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[[File:WeightlossCoolSculpting device.jpg|right|thumb|300px250px|It seems like everyone wants to be leanerThe commercial CoolSculpting® device.]]Losing body fat is big business {{DISPLAYTITLE:CoolSculpting and one DIY CoolSculpting (Cryolipolysis)}}The idea of using cold to remove fat seems too good to be true, but if you understand the latest approaches limitations it can be quite effective. It could also be performed cheaply at home. This approach is marketed as CoolSculpting®, also called or Cryolipolysis®. The word 'Cryolipolysis' literally means "cold fat loss", and CoolSculpting It works by chilling the skin so that the underlying fat cells are reduced. While commercial CoolScuplting requires expensive equipment, I've found that a similar effect can be produced at home for almost no cost.

A common concern is frostbite, or other damage to the skin. This is not a problem, as you need far colder temperatures (-10c/14f) to cause that type of damage<ref name="CryoSkin"/><ref name="CellDeath"/>. CoolSculpting uses temperatures that do not immediately kill off the fat cells, but rather trigger the natural process of cell death([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoptosis apoptosis]). That's why CoolSculpting takes weeks or months for the full effect to be seen.

There have been no serious side effects reported so far<ref name="ClNelson"/>. The skin being treated goes red, with some bruising and numbness. I suspect that the bruising may be because the CoolSculpting device sucks<ref name="CsSuction"/><ref name="CryroNerves"/> the fat against the cooling device. These problems normally resolve within a week. Studies have shown no changes in blood lipid levels or liver function<ref name="CyroMeta"/>. The numbness is not associated with nerve damage<ref name="CryroNerves"/>. There are reports of a small number of patients having a prolonged (weeks), painful response to CoolScuplting<ref name="CSIndividuality"/>, though a study of 528 patients that underwent 2,729 cycles showed only three cases of mild or moderate pain, which resolved within 4 days<ref name="StevensPietrzak2013"/>.

='DIY CoolSculpting'=Having reviewed the evidence for the commercial CoolSculpting, I wondered if it would be possible to replicate the effects by simply applying ice to the skin. An early study of CoolSculpting showed a reduction in the fat levels from -1c/31f, though not as great a loss as colder temperatures<ref name="CryoNovel"/>. The levels of fat on my legs are noticeably lower than other parts of my body, which might be the result of regular icing. There is evidence that applying ice to the skin produces an inflammation response in just a few minutes<ref name="CyroMeta"/>, so this approach seems viable. '''Use only ice cubes in a bag. Do not Never use gel packs as these are cold enough to cause skin damage.''' For more details, see [[Cryotherapy]].

So I undertook a simple experiment and applied a bag of ice to the right left side of my abdomen for 1-3 hours a day for two weeks. I generally did this in the evenings, applying the ice while watching TV or reading. While the ice is initially uncomfortable and cold, this sensation disappears in a couple of minutes. It also seems that after the first few times the ice is applied, the discomfort is far less.

At the end of the two weeks the fat thickness on the left side was noticeably thinner than the right side. The difference seemed to increase in the week following termination of the icing. At this point I started icing the right side to regain symmetry. It’s It's hard to evaluate exactly how much change occurred in a few weeks, and I’m I'm already quite thin (<10% body fat), so small differences are more noticeable than would be the case on someone larger. It’s also not clear to me how the fat reduction will increase over the next few months, as the indications are from CoolSculpting that it should take 3-4 months for the full effect. I used [[Skinfold Calipers]] to check my abdominal skinfold thickness and found a 2mm difference (measured 2 inches to the side of my navel). This is enough to be obvious to me, but not to show up well on photographs. Below are a couple of pictures that attempt to capture the resulting asymmetry.

I used DIY The research into CoolSculpting in May 2012 suggests that it takes 3-4 months for a period of a few weeksthe full effect. As noted above, Because I evaluated applied the effectiveness of DIY CoolSculpting by applying it more to the left side of my abs than , it is possible to see how long the right, which resulting effects last. I used DIY CoolSculpting in May 2012 for a difference in fat thicknessperiod of a few weeks. In the following year two years my weight fluctuated by around 10 15 pounds and my abdominal skinfold measurement varied between 6mm and 10mm. I performed no more DIY CoolSculpting or icing of my abs during that time. Regardless of these fluctuations the slight difference in the two sides remained constant. This difference is slight, amounting to around 1-2mm, but is noticeable on inspection. This suggests that the effects of DIY CoolSculpting last for at least a year two years and probably much longer. However, Obviously DIY CoolSculpting will does not prevent overall weight being regained in the treated areasgain, but it's unclear if it will limit this gain in any way. ==How to perform DIY CoolSculpting==I iced for 1-3 hours most days, which is far more than CoolSculpting which uses a single 1 hour session. I have no idea if 'more is better' or if a single hour every couple of months is optimal. None of the research I found had any indication of the relative proportiondose/response relationship.