A substance found in apple peel increases muscles and helps burn more calories - something which could help battle the bulge, scientists say.
Researchers fed mice a high fat diet - some were also given the substance ursolic acid, others weren't.
The researchers found the mice given the acid, found in apple peel, ate more food but didn't gain weight and had near normal blood sugar levels, Medical Daily reported.
"From previous work, we knew that ursolic acid increases muscle mass and strength in healthy mice, which is important because it might suggest a potential therapy for muscle wasting," said Prof Christopher Adams, one of the authors of the study.
"In this study, we tested ursolic acid in mice on a high-fat diet - a mouse model of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Once again, ursolic acid increased skeletal muscle. Interestingly, it also reduced obesity, pre-diabetes and fatty liver disease."
