Breath Out Your Calories
Exhaling Carbon Dioxide Leads To Weight Loss
Have you ever wondered where the fat goes when you lose weight? You might think that it gets burned off as energy, or that it turns into muscle, or that it gets flushed out of your body. But none of these are true. The surprising answer is that most of the fat we lose is exhaled as carbon dioxide!
How does this work? Well, fat is made up of molecules called triglycerides, which consist of three fatty acids and a glycerol. When we eat more calories than we need, our body stores the excess triglycerides in fat cells for later use. When we need to use them, our body breaks down the triglycerides into their components and sends them to different parts of the body where they can be oxidized, or burned, for energy. Fat loss is the oxidation of these molecules.
Oxidation is a chemical reaction that involves combining a molecule with oxygen. When we oxidize the fatty acids and the glycerol, we produce carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) as waste or by-products. For example, one molecule of palmitic acid, a common fatty acid, produces 16 molecules of CO2 and 16 molecules of H2O when oxidized.
The CO2 and H2O then leave our body through different routes. The water mixes into our blood and other fluids and is eventually lost as urine, sweat, tears, or saliva. The CO2 travels to our lungs and is exhaled with every breath. In fact, the lungs are the main organ that gets rid of our fat!
How much CO2 do we exhale when we lose weight? According to a study published in the BMJ in 2014, 84% of the fat that we lose turns into CO2 and 16% turns into water. This means that if you lose 10 kg of fat, 8.4 kg of it comes out through your lungs and 1.6 kg of it becomes water. In other words, nearly all the weight we lose is exhaled!
Of course, this doesn't mean that breathing more will make you lose weight faster. The rate of oxidation depends on how much energy your body needs, which is determined by your metabolism, physical activity, and diet. Breathing more than you need to will only make you hyperventilate and feel dizzy, the pH would be out of balance. The best way to lose weight is still to eat less and move more. A good nights sleep is good for weight loss. Movement improves weight loss too.
However, knowing that most of our fat leaves our body as CO2 can help us appreciate the role of our lungs in loosing weight. It can also motivate us to breathe deeply and regularly, which can improve our oxygen intake, blood circulation, and mental health. So next time you step on the scale and see a lower number, remember to thank your lungs for exhaling your fat away!
Click Here to read more on our Documentation of Breath Awareness