Hormonal
Visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is the primary driver of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome features, whereas subcutaneous fat acts as a protective metabolic sink; excess VAT leads to ectopic fat deposition in the liver and muscle, causing atherogenic dyslipidemia and inflammation.
Stop relying on BMI or scale weight to judge your metabolic health. Focus on waist circumference as a primary metric. If you have a large waistline, you likely have visceral fat, which drives insulin resistance and heart disease risk. Lifestyle changes that reduce waist size (even without major weight loss) are more effective for metabolic health than those that only affect total body weight.
it is the excess of intraabdominal or visceral adipose tissue and not the amount of subcutaneous abdominal fat which is the key correlate of the metabolic abnormalities... individuals perfectly matched for subcutaneous abdominal adiposity but with either a low versus a high accumulation of visceral adipose tissue have been shown to be markedly different in their levels of insulin resistance
Why this rating
Based on a review of multiple imaging studies (MRI/CT) and epidemiological data, though it is a narrative review rather than a single primary trial.
Source
Abdominal Obesity and the Metabolic Syndrome: Contribution to Global Cardiometabolic Risk
Jean‐Pierre Després et al. · Arteriosclerosis Thrombosis and Vascular Biology · 2008
DOI 10.1161/atvbaha.107.159228
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This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →