Cooling treatment can freeze fat cells away

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — As the weather warms up, many are turning to a really cool treatment, freezing away fat cells to shape up and slim down.

Even with a lot of workouts focused on lower abs, that area is something many can't change, including Linda Spitzer.

Spitzer recently made the choice to try CoolSculpting

"What it is is a device that uses cold temperature to destroy fat cells," said Dr. Jon Mendelsohn at the Advanced Cosmetic Surgery & Laser Center.

The technology for this procedure has been around for quite awhile, but people are starting to ask more questions. For example, "Who's a good candidate for this?" and "How well does it work?"

A computerized cooling device is attached to the area where fat loss is desired. For about an hour, you're exposed to cold temperature, and the temperature causes what's called apoptosis, or natural fat cell death, and the fat cells are gone permanently.

"They're just absorbed, just much like you might eat a french fry or some other fatty food. Typically you lose 23 to 25 percent of the fat in a single treatment," said Dr. Mendelsohn.

"I thought this was a good way to do something to see results [that was] non surgical," said Spitzer.

While it's not for dramatic weight loss, for Spitzer its just about feeling more confident.

This cooling treatment costs about $1,000. In most cases, it is not covered by medical insurance plans.