Stressed about your weight? If so, you may have extra trouble shedding those excess pounds.

That’s the upshot of new research that indicates chronic stress stimulates the production of a protein that blocks the body’s ability to get rid of fat.

The findings, by University of Florida scientists, are based on studies of laboratory mice that found stress boosts levels of betatrophin, a protein that inhibits an enzyme involved in fat metabolism.

Researchers, who published their study this month in the journal BBA Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids, said the findings have significant implications for people, too, and plan to test the links between stress and obesity in clinical trials.

"Betatrophin reduces the body's ability to break down fat, underscoring a link between chronic stress and weight gain," said Dr. Li-Jun Yang, a professor and lead investigator in the UF College of Medicine's department of pathology, immunology, and laboratory medicine.

"Stress causes you to accumulate more fat, or at least slows down fat metabolism. This is yet another reason why it's best to resolve stressful situations and to pursue a balanced life."