Does Fat Freezing Work? Evidence, Side Effects, & Cost
Key Takeaways:
Fat freezing is a procedure that uses cold exposure to reduce body fat in target areas.
Side effects include tingling, numbness, redness, and more serious effects, like cold burns, frostbite, and increased fat tissue in treated areas.
Fat freezing isn’t an obesity or weight loss treatment. It’s meant for small areas of body fat that don’t respond to lifestyle changes.
Fat freezing — aka cryolipolysis or CoolSculpting™ — is a noninvasive procedure that uses very cold temperatures to reduce body fat in targeted areas.
Does fat freezing work? The research we have so far suggests it might reduce body fat in some areas for some people. But it’s not always effective.
Keep reading to find out more about fat freezing, including how it works, what results you may get, side effects, and more.
What Is Fat Freezing?
Fat freezing (cryolipolysis) is a nonsurgical fat reduction procedure that involves targeted cold exposure to reduce small areas of body fat. This cosmetic treatment is branded as CoolSculpting.
A practitioner applies a cooling device to chosen body parts — for example, the thigh, stomach, upper arm, bum, or under the jawline. Skin is cooled to just above freezing temperature for about 40 to 60 minutes, and fat cells are essentially killed off.
Fat loss after a cryolipolysis procedure can take 3 to 6 months. On average, you might see a 10 to 25 percent reduction in fat in treated areas. But results vary depending on where you get treatment and how much body fat you have.
Fat freezing was inspired by a finding back in 1970 when researchers saw that a child eating an ice lolly experienced temporary fat cell death in their cheek. Seriously.
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Does Fat Freezing Work?
Fat freezing might work in some areas for some people.
A 2025 systematic review and meta-analysis looked at 30 studies on fat freezing. The results showed that, 12 weeks after treatment, participants had a reduction in:
Body mass index (BMI)
Waist-to-hip ratio
Average abdominal circumference
Average suprailiac fat thickness — fat just above the hip bone
However, there wasn’t a significant difference in the participants’ average:
Thigh circumference
Thigh fat thickness
Belly fat
Subcutaneous fat thickness — fat that sits under the skin
Another review of studies on fat freezing found that the average reduction of body fat measured by callipers ranged from about 15 to 29 percent. When measured with an ultrasound, the average fat reduction ranged from roughly 10 to 26 percent.
Finally, a small study on women found that abdominal fat layer thickness went down by about 47 percent 6 months after fat freezing.
Cryolipolysis isn’t always a one-and-done treatment, though. You might need more than one fat freezing treatment to get the results you’re after.
How Does Fat Freezing Work?
Fat cells are more prone to damage from cold exposure than other cells. Targeted cold exposure reduces blood flow and damages fat cells, which triggers inflammation and fat cell death.
Over the few weeks following a fat freezing procedure, your body clears out these damaged and dead fat cells, resulting in a reduction of body fat in the treated area.
How Long Does Fat Freezing Last?
It’s unclear how long fat freezing lasts. Some research suggests it can last several years.
Crucially, fat freezing isn’t a magic pill — or magic procedure, in this case. You can still put on weight and develop fat in treated areas (and the rest of your body). Without healthy lifestyle habits, you might regain the fat you lost.
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Fat Freezing Side Effects
Side effects of fat freezing include:
Numbness
Tingling
Skin redness
Swelling
Sensitivity
Bruising
Severe or persistent pain
Skin darkening (hyperpigmentation)
Rare side effects include cold burns — sometimes severe enough to need skin grafts — as well as frostbite and hernias.
Paradoxical Adipose Hyperplasia (PAH)
Paradoxical adipose hyperplasia (PAH) — when the targeted area develops more fatty tissue, rather than less — can also be a rare but more serious side effect. This creates a firm, enlarged bulge and is permanent.
PAH doesn’t respond to diet or exercise and typically requires surgical removal (liposuction) to correct.
Who Can Get Fat Freezing Treatments?
Fat freezing might be suitable for people who have small amounts of body fat that don’t respond to lifestyle interventions. It isn’t a treatment for obesity or weight loss — it can only offer minor fat reduction in small areas.
If you’re considering a fat freezing treatment, make sure you get it from a trustworthy company by a trained professional. Check out fat freezing reviews from the company, and ask about the procedure and equipment used.
Who Should Avoid Fat Freezing?
You shouldn’t get a fat freezing treatment if you have cold-induced health conditions, like:
Abnormal proteins in the blood (cryoglobulinemia)
Cold hives (urticaria)
Paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria — when cold exposure kills red blood cells
Raynaud’s disease
Swollen patches and blisters on the hands and feet (chilblains)
Fat freezing might increase symptoms of these conditions.
You also shouldn’t get fat freezing in areas with:
Varicose veins
Dermatitis
Skin lesions
Poor blood circulation
Getting fat freezing in areas with these issues might increase your risk of complications.
Fat freezing in certain areas can cause hernias, so if you’ve got a history of hernias, you probably won’t be eligible for the treatment.
Let your aesthetician or healthcare professional know about any health conditions you have or medicines you’re taking. They can make sure the treatment is safe for you.
Alternatives to Fat Freezing
Alternatives to fat freezing include lifestyle changes, liposuction, and weight loss medicines to promote fat loss.
Here’s more on your options:
Lifestyle changes. Eating more nutritious foods, doing more movement, and getting enough sleep can promote fat loss. Although, you can’t choose where on your body you lose fat.
Liposuction. Liposuction is a surgical procedure that sucks out fat deposits from small areas of the body. It’s expensive, invasive, and requires downtime post-treatment, though.
Weight loss medicines. Weight loss injections, like Wegovy® and Mounjaro®, can promote fat loss in people with overweight or obesity. They work by reducing appetite and making you feel fuller.
You can’t target fat loss with weight loss medicines. But they’re licensed as obesity and overweight treatments, so they’re suitable for overall body fat loss and may provide other health benefits.
Fat Freezing: Should You Get It?
Fat freezing can be an effective cosmetic procedure to reduce body fat in certain areas. But it’s not without risks.
Here are the key points to keep in mind:
Fat freezing shows some promise. It might reduce pockets of fat in targeted areas, like under the jaw, in the stomach, and above the hips. But research is mixed.
It can cause side effects. You might experience tingling, numbness, and redness soon after treatment. More serious side effects include frostbite and increased fat in the treatment area.
Fat freezing isn’t an obesity treatment. The fat-reduction treatment targets small areas of body fat and doesn’t impact any causes of obesity, like a heightened appetite or food noise.
If you’re looking into weight loss treatments, weight loss medicines could be an option if you have overweight or obesity.
Learn more about weight loss medicines and if they’re right for you through the Hers U.K. platform.
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FAQs
Get answers to frequently asked questions about fat freezing below.
Does CoolSculpting work?
CoolSculpting treatment might work for some people in specific areas of the body. Some research found that fat freezing reduced fat thickness above the hip, but it didn’t make a difference to fat thickness in the thigh or fat inside the abdomen.
How much does fat freezing cost?
Fat freezing costs vary depending on where you get treatment and how many areas you treat. Fat freezing in the United Kingdom can cost between £200 to £400 per cycle. Your treatment plan might include more than one cycle of fat freezing.
Is fat freezing safe?
Fat freezing can be safe, but it’s not safe for everyone. The fat freezing procedure can cause side effects, including cold burns and increased fat in the treated area. You shouldn’t get fat freezing treatment if you have any cold-induced health conditions.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The information contained herein is not a substitute for and should never be relied upon for professional medical advice. Always talk to your GP about the risks and benefits of any treatment.