By Victoria Bone
Cellulite is a fact of life -- and trying to lose weight can make it even worse, say researchers.
The depressing findings follow a study by U.S. scientists into popular "remedies" for a problem that affects 85 percent of women.
They tested treatments including low-fat and liquid diets, medication -- and surgical procedures such as stomach stapling.
And they discovered that while many women saw a slight improvement, almost a third found the condition had become even more noticeable.
None of them managed to get rid of it altogether.
Women who saw the best reductions were those who were most overweight to start with and had particularly severe cellulite.
The average weight loss was 30 pounds. The biggest improvements were those who lost the most weight and lowered their percentage of thigh fat. Researchers found skin elasticity played an important role -- with cellulite worsening in those whose skin became much looser after dieting.
John Kitzmiller, coauthor of the study, said, "Cellulite is not specific to overweight people, but excess weight may worsen the condition."
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