Omentum: Everything You Should Know About this Stomach Organ

Not too long ago, I saw Dr. Oz on Oprah describing the one organ that absorbs fat and dictates whether we are larger in size or small. Dr. Oz proceeded to take this disgusting organ, yellow in color and bulky in texture, right out on Oprah's stage. I am not easily disgusted, but when I watched Oprah that day, I sure was, but I was also intrigued. What is this yellowish, shriveled, slimy organ? That organ is called the omentem, and everyone has one! Dr. Oz says that your omentum is a fatty layer of tissue located inside your stomach and is located underneath your tummy muscles. So what is the point of our omentums?

Omentums store our body fat and can be a strong indicator of how we deal with chronic stress. While our bodies are under stress, we release the hormone cortisone and this cortisone is basically regulated by the omentum. Thus, this fatty layer of tissue retains fat, so the more stress you have, the more fat your omentum takes in. Odd relationship, yes, but think of it this way. The more hormone cortisol we have, the fatter we could become and this lovely layer of fat retains the evidence for us, thus, we have fat bellies. Now, what happens when you have excess amounts of stress and your omentum goes into overdrive retaining that fat? An important thing to keep in mind is that your omentum gives fuel for your other organs to thrive. If we allow our organs to thrive on fat, we are setting them up for failure. The results can be highly damaging and problems arise that range from high blood pressure to high cholesterol levels because again, your liver thrives from the elements this fatty layer is pumping out into your body!

So, the key here is to take good care of your omentum! If you are lucky you will never have to see this ugly organ that every human body has. Just because you can't see your liver, you want to preserve its function because there is only one and healthy liver function is critical in storing essential vitamins and it cleans your body of toxins. Therefore, we should all strive to have a healthy liver. Well, the same practice should be extended to your omentum!

How do we care for this important organ that we know so little about? Eat a well balanced diet and exercise, avoid high levels of stress, utilize relaxation techniques, and make overall lifestyle changes for your better good. An omentum of a healthy human being is going to be relatively small, yellowish to clear in color and have an appearance that is compared to lace. Now of course, unless you have surgery and elect to have your surgeon take pictures, you will never see this. The best way to tell if you have a healthy omentum is to look at the size of your stomach. Ever heard of 'beer belly'? A large, unhealthy omentum retains so much fat that it expands your abdominal cavity and can grow three to four times its normal size; therefore, causing you to have that unwanted pooch. So look at what you're eating and you're lifestyle. You may have never heard of this organ, but taking care of it can save your life and reduce that belly bulge!