Hormonal
Metabolically normal obese (MNO) individuals, defined by low intrahepatic triglyceride content, are protected from adverse metabolic effects such as insulin resistance and dyslipidemia following moderate weight gain, unlike metabolically abnormal obese (MAO) individuals.
If you are obese but have low liver fat (metabolically normal), moderate weight gain is unlikely to trigger diabetes or heart disease risks. However, if you have high liver fat (metabolically abnormal), even small weight gains can significantly worsen your metabolic health. Focus on liver fat reduction (via diet/exercise) rather than just weight loss if you are in the metabolically abnormal group.
These data demonstrate that MNO people are resistant, whereas MAO people are predisposed, to the adverse metabolic effects of moderate weight gain and that increased adipose tissue capacity for lipogenesis might help protect MNO people from weight gain–induced metabolic dysfunction.
Why this rating
Randomized controlled trial with rigorous metabolic clamping and kinetic measurements, though small sample size (n=20).
Source
Metabolically normal obese people are protected from adverse effects following weight gain
Elisa Fabbrini et al. · Journal of Clinical Investigation · 2015
DOI 10.1172/jci78425
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