Health · Medical Research · 39 mins ago
Brown Fat Linked to Fewer Recorded Anxiety and Depression Diagnoses
Researchers examined medical records and scans from more than 100,000 patients at a New York cancer center.
Brown fat is tissue that produces heat when activated by cold and can be seen on certain medical scans.
In matched groups, depression diagnoses were recorded for 5.4% of patients with detectable brown fat, compared with 8.2% without it.
Anxiety diagnoses were also less common among patients with detectable brown fat, and the associations remained after researchers accounted for several other factors.
The findings do not show that brown fat prevents mental health conditions; the study was retrospective and involved cancer patients, so other differences may have affected the results.
The researchers say future trials of ways to activate brown fat should track whether patients' anxiety or depression changes.
Patients with detectable brown fat had fewer recorded diagnoses of depression and anxiety than matched patients without it.
Researchers analyzed records from more than 100,000 patients at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.
Depressive episode diagnoses were recorded for 5.4 percent of patients with detectable brown fat, compared with 8.2 percent of those without it.
The study found associations, but does not show that brown fat prevents or treats mental health conditions.
The researchers said healthier metabolic profiles and lower inflammation could help explain the association.
- Who
- Researchers led by endocrinologist Nicolás Gómez-Banoy studied patients at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
- What
- The study found fewer recorded anxiety and depression diagnoses among patients with detectable brown fat.
- When
- The research was published in Nature; the article was published on 2026-11-06.
- Where
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.
- Why
- Researchers investigated whether brown fat was associated with psychiatric diagnoses. The study does not establish why the association exists.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The research team published an earlier study linking brown fat to lower rates of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Researchers broadened their investigation to hundreds of diagnoses and analyzed patient records and scans.
ScienceAlert published an account of the research, which was published in Nature.
- Patient records
- More than 100,000 patients
- Depression diagnoses
- 5.4 percent with detectable brown fat; 8.2 percent without it
- Detailed brown fat analysis
- About 8,700 patients with detectable brown fat
- Study location
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York
- Research publication
- Nature
What people are saying
Given that our study is retrospective, it is important to note that these findings are associations and do not demonstrate causation.
What surprised us the most is that there are no previous studies documenting a potential connection between brown fat and mood.
The most plausible explanation is that patients with brown fat show an improved metabolic profile, healthier fat distribution, and lower inflammatory markers.