During my research for my blog post, I came across this news headline and thought this is perhaps a light-hearted piece to read amidst everyone’s busy schedule. Beyond cosmetic procedures to beautify our faces, another popular procedure is liposuction which targets our body. Liposuction is a surgical procedure that uses a suction technique to remove fat from specific areas of the body. These areas are often targeted at one’s lower body such as the hips, abdomen and thighs. Upon removal of fat, what if they can be repurposed into something useful? This was exactly what Dr. Alan Bittner, a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon did 2008 which made headlines. Boasting on his website, he turned fat from his liposuction patients into “lipodiesel,” a green fuel for vehicles. The following is written on his website:

‘The vast majority of my patients request that I use their fat for fuel — and I have more fat than I can use.

‘Not only do they get to lose their love handles or chubby belly, but they get to take part in saving the Earth.’

Similar to biodiesel that is manufactured domestically from vegetable oils and animal fats, “lipodiesel” is made from the oil stored in human fat cells. As such, “lipodiesel” can be used as a replacement for traditional fuels in any diesel engine. While it is fat is utilised as fuel, state law forbids the use of human medical waste to power vehicles.

However, further research in this area revealed that “lipodiesel” is only limited to the works of Dr. Alan Bittner. With the scarcity of resources as well as our growing vanity, I wonder will this become a possible area of exploration in the future? Or is this deemed unethical as we are unable to accept the objectification and commodification of our bodies for resource use?