Findings of a new study have shown that people who have higher amounts of fat stored in their body usually face difficulty in losing weight despite numerous efforts. Researchers gave these conclusions after carrying out experiments on lab mice.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and Toho University in Japan found said they found that certain fat cells produce a protein that slow down the process of weight loss.

These fats cell also signal the body to hold the fat and therefore show less response to efforts made for weight loss.

“Our discovery may help explain why overweight individuals find it incredibly hard to lose weight. Their stored fat is actively fighting against their efforts to burn it off at the molecular level”, said study author Andrew Whittle, in a news release.

The protein known as sLR11 works in an opposite manner as the brown fat. It resists weight loss by inhibiting thermogenesis, or a process of creating heat that helps melt the fat away.

Researcher also noted that the amount of protein a person can have depends on how much fat is stored in that particular person’s body. The more fat a person has the more protein he has and the harder it will be for that person to lose weight.

The study conducted with lab mice showed that mice that didn’t have the protein were able to lose weight as compared to others with protein. The protein attaches itself to the receptors of fat cells, encouraging the cells to store as much fat as possible although in a more efficient way, said researchers.