I have just read about a company producing lingerie that claims to aid slimming. It is apparently made from fabrics containing "Active Bio-Crystals that assist in the reduction of cellulite". Could this conceivably work? If so, how?

Elaine Pettifer London, UK

Does it come out in sweat? Does it come out in the toilet bowl? Or is it just used up as extra energy?

I had what might be called a lively discussion with a friend last night. He's a martial arts enthusiast, and was telling me how ingesting excess sugar can cause your body to store it as fat. I'm not a nutritionist, but I'm struggling to see how a saccharide can be turned into a triglyceride. I know about glycogen as a storage mechanism for glucose, but this isn't a fat. I know about Glucagon splitting triglycerides, but this isn't a carbohydrate. Can someone please help us out here - what is the biological pathway that turns a carbohydrate into a fat in the body, if indeed it happens at all?

Thanks,

Peter Finan