Susanna Søberg and Andrew Huberman podcast!
Dear People of Ice & Fire!
Some moons ago, I was on Andrew Huberman’s podcast.
We had a 2-hour & 30-minute long talk on heat & cold exposure.
Here’s the best part of that conversation:
Dr. Huberman:
Let's talk about brown fat.
Again, my understanding of this is far more elementary than yours.
Obviously, you're the expert.
My understanding about brown fat is that it's located in specific areas of our body.
It may be more widespread than what I learned in school.
I was taught it was just at the clavicles, the back of the neck, and the upper back.
But who knows?
Please educate me—tell me where I'm wrong and expand my knowledge on brown fat.
Dr. Soberg:
Okay, you're not wrong.
But it is true that there are more locations of brown fat than we previously thought.
There's a study from 2017 by Lightner et al. They used PET scans to find where brown fat is present & can grow in the body.
See, brown fat is very plastic, meaning it can grow and decrease.
For example:
There’s a case involving pheochromocytoma, a specific type of tumor on the adrenal gland.
Patients with this condition have a significant increase in norepinephrine.
Causing continuous activation of brown fat.
And because of that, they grow a lot of brown fat in the whole body.
Especially around the abdomen.
What we learned from these studies is:
"Brown fat can indeed grow if there's an increase in norepinephrine."
However, it can also lead to chronically high blood pressure.
See, you don't want norepinephrine levels high for too long.
As it activates the sympathetic nervous system.
The studies also showed that these patients lose a lot of weight.
The reason is, their metabolism becomes highly activated.
Luckily, when the benign tumor is removed, the brown fat decreases to normal levels…
The patients gain weight, and their blood pressure normalizes.
This serves as proof of concept that brown fat is plastic—it can grow and decrease.
However, we don't want all that brown fat. We only want to keep it and keep it activated.
Studies show that after 40, brown fat decreases while obesity increases.
It's unclear if aging reduces brown fat, leading to obesity, or if obesity reduces brown fat.
Let me tell you:
Brown fat is an insulin-sensitive organ. Like muscles, it may lose sensitivity and decrease with obesity.
This could be a possible theory explaining why we don't see as much brown fat in elderly people.
Some elderly individuals, however, do retain a lot of it…
Especially those who work outside.
Studies show that outdoor workers, like farmers, help maintain brown fat.
They are exposed to conditions that support its preservation.
Dr. Huberman:
We should clarify for people who may not know—insulin sensitivity is a very good thing.
You want your cells to be sensitive to insulin. Insulin insensitivity is linked to type 2 diabetes and obesity.
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Here’s the fact:
Cold exposure = Brown fat increase = Increase in metabolism = Faster weight loss, increase in focus, higher energy levels = Better life.
This is it.
Best way to increase cold exposure & brown fat?
Cold plunges.
You don’t need to do it for 5 or 10 minutes…
Only 1 or 2 minutes per session if you do it right.
This and much more is what the “Thermalist at home” online Course will teach you. Here you learn to ad the heat - in contrast therapy and how to use your breathwork to destress in our everyday life.
It shows you the exact steps I take and the proven techniques you need to maximize the health benefits of a sauna and cold plunge.
You can get it from here
>>>> Thermalist Method at Home
‘Thermalist at Home’ - 3,5 hours online course
Learn and practice the Thermalist Method at home: www.soeberginstitute.com
The science backed method in cold water, sauna and breathing techniques to lower stress and improve metabolism
Enjoy!
Best Regards,
Dr. Susanna Søberg