Role of visceral adipose tissue in aging.

Visceral fat (VF) accretion is a hallmark of aging in humans. Epidemiologic studies have implicated abdominal obesity as a major risk factor for insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, stroke, metabolic syndrome and death. Utilizing novel rodent models of visceral obesity, studies have demonstrated a causal relationship between VF and age-related diseases. In contrast, surgically removing large quantities of subcutaneous (SC) abdominal fat does not consistently improve metabolic parameters in humans or rodents, suggesting that SC fat accrual is not an important contributor to metabolic decline. There is also compelling evidence in humans that abdominal obesity is a stronger risk factor for mortality risk than general obesity. Likewise, we have shown that surgical removal of VF improves mean and maximum lifespan in rats, providing the first causal evidence that VF depletion may be an important underlying cause of improved lifespan with CR. Given the hazards of VF accumulation on health, treatment strategies aimed at selectively depleting VF should be considered as a viable tool to effectively reduce disease risk in humans. In summary, this review provides both corollary and causal evidence for the importance of accounting for body fat distribution, and specifically VF, when assessing disease and mortality risk.

Huffman DM, Barzilai N.
Biochim Biophys Acta. 2009 Jan 30.

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Detail In summary, this review provides both corollary and causal evidence for the importance of accounting for body fat distribution, and specifically VF, when assessing disease and mortality risk.
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