“I love to travel and be social. I train every week, and many people are surprised by how strong I am, but walking up stairs or uphill causes pain right away,” Kwapeng mentioned. Credit score: Anne Sliper Midling
Current analysis exhibits that lipoedema and its painful, difficult-to-lose fats hurts much less when sufferers are on a low-carb eating regimen.
It began when she was in decrease secondary college.
Her thighs, calves and higher arms all of a sudden started to develop, and he or she couldn’t perceive why it was so painful. It was not till she was over 40 years outdated that Sunniva Kwapeng was identified with lipoedema.
Nonetheless, earlier than an accurate analysis was made, she tried all types of diets—with little success.
A current NTNU research exhibits that her expertise is sort of typical. It’s unlikely that the physique fats related to lipoedema may be misplaced by way of weight-reduction plan. The work is revealed within the journal Present Developments in Diet.
Restricted data
“Despite this being a disease that affects many women, little is known about it, which is rather thought-provoking,” mentioned Julianne Lundanes, a former Ph.D. candidate at NTNU.
“This is a poorly understood patient group, and many live with shame. There has been increased focus on lipoedema in recent years. We hope that our work can contribute to a better understanding of the disease and treatment for these women,” says Lundanes, a former doctoral analysis fellow at NTNU.
Lipoedema is a poorly understood illness that primarily impacts girls.
The illness is characterised by disproportionate and extra fatty tissue on the thighs and calves, and typically on the arms, whereas the palms and ft stay unaffected.
Lundanes lately submitted her doctoral thesis at NTNU on the connection between two totally different diets and their results on ache, high quality of life, physique weight and composition, urge for food and irritation.
Some folks additionally develop into overweight
Lipoedema is painful. It may be painful to maneuver, and it’s straightforward for folks with the illness to get caught up in a vicious cycle of inactivity and lowered high quality of life. Lipoedema is commonly mistaken for weight problems, however they’re two distinct circumstances.
If an individual with lipoedema loses weight, it is not uncommon to see regular fats disappear, comparable to on the abdomen, whereas the calves and thighs stay the identical measurement. When an individual is overweight, fats may be saved all around the physique, each underneath the pores and skin and across the inside organs.
In lipoedema, the buildup of fatty tissue happens primarily underneath the pores and skin on the hips, thighs, calves and arms.
A basic signal of lipoedema is the event of “cuffs” round your wrist. “When I was young, I exercised and ate just like everyone else, but my weight took on a life of its own. It was very frustrating, and it took many years before I understood why,” Kwapeng mentioned.
The ache related to the illness can have a major affect on high quality of life, making motion tough.
“We don’t know why the disease is so painful. We believe it involves an inflammatory condition in the fat, and that this is what causes the pain,” mentioned Lundanes.
Lipoedema is commonly hereditary
There are presently no Norwegian nationwide tips for the remedy or follow-up of girls with lipoedema.
“We also don’t know much about why some women develop lipoedema, except that it appears to be hereditary. It is often the case that several people in the same family are affected by it. The disease often manifests during hormonal changes such as puberty, pregnancy and menopause,” Lundanes mentioned.
Despite the fact that it is summer season and scorching outdoors, Kwapeng wears compression pants. She wears them each single day. Compression compresses the fats, reduces ache, and helps Kwapeng operate in her on a regular basis life with a full-time job and a small little one.
The intention of Lundanes’s research was to find out whether or not a low-carbohydrate eating regimen might serve in its place type of remedy for sufferers with the illness.
She had a pattern of 70 girls with lipoedema aged 19–73 years outdated, which was divided into two teams.
One group adopted a low-carb eating regimen, whereas the opposite adopted a low-fat eating regimen. Each teams ate the identical variety of energy every day, however the quantity of carbohydrates and fats assorted.
What had been the 2 diets like?
The low-carb eating regimen: Contributors ate primarily meat, poultry, and fish, eggs, nuts, small quantities of low-carb vegetables and fruit, and dairy merchandise. Butter and high-fat dairy merchandise had been changed with wholesome fat comparable to olive oil and meals wealthy in polyunsaturated fatty acids.
The low-fat eating regimen: This eating regimen consisted primarily of complete grains—together with bread, pasta, and rice. Contributors additionally ate legumes, fruits, and greens. They had been additionally allowed to eat average quantities of eggs, meat, poultry, fish, and low-fat dairy merchandise.
Each teams consumed about 1,200 energy per day.
The contributors obtained weekly follow-up for eight weeks and had been examined initially and finish of the research. Ache and high quality of life had been measured by way of a questionnaire.
The outcomes confirmed clear variations between the 2 teams.
Comparable levels of irritation
“The women in the low-carb group had less pain. The participants in the other group did not experience any change in pain, but both groups reported better quality of life,” mentioned Lundanes.
Checks had been additionally carried out to see if the discount in ache was because of the low-carb eating regimen resulting in much less irritation within the physique. This turned out to not be the case.
“There was no difference in changes in inflammation between the two groups. We also measured inflammation through blood tests, so inflammation in the fatty tissue itself still needs to be investigated in order to draw any conclusions,” Lundanes mentioned.
Larger weight reduction on the low-carb eating regimen
The ladies who adopted the low-carb eating regimen misplaced extra weight than those that adopted the low-fat eating regimen.
“At the end of the study, we found that the women who ate fewer carbohydrates were less hungry than the other group. The feeling of being less hungry is a well-known benefit of low-carb diets once ketosis is achieved. This may have helped these women lose more weight than the other group,” Lundanes mentioned.
“I love to travel and be social. I train every week, and many people are surprised by how strong I am, but walking up stairs or uphill causes pain right away,” Kwapeng mentioned.
There isn’t any remedy that may eradicate the causes of or remedy lipoedema. There’s solely remedy that may alleviate among the signs.
Liposuction is one possibility, however it’s presently solely supplied as a part of a analysis research at Haraldsplass Hospital in Bergen. The one different various is to pay for personal surgical procedure, and that may price a whole lot of 1000’s of Norwegian kroner.
“The long-term effects of lipoedema liposuction have still not been fully investigated. There is a lack of research in this area too,” Lundanes mentioned.
Compression reduces ache
Most individuals presently obtain assist in the type of bodily remedy and compression clothes that squeeze and help the fatty tissue.
“Compression garments give many people relief,” says Lundanes.
For Kwapeng, compression clothes have been an important assist in managing the ache.
Norway has no nationwide tips for the remedy of lipoedema, so choices as to which sufferers are given monetary help for remedy comparable to compression clothes are made on a case-by-case foundation.
“I’ve also lost many centimeters on my legs because of the compression garments. My expenses for compression are covered, but in other parts of the country, they’re not. It’s completely random what kind of help you get,” says Kwapeng.
At house, she has a machine that is additionally utilized by sufferers with different circumstances. The machine is named a pulsator and is a vacuum remedy for the lymphatic vessels designed to activate the lymphatic system. Lymphatic drainage initiates a number of cleaning processes within the physique and will help enhance blood circulation.
The machine is sort of a large pair of pants used whereas mendacity down.
“It works really well for me. It takes away the pain. I also get more energy. If I have low energy and lie down in it, it’s like my body wakes up,” says Kwapeng.
Over time, she has discovered to stay with the illness.
“It’s frustrating to have a condition that is so poorly understood. A doctor once told me that at least I won’t die from having lipoedema—but I die a little every time I can’t sit on the floor with my daughter. I die a little every time I can’t go on a hike I want to take because of the pain. And I die a little every time people think I’m just fat and lazy,” Kwapeng mentioned.
Extra info:
Julianne Lundanes et al, Adjustments in Cytokines and Fibrotic Development Components after Low-Carbohydrate or Low-Fats Low-Power Diets in Females with Lipedema, Present Developments in Diet (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.cdnut.2025.104571
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Research confirms diets ineffective towards lipoedema-related fats in girls (2025, August 7)
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