Five Facts About Body Fat You Never Heard Before

The fat in our body which can be felt as a spongy material under the skin has been known to protect body heat by the virtue of its insulator like properties and to provide energy in cases of starvation. But now the concepts have been changing. Fat is now recognized as a very active organ (yes, you heard it right, it is an organ like heart, thyroid or kidney) of the human body. Read this:

Fact 1) Fat is an endocrine organ like Thyroid gland , Ovary and Pancreas, i.e, it produces hormones. It produces a variety of chemicals which are known to have various functions. Fat is made up of a collection of cells called adipocytes and each cell is like a small factory which produces hormonal chemicals like Resistin, Adiponectin or Visfatin whose effects are being investigated.

Fact 2) Fat controls our hunger.The statement that fat controls hungers comes as surprise to many but its true. Fat produces a chemical called Leptin which acts on the brain(in the Pitiutary gland area) and suppresses(inhibits) the hunger center so that you feel less hungry. Although a lot of research is still on , now it is understood that in people who are obese(very overweight) the Leptin is not able to act eventually causing the person to eat more. Normally when you put up a lot of fat the Leptin production is increased and it tries to control the hunger so that one does not spiral out of control. In obese persons such control is not exercised and they tend to eat more and more.

Fact 3) Obesity and body fat content are not always the same. Obesity is measured in terms of body mass index which is body mass in kilogram divided by height in meter squared. A higher BMI is called obesity but a high amount of muscle in body can make one obese because his BMI would be high too. For example body builders have high BMI but are not obese. The fat content of a body is a different thing altogether and is measured by different techniques like MRI e.t.c.Its the fat content(percentage body fat) which is important and not the BMI in terms of a risk to health. Some people can have normal BMI and higher percentage of body fat causing them to have higher risk of heart attack and diabetes. And also the distribution of fat is important, for example the fat around the tummy(central obesity) is more dangerous.

Fact 4) It is well known that fat people have higher chances of heart attack due to blocked arteries but did you ever wonder how fat causes block arteries? The mechanism is due to a recently described syndrome called Metabolic syndrome. This syndrome results from various chemicals released from excess body fat which cause a widespread inflammation. This inflammation(similar to that during an infection) causes the arteries in the heart to get damaged and clogged after some time under the influence of the chemicals released (TNF-a, IL-6, MCP-1, IL-1 and are called cytokines ). The syndrome cause resistance to Insulin action and thus predisposes(increases risk many times) to Diabetes. Fat is also associated with higher chases of Asthma, blood pressure and cancers mainly because of its production of various chemical mediators.

Fact 5) Fat can make you slimmer too! Yes its true,they can reduce obesity and thus by this action can help us fight Diabetes.But it has to be a special type of fat called BROWN FAT.How does Brown Fat work?The energy stored in Brown fat is dissipated off into heat(Thermo-genesis) making it a place where body energy is released(wasted) rather than being stored.This fat is more common in newborns.Adults have it, but in very small amounts in the chest, around large blood vessels.Some persons have a higher quantity of it which explains why some people can eat and never get fat. In future therapies which increase such fat in our body could be developed.Research is on and this can help us fight Obesity and Diabetes.

References:

1. Guzik TJ, Mangalat D, Korbut R.Adipocytokines - novel link between inflammation and vascular function?
J Physiol Pharmacol. 2006 Dec;57(4):505-28.

2. Trayhurn P. Endocrine and signalling role of adipose tissue: new perspectives on fat.
Acta Physiol Scand. 2005 Aug;184(4):285-93.