“A ‘flab jab’ that allows people to gorge on junk food yet keep trim could be on the horizon. Scientists have invented an obesity vaccine that uses the immune system to fight weight gain. In tests, mice given a single injection lost 10 per cent of body weight after four days. What is more, the animals were being fed on high-fat food – suggesting the ‘flab jab’ might allow people to eat badly yet stay slim. But don’t abandon your diet yet. Leaving aside the other damaging effects on health of eating too much high-fat food, the research is still at a very early stage and the drug is around seven to ten years from the market. The vaccine works by fooling the body’s immune system into making antibodies against a hormone called somatostatin.” w/ photos
