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Obesity: overview of pathogenesis and treatment.

This paper presents an overview of selected current concepts of the pathogenesis and treatment of obesity. It has been estimated using the 1981 Canada Fitness Survey data that 14.1% of Canadian adult men and 20.6% of women are greater than 20% above reference table weight. Recent advances in adipocyte metabolism and control have shown that hyperplastic obesity can occur at any age and that there are differences in the replicative rate of adipocyte precursor cells from the massively obese. Furthermore, a number of the complications of obesity, including hypertension, have been related to regional body fat distribution, independent of total body fat. It is suggested that some of the controversy on the relationship between body weight/weight loss and hypertension may be due to failure to account for this. There is now suggestive evidence that abnormalities in diet-induced thermogenesis and (or) brown adipose tissue may result in human obesity. The roles of the major treatment modalities (diet, behaviour therapy, and exercise) are reviewed as are the potential hazards of the weight loss process.

Adipose Tissue↗

Butyrylcholinesterase activity, cardiovascular risk factors, and mortality in middle-aged and elderly men and women in Jerusalem.

BACKGROUND: The association of butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) with Alzheimer disease and the association of this disease with cardiovascular risk factors raise interest in the association of BuChE activity with cardiovascular risk factors and mortality. METHODS: A baseline cross-sectional study was conducted between 1985 and 1987, encompassing residents > or =50 years of age living in a Jewish neighborhood in western Jerusalem. Interviews were followed by examinations and nonfasting blood sampling (available for 1807 participants). Follow-up data to April 1996 on mortality and causes of death were obtained through record linkage with the Israeli Population Registry. RESULTS: BuChE activity was inversely related to age and was positively associated with serum concentrations of albumin (r = 0.35; P <0.001), cholesterol (r = 0.31; P <0.001), and triglycerides (r = 0.30; P <0.001). Enzyme activity was associated with measures of overweight, obesity, and body fat distribution (e.g., body mass index, r = 0.20; P <0.001). In multivariate analysis, the associations of enzyme activity with serum cholesterol, triglycerides, and albumin persisted strongly. After adjustment by Cox proportional hazards regression for other predictors of mortality in this population, individuals in the lowest quintile of BuChE activity had significantly higher mortality than those in the highest quintile [hazard ratios (95% confidence intervals): all-cause mortality, 1.62 (1.15-2.30); cardiovascular deaths, 1.79 (1.05-3.05)]. The association was attenuated by introduction of serum albumin into the models. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to report on the association between BuChE and mortality. The relatively strong association of BuChE with serum lipid and albumin concentrations requires elucidation. Our results suggest that low BuChE activity may be a nonspecific risk factor for mortality in the elderly.

Aged↗

Special issues regarding obesity in minority populations.

Special attention must be given to obesity as it occurs in and affects ethnic minorities (that is, black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, American Indians and Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians) in the United States. In most of these groups, the prevalence of obesity is substantially higher than in whites, especially among women. Poverty and lower educational attainment, which are associated with higher than average rates of female obesity (independent of ethnicity), affect proportionately more persons in these minority populations than in white populations. Diabetes mellitus and certain other obesity-related conditions occur to a markedly greater than average extent in many minority populations. A high-risk body fat distribution (upper body or central obesity) occurs to a greater extent in some minority populations than in whites. Because of situational and cultural factors, effective obesity prevention and treatment approaches may need to be defined on an ethnicity-specific basis. Increased attention to obesity as it occurs in and affects diverse ethnic groups can help to address critical minority health issues. Such efforts can also broaden and enrich aspects of obesity research for which models based on white populations are inappropriate or limited.

Body Constitution↗

[Assessment of the submandibular adipose skinfold for the determination of a nutritional status in children and adolescents].

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to show the validity of a new skinfold thickness for measuring nutritional status in children. We also compare submandibular skinfold thickness with other anthropometric measures and indices. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We have studied 899 boys and 837 girls between 3.0 and 15.1 years of age. All of them were healthy and from different socioeconomic statuses. We measured weight, height, obesity indices, circumferences, indices of body fat distribution and indices of body fat. Data were divided according to age and sex. We calculated the percentiles of submandibular skinfold thickness and correlations between this parameter and all other measurements were performed. The mean values of the two sexes were compared by using Student's t-test. RESULTS: Submandibular skinfold is an easy and fast skinfold to measure. Its value is maximum at 10 and 11 years in girls and boys, respectively. This measurement is higher in girls than in boys at 5, 7, 10, 13 and 14 years of age (p < 0.05). There was a high correlation between this skinfold value and almost all of the measurements and indices studied, especially with the body mass index (r = 0.589), the sum of the four conventional skinfolds (r = 0.844), arm circumference (r = 0.513), arm fat area (r = 0.776) and percentage body fat (r = 0.830). CONCLUSIONS: Submandibular skinfold thickness in children and adolescents shows a high correlation with body fat indices. It is for this reason that it could be used as a new measurement to assess nutritional status and obesity in children.

Adipose Tissue↗

Public health significance of upper body adiposity for non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus in Mexican Americans.

An unfavourable body fat distribution has been associated with an increased prevalence and incidence of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). The potential utility of assessing body fat distribution in diabetes screening, however, has not been assessed. We compared the impact of upper body fat distribution (assessed by the waist-to-hip ratio (WHR)) and body mass index (BMI) and NIDDM using the population attributable risk approach of Levin in 1965 Mexican Americans from the San Antonio Heart Study, a population-based study of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The population attributable risk percentage (PAR%) was 52.0% for WHR compared to 43.4% for body mass index. After stratification by BMI, women with a high WHR had a PAR% of approximately 50% and men had a PAR% of 28-58%. For any given cutpoint (e.g. the 10th percentile, 20th percentile, etc.) of WHR used to screen for NIDDM, WHR had both a higher sensitivity and a lower false positive rate than the corresponding cutpoint of BMI. To evaluate the relative contribution of WHR in identifying prevalent cases of NIDDM, multiple logistic regression analyses were performed, and the number of subjects identified as being in the top 20% of the risk score distribution was compared using a model that included WHR and a model that included BMI. In men, BMI did not increase the sensitivity in detecting NIDDM subjects once age was accounted for; WHR increased the sensitivity only slightly. In women, sensitivity was enhanced modestly using both measures, although WHR again was the more sensitive method. These data suggest that WHR is a better single screening measure for NIDDM than BMI.

Adipose Tissue↗

Adiposity in aboriginal people from Arnhem Land, Australia: variation in degree and distribution associated with age, sex and lifestyle.

A number of researchers have found substantial sex, population and group differences in adiposity and fat-distribution patterns, but there is relatively little information on body fat distribution in Aboriginal groups, especially for the indigenous people of Australia. This study, the largest of its kind for Australian Aboriginal people, presents information on adiposity and fat distribution in 425 Yolngu, a group of Aboriginal people living in a number of communities representing a wide range of lifestyles, in northeast Arnhem Land, Australia. Using BMI standards developed for people of European descent, the majority of the individuals in this study were lean, and the incidence of obesity was considerably less than in other Australian groups, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal. For the Yolngu in this study the relationship between ageing and adiposity is similar to that reported for tradition-orientated Aboriginal people, as well as for a number of other indigenous groups, viz., while the men maintain their weight into old age, the women, once they are past early adulthood, lose body fat with age. The results from the present study suggest that the age at which the Yolngu women start to gain, and subsequently lose, body fat is associated with differences in degree of acculturation. As has been found in other populations, age- and sex-related differences in body fat distribution occur, but no correlation was found between adiposity and fat distribution. The Aboriginal women and men, however, had a significantly more central distribution of subcutaneous fat than their non-Aboriginal counterparts. Our findings have implications for the health and demography of Aboriginal people in general, and the Yolngu in particular, as they continue the transition from hunting and foraging towards a more 'westernized' lifestyle.

Adipose Tissue↗

Hormonal control of regional fat distribution.

Hormones exert powerful influences on body fat distribution in humans. Studies under fully controlled conditions in vitro have indicated that cortisol and insulin facilitate lipid accumulation by expressing lipoprotein lipase (LPL). Growth hormone (GH) abolishes this and turns metabolism towards lipid mobilization. Testosterone and GH inhibit LPL and stimulate lipolysis markedly. Cortisol effects are mediated via a glucocorticoid receptor, and testosterone effects via an androgen receptor, the density of which appears to be higher in visceral than subcutaneous adipose tissue. The receptor-mediated effects are probably expressed via transcription of appropriate genes. The female sex steroids also regulate adipose tissue metabolism, but apparently not directly in the absence of specific cellular receptors. Oestrogens seem to exert net effects similar to those of testosterone. These results of cellular studies agree well with in-vivo studies of triglyceride uptake and turnover in different adipose tissue regions. Furthermore, clinical entities with characteristic disturbances in hormone levels show the expected redistribution patterns.

Adipose Tissue↗

Effects of gender, ethnicity, body composition, and fat distribution on serum leptin concentrations in children.

The Ob protein leptin has been shown to be closely correlated with measures of body fat in humans and animals. Studies have suggested that there are both gender and ethnic differences in serum leptin concentrations, even after controlling for total and relative body fat and body mass index. We hypothesized that gender and ethnic differences in serum leptin concentrations are due to differences in both body composition and body fat distribution. We measured fasting serum leptin concentration, body composition (fat mass and fat-free mass by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry), and body fat distribution (intraabdominal and sc abdominal adipose tissue by computed tomography) in 74 prepubertal boys and girls (43 African-Americans and 31 Caucasians). Our results showed that gender differences in serum leptin concentrations could not be fully explained by differences in body mass index, total fat mass, or relative body composition. However, when serum leptin concentrations were adjusted for differences in relative body composition (fat mass and fat-free mass) and body fat distribution (sc and intraabdominal adipose tissue), gender no longer had an independent effect on the serum leptin concentration. Serum leptin concentrations were not influenced by ethnicity. Thus, when comparing group differences in serum leptin concentrations, it is necessary to adequately control for group differences in body composition and fat distribution.

Adipose Tissue↗

Relations of body fat and fat distribution to the serum lipid, apolipoprotein and insulin concentrations of Samoan men and women.

OBJECTIVE: To examine relations between obesity and serum concentrations of lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoproteins, triglycerides and insulin in American and Western Samoans. Associations are also described between these CHD risk factors and abdominal adiposity, and the potential mediating role of insulin in these relationships is examined. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, using a sub-sample from an observational epidemiological study of cardiovascular disease risk factors among Samoans. MEASUREMENT: Obesity is estimated by the body mass index (BMI), and fat distribution by the abdomen-hip circumference ratio (AHR). All biochemical parameters were measured in the fasted stated. SUBJECTS: The sub-sample is 178 men and 147 women who were free from hypertension, diabetes and heart disease. RESULTS: In multivariate linear regression analyses in men the BMI was positively associated with levels of total cholesterol, the total-HDL cholesterol ratio, apolipoprotein B, and the log of triglyceride and insulin concentrations, and negatively associated with HDL and HDL2 cholesterol. The quadratic term for BMI was also found to be significantly predictive of all metabolic parameters in men, except for the log of serum insulin concentrations. Among the women, in contrast, BMI levels were significantly associated only with concentrations of HDL2 cholesterol, triglyceride and insulin. In men, the associations between the AHR and the metabolic parameters were similar to those described for the BMI, but showed no indication of non-linearity. Addition of the log of insulin to these models had little effect on the relations between the AHR and the lipid parameters, with the exceptions of total cholesterol and triglycerides. As with BMI, the AHR was much les predictive of metabolic parameters in women than in men, with a significant relation existing only with the log of insulin concentrations. CONCLUSIONS: These cross sectional data indicate that overall and abdominal adiposity are important correlates of serum lipid parameters among Samoan men, though the associations with BMI are attenuated at higher levels. Neither anthropometric indicator has much relation with these CHD risk factors among the women, perhaps due to extremely high levels of obesity in this group.

Adult↗

Effects of obesity and fat distribution on ventilatory function: the normative aging study.

OBJECTIVE: Although the influence of obesity on ventilatory function has long been recognized, the nature of the relationship and the mechanisms are not yet clear. The purpose of this report was to examine the effects of overall obesity and fat distribution on ventilatory function. METHODS: Multiple measurements over > 30 years from 507 subjects with lifelong tobacco consumption of < or = 1 pack-year were analyzed separately in five age decades from 30 to 79 years. FVC, FEV1, ratio of FEV1 to FVC, and maximal midexpiratory flow rate (MMEF) were each adjusted for age and stature. Relative adiposity (or obesity) was assessed using the body mass index (BMI). Subscapular skinfold thickness, abdominal girth, and the ratio of abdominal girth to hip breadth (AG/HB) were used as measures of body fat distribution. Multiple linear regression was used to explore the effects of overall adiposity and body fat distribution on ventilatory function. RESULTS: BMI was positively associated with the ratio of FEV1 to FVC at all ages (p < 0.01), and negatively with FVC and MMEF between 40 and 69 years (p < 0.01). After adjustment for BMI, subscapular skinfold thickness was negatively associated with both FVC and FEV1 (p < or = 0.02) among men aged 30 to 59 years, whereas AG/HB was negatively associated with FVC and FEV1 in men aged 50 to 59 years only (p < or = 0.0004). CONCLUSIONS: Body fat distribution has independent effects on ventilatory function after adjustment for overall obesity in men. The finding that age modifies this association has implications for future research.

Adipose Tissue↗

Serum Lp AI lipoprotein particles and other antiatherogenic lipid parameters in normolipidaemic obese subjects.

The android pattern of body fat distribution has been shown to increase the risk of metabolic and coronary heart disease. Protective lipid markers against cardiovascular disease were studied in 98 obese normolipidaemic, non diabetic, non-smoker subjects over 18 years of age according to regional distribution of adipose tissue as estimated by the waist ship ratio (WHR) and overall obesity as estimated by the body mass index (BMI). WHR was inversely correlated with Lp AI (r = 0.46) and HDL-cholesterol (r = 0.37). BMI was not correlated with protective lipid parameters but only with triglycerides. After adjustment, Lp AI was lower in men and in upper body obese women (p < 0.05). Lp AI is a better indicator of body fat distribution than HDL-cholesterol or apo AI, and its variations appear to be indirectly related to gender, menopause, and age, thereby influencing body fat distribution (the main factor accounting for Lp AI variation). Lp AI was inversely correlated with WHR in gluteal-femoral obese women but not in abdominally obese women or men, possibly because of a threshold effect.

Adult↗

Effects of pioglitazone in familial combined hyperlipidaemia.

OBJECTIVES: Familial combined hyperlipidaemia (FCH) is associated with insulin resistance. We hypothesized that pioglitazone treatment of FCH patients might increase insulin sensitivity, but may also improve serum lipid levels, body fat distribution, intramyocellular lipids (IMCL) and endothelial function. DESIGN: Double blind, randomized, cross-over study. SUBJECTS: Seventeen FCH patients. INTERVENTIONS: Sixteen weeks of pioglitazone treatment (30 mg) compared with 16 weeks of placebo. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Insulin sensitivity was measured using the hyperinsulinaemic euglycaemic clamp procedure, body fat distribution and IMCL using magnetic resonance techniques and endothelial function using flow-mediated vasodilatation. RESULTS: Pioglitazone improved insulin sensitivity (M value 37.7 +/- 3.6 micromol min(-1) kg(-1) vs. 33.0 +/- 3.3 micromol min(-1) kg(-1) during placebo, P < 0.05) and LDL composition by increasing the K value (-0.11 +/- 0.06 vs. -0.20 +/- 0.06 during placebo, P < 0.05). However, pioglitazone did not affect other serum lipid levels. Endothelial function, body fat distribution and IMCL were also not affected. In addition, pioglitazone was associated with a decrease in liver enzymes (alkaline phosphatase). CONCLUSION: Pioglitazone treatment of FCH patients without type 2 diabetes mellitus increases insulin sensitivity, decreases liver enzymes and improves LDL composition but has a neutral effect on total serum lipid levels. The change in insulin sensitivity might be too small to induce changes in endothelial function, body fat distribution and IMCL.

Alanine Transaminase↗

The association of serum androgens and insulin resistance with fat distribution in polycystic ovary syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to compare the body fat distribution of women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) with age and body mass index matched healthy controls and to investigate if androgens and insulin resistance associated with fat distribution. STUDY DESIGN: Thirty-three PCOS and 21 age and body mass index (BMI) matched healthy control women were evaluated in terms of body fat distribution with dual X-ray absorpsiometry (DEXA). Blood samples were obtained for follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), estradiol, prolactin, thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (DHEA-S), free testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), insulin and glucose levels. A 75 g 2 h glucose tolerance test was performed for each woman. Insulin resistance was estimated by fasting insulin level, fasting glucose/insulin ratio and 75 g 2 h glucose tolerance test. The Student's t-test and Mann-Whitney U-test were used to compare the groups. Pearson and Spearman rank correlation coefficients were calculated for normally and nonnormally distributed variables, respectively. Partial correlation coefficients were calculated using age and BMI as covariates. RESULTS: Fat mass in trunk and arms were significantly higher in patients with PCOS (p < 0.043 and 0.036, respectively). The ratio of fat mass in trunk to fat mass in legs were significantly higher in patients with PCOS (p < 0.011). Free testosterone was found to be positively correlated with fat mass in arms (r = 0.401, p < 0.05). There was still significant correlation between free testosterone and fat mass in arms (r = 0.5964, p < 0.05) after controlling for age and BMI. CONCLUSION: Free testosterone level is positively correlated with the fat mass in arms in women with PCOS.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗

Effects of hormone replacement therapy on weight, body composition, fat distribution, and food intake in early postmenopausal women: a prospective study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) on body weight and composition, fat distribution, and food intake in women entering the climacteric. DESIGN: Prospective clinical study. SETTING: Outpatient menopause clinic at a tertiary medical center. PARTICIPANTS: Sixty-three early postmenopausal women (44 to 54 years old) were prospectively studied for 1 year. They consisted of two groups: group A, 34 subjects who initiated continuous estrogen and progestin treatment (daily oral conjugated estrogen 0.625 mg and medroxyprogesterone acetate 2.5 mg), and group B, 29 women who refused hormonal therapy and served as controls. The age, menopausal status, initial anthropometric measurements (weight, body mass index [BMI], fat mass, and waist-to-hip girth ratio), and daily food intake (total caloric intake and food composition) were similar in both groups. INTERVENTIONS: Anthropometric measurements were performed before commencement of HRT use and after 12 months. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Anthropometric measurements included BMI, waist-to-hip girth ratio, and body composition (the percentage of body fat and water) estimated by means of infrared interactance. Daily food intake was also recorded. RESULTS: The body weight and fat mass increased significantly in both the treatment (73.22 +/- 2.01 [mean +/- SE] to 75.57 +/- 1.12 kg) and the control group (71.45 +/- 3.11 to 73.51 +/- 1.23 kg). However, a significant shift from gynoid to android fat distribution was observed only in the control group (waist-to-hip ratio shifted from 0.80 +/- 0.01 to 0.85 +/- 0.01), whereas no significant change was observed in the treatment group (0.81 +/- 0.01 to 0.82 +/- 0.01). Caloric and macronutrient intake did not change in either group. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that continuous daily estrogen and progestin replacement therapy neither prevents nor increases early postmenopausal weight gain and fat accumulation. However, it does minimize the shift from gynoid to android fat distribution.

Adult↗

Influence of body fat content and distribution on variation in metabolic risk.

OBJECTIVES: Several reports indicate that the body fat compartments, especially ip fat, predict metabolic risk better than total body fat. The objective of the study was to determine whether this can be confirmed and generalized throughout the population. PARTICIPANTS: A representative sample of 1934 Black and White women and men of the Dallas Heart Study participated in the study. DESIGN: We measured the fat in total body, trunk, and lower body with dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry and in abdominal compartments (sc, ip, and retroperitoneal) with magnetic resonance imaging. Other measurements included body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, blood pressure, plasma lipids, glucose, insulin (including homeostasis model), and C-reactive protein. RESULTS: In all groups, total body fat correlated positively with key metabolic risk factors, i.e. homeostasis model, triglyceride/high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratios, C-reactive protein, and blood pressure; however, it explained less than one third of the variability of all the risk factors. After adjustment for total body fat, truncal fat conferred additional positive correlation with risk factors. Furthermore, with multivariable regression analysis, ip fat conferred independent correlation with plasma lipids beyond a combination of other compartments including truncal fat. Still, except for insulin levels, all combinations including ip fat still explained less than one third of the variability in risk-factor levels. Conversely, lower body fat correlated negatively with risk factors; i.e. lower body fat appeared to offer some protection against risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: Body fat distribution has some influence on risk factors beyond total body fat content. Both waist circumference and BMI significantly predicted risk factors after adjustment for total body fat, and for clinical purposes, most of the predictive power for men was contained in waist circumference, whereas for women, BMI and waist circumference were similarly predictive. Finally, even though the correlations between combined body fat parameters and risk factors explained only a portion of the variation in the latter, the average number of categorical metabolic risk factors increased progressively with increasing obesity. Hence, obesity seemingly has more clinical impact than revealed in these correlative studies.

Adult↗

Effect of visceral fat accumulation on uric acid metabolism in male obese subjects: visceral fat obesity is linked more closely to overproduction of uric acid than subcutaneous fat obesity.

We investigated the relationship between uric acid (UA) metabolism and fat distribution in 36 obese men with a mean +/- SD age of 38 +/- 16 years and mean body-mass index (BMI) of 34 +/- 4 kg/m2. Subjects were divided into two groups: subcutaneous fat obesity (SFO) and visceral fat obesity (VFO), according to their abdominal fat distribution based on the results of computed tomography (CT). SFO was defined as having a ratio of visceral fat area (VFA) to subcutaneous fat area (V/S) of less than 0.4, and VFO was defined as having a V/S ratio > or = 0.4. The levels of serum total cholesterol (T-Chol), triglyceride (TG), and fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and the diastolic blood pressure (dBP) were significantly higher in the VFO group than in the SFO group. Serum UA levels were much higher in both the SFO and VFO groups than in the non-obese control group (492 +/- 107 and 474 +/- 90 v 309 +/- 48 micromol/L, respectively). The 24-hour urinary urate excretion (u-UA24h) and the UA clearance (Cua) to creatinine clearance (Ccr) ratio were significantly higher in the VFO group than in the SFO group (3.75 +/- 1.43 v 2.69 +/- 1.12 mmol/d, P < .05; and 5.9% +/- 2.0% v 3.6% +/- 1.7%, P < .001, respectively). The frequency of hyperuricemia was markedly higher in both the SFO and VFO groups compared with the control group (71% and 73% v 0%, respectively). Although the high serum UA level seemed to be related to low u-UA24h in 80% of SFO subjects with hyperuricemia, this was the case in only 10% of VFO subjects. While 44% of VFO subjects with hyperuricemia were designated as an overproduction type. These results suggest that the mechanism of hyperuricemia in obesity may be affected by the difference in body fat distribution and that the assessment of body fat distribution and types of hyperuricemia is crucial for the treatment of obese patients with hyperuricemia.

Adipose Tissue↗

[Obesity in type 2 diabetes, its features and specificity].

OBJECTIVE: To study the features and specificity of body fat depot abnormalities in type 2 diabetic patients. METHODS: 366 Chinese aged >or= 40, 287 with type 2 diabetics and 79 without type 2 diabetics, hypertension and dyslipidemia, underwent the following examinations: (1) total body fat depots, defined by body mass index (BMI); (2) regional body fat depots, including waist circumference (W), hip circumference (H), femoral circumference (F), intra-abdominal fat area (VA), abdominal subcutaneous fat area (SA) and femoral subcutaneous fat area (FA); (3) ratio between regional and body fat depots (W/BMI, H/BMI, F/BMI, VA/BMI, SA/BMI and FA/BMI); (4) body fat distribution, including W and H ratio (WHR), W and F ratio (WFR), VA + SA/FA, and VA/SA; and (5) tissue insulin sensitivity, expressed by homeostasis model assessment index for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). RESULTS: The body fat depot abnormalities observed in type 2 diabetes were as follows: (1) increase in total body fat depots (BMI) (P = 0.0013); (2) increase in abdominal fat depots (W) (P < 0.0001), mainly accounted for absolute and relative increases in intra-abdominal fat depots (VA, VA/SA and VA/BMI) P = 0.0011, 0.0025, 0.0008 respectively; (3) relative decrease in hip and femoral subcutaneous fat depots (H/BMI, F/BMI and FA/BMI) (P < 0.0001, < 0.00001, = 0.0014 respectively); (4) central distribution of body fat (WHR, WFR and VA + SA/FA) (P < 0.0001, = 0.0002, = 0.0002 respectively) by increase in intra-abdominal fat depots as well as decrease in hip or femoral body fat depots. The degree of abnormalities in body fat depots and the degree of tissue insulin resistance were in parallel with the number of other metabolic diseases (hypertension and dyslipidemia) associated in type 2 diabetic patients. Stepwise regression analysis indicated that increase in total body fat depots was the major independent contibuting factor for tissue insulin resistance. Moreover, increase in intra-abdominal fat depots and decrease in femoral fat depots were also independent contributing factors for insulin resistance. CONCLUSION: Increase in intra-abdominal fat depots as well as decrease in femoral subcutaneous fat depots is not only the features of body fat distribution observed in diabetic patients, but also in subjects with metabolic syndrome.

Abdomen↗

Effects of weight cycling on the resting energy expenditure and body composition of obese women.

OBJECTIVE: Numerous reports have suggested that cycles of weight loss and regain (i.e., weight cycling) are associated with adverse health consequences, a concern that may lead some obese individuals to forgo weight control efforts. The present study examined whether weight cycling was associated with a reduction in resting energy expenditure (REE) and with increases in both total and upper body fat. METHOD: REE, body composition, and body fat distribution were measured before and after weight loss, and following full weight regain, in 12 women who before treatment had a mean (+/- SEM) age of 38.8 +/- 3.4 years and weight of 98.0 +/- 3.2 kg. RESULTS: At the end of treatment, patients lost 18.9 +/- 2.6 kg which was comprised of significant decreases in body fat and fat-free mass of 15.2 +/- 2.2 and 3.7 +/- 0.8 kg, respectively (both ps < .001). REE also fell during this time from 1,631 +/- 82 to 1,501 +/- 51 kcal/d (p < .03). All of these measures, however, returned to their baseline values when patients regained their lost weight. Body fat distribution was unchanged throughout the study. DISCUSSION: These results do not support claims that weight cycling adversely affects REE, body composition, or body fat distribution.

Adipose Tissue↗