Losing weight by vibrating

A new study suggests a unique way of building more bone and less fat.  According to the New York Times, Dr. Rubin, from the State University of New York, reports that having mice stand on a vibrating platform causes them to build bone instead of fat.

All he does is put mice on a platform that buzzes at such a low frequency that some people cannot even feel it. The mice stand there for 15 minutes a day, five days a week. Afterward, they have 27 percent less fat than mice that did not stand on the platform — and correspondingly more bone.

The theory says that impact on bones causes them to grow more so the vibrating signals the bones to strengthen and grow.  Lots of follow up research will have to be done to prove that vibration can cause bone growth and to show how it can be applied to humans.  Human studies are already being planned.