What is visceral fat and why is it considered dangerous?

Visceral Fat: This type of fat, more common in men, is found deeper inside your stomach, under your abdominal muscles and around your vital organs. This dangerous type of fat has been linked to heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, certain cancers and stroke.

What can visceral fat increase the risk of?

Visceral fat has been linked to metabolic disturbances and increased risk for cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. In women, it is also associated with breast cancer and the need for gallbladder surgery.

Why is visceral fat more dangerous than subcutaneous?

Visceral fat is strongly linked to metabolic disease and insulin resistance, and an increased risk of death, even for people who have a normal body mass index. Subcutaneous fat doesn’t carry the same risks — some subcutaneous fat may even be protective.

Why are health risks associated with visceral belly fat?

Dangers of Visceral Fat Researchers suspect that visceral fat makes more of certain proteins that inflame your body’s tissues and organs and narrow your blood vessels. That can make your blood pressure go up and cause other problems.

What is the purpose of visceral fat?

It is called visceral fat because it is located close to the viscera. The major physical function of the visceral fat is protection of the internal organs. It also provides a reserve source for energy if needed by the animal.

What should visceral fat be?

Visceral fat levels should be under 13 on this scale. Anything above 13 on this scale means that a person will need to think about making immediate changes to their diet and lifestyle. Making these changes will help reduce the person’s visceral fat levels to a healthier number.

How does visceral fat cause inflammation?

The study hypothesized that visceral fat promotes systemic inflammation by secreting inflammatory adipokines into the portal circulation that drains visceral fat. Mean plasma IL-6 concentration was about 50\% greater in the portal vein than in the peripheral artery (p = 0.007).

Is high visceral fat dangerous?

Most importantly, carrying excess visceral fat increases your risk for developing several serious and life threatening medical conditions. These include: heart attack and heart disease. type 2 diabetes.

What’s the difference between visceral and subcutaneous fat?

Visceral fat lies in the spaces between the abdominal organs and in an apron of tissue called the omentum. Subcutaneous fat is located between the skin and the outer abdominal wall.

Why is abdominal obesity harmful?

It impairs the body’s responsiveness to insulin, raising blood sugar and insulin levels. Excess body fat contributes to major causes of death and disability, including heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, osteoarthritis, fatty liver, and depression.

Can visceral fat cause shortness of breath?

Extra fat on your neck or chest or across your abdomen can make it difficult to breathe deeply and may produce hormone that affect your body’s breathing patterns. You may also have a problem with the way your brain controls your breathing.

What causes visceral fat?

What causes visceral fat? Fat gets stored when you consume too many calories and have too little physical activity. Some people tend to store fat around their belly rather than on the hips because of their genes. In women, getting older can change where the body stores fat.