It may not be the perfect start to the morning, but a cold shower might be just what the doctor ordered.

New research being published in a United States journal shows that 10 to 15 minutes of shivering can provide the same results as an hour of moderate exercise.

One of the researchers, endocrinologist Dr Paul Lee from Sydney's Garvan Institute, and has been taking cold showers for six years as part of his work on brown fat.

While white fat stores excessive calories which can lead to obesity, brown fat burns energy off.

Both are in our bodies and white can be converted into the good brown fat.

Dr Lee has just returned from two years at the National Institute of Health in Washington which delved into the theory that cold exposure increases brown fat activity.

"We invite individuals, healthy individuals, and expose them to cold temperatures from 18 degrees Celsius all the way to 12C until they shiver and measure the hormones levels in their body," he said.

"And we found as the temperature dropped, the individuals started to shiver and two hormones in the body increased."

The two hormones they looked at included FGF21, found in brown fat, and irisin, which is produced by muscle.

These are also increased during exercise.

While the hormones were known to exist, what Dr Lee and his colleagues found was the way that the hormones communicated to generate the conversion.

"In essence, this is a hormone system which allows muscle and fat to communicate and in this process the hormones are capable to convert ordinary fat cells into beneficial brown fat cells," he said.

Hormones 'become very clear therapeutic targets'

Dr Lee says scientists will look at creating a drug which can mimic this behaviour.

"On the one hand I think there's no doubt that mild cold exposure (to cold) could activate brown fat," Dr Lee said.

"But I guess the question is, how practical is this?

"I mean, nowadays we all prefer central heating and we all prefer to dress up sufficiently in winter.

"So is there a way that we can harness these benefits but without the cold exposure?

"And I think now with the identification of the actions of these hormones, they become very clear therapeutic targets."

For those who cannot wait for the lotion or tablet, there is some caution as to how you might expose yourself to the cold.

Dr Lee suggests like exercise, it requires training.

He is also maintains it will not be the whole solution.

"I cannot emphasise enough: diet and exercise are still the two most effective treatments that we know of in helping us to fight obesity, diabetes and a range of disorders," Dr Lee said.

"In addition to concentrating on exercise and diet, perhaps looking at the indoor temperature that we adjust buildings to may be a very simple way to combat obesity."