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Fat ---It's Alive!
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By Susan Callahan
Fat. All our images conjure up an inert blob. But recent studies on
the nature of "fat" have revealed surprising findings.
Fat, it seems, is alive.
Fat is an active substance emitting a number if hormones throughout
the body. Where fat gathers around the middle of our
bodies,---becoming a smothering blanket around our vital organs--- it
can be especially harmful, sending out streams of proteins called
cytokines. These substances are secreted by fat and can produce
harmful inflammation, setting the stage for heart disease, arterial
damage, stroke and cancer.
While the exact mechanisms are still being studied, what we know so
far is that high levels of fat increase insulin resistance, a condition
which may increase your risk for developing cancer , diabetes and
heart disease. Also, fat increases the production of estrogen which
may raise your risk of developing hormone-related cancers such as
breast and uterine cancer.
Waistline fat includes not only fat directly under the skin, but also the
visceral fat nestled around vital organs. Scientists say the latter type
of fat is most strongly implicated in the aforementioned metabolic
disturbances.
Remember when the "perfect" measurements of a woman were
38-24-38? A 24-inch waistline --or something reasonably close--
may have been discarded as a canard of a sexist past but new studies
may make us all have to take a second look at the usefulness of the
measurement.
It turns out that your waistline measurement may tell us more about
your overall health than any other statistic. Why? All fat is not
created equal. And fat around the middle may be the worst fat of all.
Your waist line measurement may be the most important indicator of
your overall health. It may indicate your risk for developing heart
disease, stroke and diabetes.
In contrast to the popular notion of fat as an inert blob, fat is actually
an active substance. Fat leaks a constant stream of hormones into
your bloodstream and some of these hormones are quite harmful.
In 2006, Canadian scientists in Canada studied the waist sizes of
168,000 men and women worldwide.
The results were, well, heart-stopping. The study showed that the
risk of heart disease increased 21 to 40 per cent for every 5½in
(14cm) a man added to his waist line. In women, the risk of heart
disease increased 21 to 40 percent for every 5¾in (14.9cm) increase
in their waistlines.
The culprit? The usual suspects --- high blood sugar, lack of exercise,
excess dietary fat.
High insulin levels convert excess blood-sugar into belly girth. We
start to take the shape of apples or pumpkins rather than pears. (Read
more about Sugar and the Disease Connection).
Both effects reduce blood flow to all areas of the body especially
What is the ideal waistline number? As you might expect,
recommendations vary. Under the guidelines of the International
Diabetes Federation, a normal waist measurement for a woman is 32
inches or less, and for a man is 38 inches or less. Many doctors are
even more stringent, recommending a target of 30 inches or less for a
woman and 35 for a man.
Not quite the old 24-inch waist, but it's a start.
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