed and Embase databases were searched to identify eligible studies.
Results: Although cold exposure has long been known to be effective in the browning of WAT and activation of BAT, it is societally impractical for everyday body weight management aside from the tolerance of ambient temperature. An alternative is to identify specific dietary components with similar effects to cold exposure on BAT. Current evidence indicates that capsaicin and capsinoids, catechins, curcumin, quercetin, berberine, lipoic acid, polyunsaturated fatty acids, royal jelly, and some natural sweeteners are effective promoters of WAT browning, increase BAT activity and improve obesity related traits. However, only capsaicin, capsinoids, and catechins have demonstrated efficacy in clinical trials. Evidence for effects of curcumin, quercetin, berberine, lipoic acid, polyunsaturated fatty acids, royal jelly and natural sweeteners on BAT have only been observed in animal or in vitro studies, with clinical trials awaited for verification.
Conclusions: Several dietary components can induce WAT browning and activate BAT, offering potential targets for obesity prevention and management.