Being cold helps you lose weight, a new study found.

一项新的研究表明，寒冷可以使人减肥。

Exercise or being exposed to low temperatures creates more 'good' brown and beige types of body fat which burns calories in the body.

运动或暴露在低温下可以创造出更多“有益的”褐色和灰褐色类型的脂肪，他们可以在体内燃烧卡路里。

Previous research has found being cold mimics¹ the effects of exercise, protecting against obesity² and improving metabolic³ health.

此前的研究发现，寒冷可以模仿运动的效果，防止肥胖并改善代谢健康。

Now, a new study has discovered how exposure to cold dramatically alters the composition of bacteria the gut⁴, and this leads to fat-burning, improved glucose⁵ metabolism⁶, and reduced body weight.

目前，一项新的研究发现了暴露在寒冷中是如何改变肠道细菌的组成，这可以引起脂肪燃烧，提高葡萄糖的新陈代谢，并降低体重。

The findings could provide new treatments for overweight or obese⁷ people, researchers said.

研究人员称，该发现可以为超重或肥胖人士提供新的治疗方案。

Professor Mirko Trajkovski of the University of Geneva said: 'We provide compelling evidence that gut microbes play a key role in our ability to adapt to the environment by directly regulating our energy balance.

瑞士日内瓦大学米尔科·特拉伊科夫斯基教授说：“我们可以提供强有力的证据证明在我们的能力下，肠道微生物通过直接调控我们体内的能量平衡从而在适应环境上发挥着关键作用。

'We are excited about exploring the therapeutic⁸ potential of these findings and testing whether targeting some of these microbes could be a promising⁹ approach for preventing obesity and related metabolic conditions.'

“我们对于能够探索这些发现的医疗潜力，并且测试这些微生物中的一些对于防止肥胖和相关的新陈代谢疾病是否是一个有前景的方法感到很兴奋。”

While ordinary white fat- known as 'bad' fat - piles on when we eat more calories than we burn, brown fat seems to burn excess calories to generate heat.

当我们吃进去的卡路里比燃烧的卡路里多时，普通的白脂肪--也被称为”坏的“脂肪--就会堆积起来。褐色脂肪似乎可以燃烧多余的卡路里来产生热量。

We know babies have lots of brown fat — they need it to keep warm — but studies have shown there are small amounts in the necks of adults, too.

我们知道婴儿有很多的褐色脂肪--他们需要褐色脂肪来保暖---但是研究显示，在人类脖子上也存在着少量的褐色脂肪。

Experts believe that certain activities could switch on this fat, potentially helping¹⁰ to burn calories at a greater rate.

专家相信某些活动可以启动这种脂肪，可能有助于以更大的速度燃烧卡路里。

And studies have shown certain activities, such as sleeping in a cold, can trigger the formation of more brown fat in the body.

而这些研究已经显示某些活动，例如睡在寒冷的环境中，可以触发体内更多褐色细胞的形成。

Gut microbes have also been implicated¹¹ in obesity and obesity-related conditions like Type 2 diabetes¹² and heart disease.

肠道微生物同样也与脂肪和脂肪相关疾病，例如二型糖尿病和心脏疾病有关。

It is thought the composition of millions of bacteria in our intestines¹⁴ can effect how we metabolise different foods and, therefore, how much weight we gain.

据认为，我们肠道内数百万细菌的组成可以影响我们代谢不同食物的方式，由此影响我们会增重多少。

Researchers theorised the health benefits of being exposed to cold may be linked to gut bacteria.

研究人员推断称暴露在寒冷中的健康益处可能与肠道细菌有关联。

As part of the new study, they exposed mice to cold temperature of 6°C (43°F) for up to 10 days.

作为新研究的一部分，他们把老鼠放置在6摄氏度（43华氏度）的低温下达10天。

They discovered this caused a major shift in the composition of the mice's gut microbes and preventing them from gaining weight.

他们发现，这引发了老鼠体内肠道细菌组成的主要变化并阻止他们增加重量。

Then, the cold-induced gut bacteria were transplanted into other mice that did not harbour gut microbes because they had been raised in a germ-free environment.

之后，这些由寒冷引起的肠道细菌被移植到了其他因生长在无菌环境中而不含有肠道微生物的老鼠体内。

It was found these mice had improved glucose metabolism, increased tolerance¹⁵ to cold temperatures.

据发现，这些老鼠改善了葡萄糖的新陈代谢，提升了对低温的忍耐力。

The mice also lost weight as the changes in gut bacteria promoted the formation of beige fat.

由于肠道细菌的改变促进了灰褐色脂肪的形成，这些老鼠的重量也下降了。

Professor Trajkovski said: 'These findings demonstrate that gut microbes directly regulate the energy balance in response to changes in the environment.'

特拉伊科夫斯基教授说：“这些发现证明肠道微生物可以直接调节能量平衡以应对环境变化。”

However, after three weeks of cold exposure, body weight began to stabilise.

不过，暴露在寒冷中三周后，体重就开始稳定下来。

The intestine¹³ grew so it absorbed more nutrients¹⁶ from food, offsetting¹⁷ any additional weight loss.

因为肠道开始成长，所以从食物中吸收了更多的营养，弥补了任何额外的体重下降。

He added: 'These findings demonstrate that gut microbes enable mammals to harvest more energy from food as a way to adapt to the increased energy demand associated with long periods of cold exposure, thereby¹⁸ helping to protect against hypothermia.

他补充说，这些发现证明肠道微生物能够使哺乳动物从食物中收获更多能量，以此适应与长时间暴露在低温下有关的能量需求上升，从而有助于防止体温过低。

'We were surprised to see that gut microbes had such dramatic effects on the structure and function of the intestine.'

“我们很惊讶地发现肠道微生物对肠道结构和功能有如此巨大的影响。”

The team now plans to study the molecular¹⁹ mechanisms²⁰ by which gut microbes sense changes in the environment, such as cold, which affect how much energy a person uses up.

该团队现在正计划研究分子机制，通过它肠道微生物可以意识到像寒冷这样的环境变化，这种环境变化可以影响一个人到底能消耗多少能量。

They are also looking into how changing certain gut bacteria may prevent obesity by remodelling²¹ intestinal²² tissue and thereby decreasing the absorption of nutrients in the gut.

他们也正在研究某种肠道细菌的改变可能会如何通过改变肠道组织结构来阻止肥胖，从而降低肠道中营养成分的吸收。