Their breakthrough could now pave the way to creating a drug that quickly banishes the unsightly belly fat.
Losing weight around the middle is a battle that becomes harder as we age.
But University of Aberdeen-led research has revealed a revolutionary new insight.
Signals in the brain that tell us to stop eating function less efficiently as we approach mid-life.
The researchers, along with experts at the universities of Cambridge and Michigan in the US, have worked together to unlock the role obesity drugs can play in re-igniting these signals.
Lead scientist Professor Lora Heisler, of Aberdeen’s Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, said their research focused on cells in the area of the brain where appetite is controlled and how current obesity drugs function.
“These cells make important brain hormones called pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) peptides that are responsible for regulating our appetite and body weight,” she said.
Previous research has shown that people with “beer bellies” and bulging tummies are at the highest risk of suffering heart disease and cancer
“As we approach mid-life these cells slow down and become lazier in sending these signals, which leads to a misjudgment of how much food our body needs.”
The study findings, published in the journal Endocrinology, could have major implications for the development of new treatments to tackle the obesity epidemic.
Prof Heisler added: “More than half of people in the UK are overweight and one in four is clinically obese. This is an enormous percentage of the population and given the links established between obesity and serious medical illnesses, including cancer, heart disease and diabetes, it is essential that we strive to find new methods to tackle this epidemic to improve our health.”
Previous research has shown that people with “beer bellies” and bulging tummies are at the highest risk of suffering heart disease and cancer.
Those with middle-age spread but of a normal weight are far more likely than even the obese to die prematurely.
It is thought a podgy tummy can be a killer because it is packed with “bad fat” that leads to damaging inflammation in blood vessels.