Three Different Ways Our Body Stores Fat. How It’s Different And Why It Matters.

Not all fat is equal. In fact, the different types of fat on your body serve very different purposes. When it comes to your health, understanding the differences and taking action to achieve and maintain a healthy body fat percentage is key to your overall well-being.

So.. What are these three different types of fat stored in your body?

1. Essential Fat

   Essential fat is essential for you to live and have a healthy body. This fat is found in your: brain, bone marrow, and nerves. It is also meant to protect your organs.

   Essential fat plays a huge part in your body’s ability to perform its functions. This includes things like hormone regulation, fertility, vitamin absorption, and temperature regulation.

   According to the American Council on Exercise, women need at least 10 to 13 percent of their body composition to come from essential fat to be in good health, and men require at least 2 to 5 percent.

2. Subcutaneous Fat

   Subcutaneous fat is the fat that you can grab and pinch. It’s located just under your skin. The majority (roughly 80-90%) of our body fat is subcutaneous fat.

   Some subcutaneous fat is good for your body. It has benefits like:

   • Protects the muscles and bones from falls

   • Serves as energy reserve

   • Insulates the body and helps protect from cold

   Too much subcutaneous fat can put you at risk for developing health complications.

3. Visceral Fat

   Visceral fat is often known as “belly fat.” This is typically 10% of your body fat. It is stored in your abdomen and around your major organs like your liver, kidneys, pancreas, intestines and heart. Because of its location, visceral fat is the most dangerous type of body fat.

   High visceral fat levels can increase your risk for:

   • Type 2 Diabetes

   • Heart Disease

   • Stroke

   • CAD (coronary artery disease)

   • Some Cancers.

   Risk factors for developing more visceral fat on the body include:

   • Genetics: some of us are genetically more predisposed to storing visceral fat

   • Age: as we age, we are more likely to store fat as visceral

   • Alcohol: greater alcohol consumption contributes to fat stored as visceral

When you start on a healthy diet and exercise plan, visceral fat is often the first to disappear. This means you’re likely to notice weight loss in your abdominal area first.

How To Measure Your Body Fat

Body fat can be measured many different ways.

1. The method that measures primarily subcutaneous fat:

   • This is called skinfold measurements. A trained technician can use calipers, a tong-like instrument, to pinch and measure folds of skin on your arms, waist, and thighs to estimate total body fat percentage.

2. The method that measures primarily visceral fat:

   • This is looking at waist circumference. A waist circumference greater than 35 inches in women and 40 inches in men is considered higher risk for disease.

3. The method that measures all types of fat:

   • This is the Bod Pod. During a body composition assessment, the device uses body weight and volume ratios to determine total fat percentage.

How To Manage Your Body Fat

To ensure you maintain a healthy level of body fat, it’s important to keep up with certain lifestyle behaviors. The top behaviors to monitor include:

1. Watch Nutrition:

   • See Harvard’s Healthy Eating Plate guidelines

2. Get Active:

   • Ensure you are meeting the CDC’s guidelines for exercise.

3. Get Enough Sleep:

   • Too little sleep affects your hormones and impacts your health. For adults, 7 or more hours are recommended.

4. Reduce Stress:

   • Stress activates cortisol (the stress hormone). Too much cortisol can cause your body to store fat, affect your metabolism, and impact other bodily functioning.

   • The top stress-reducing behaviors are:

     • Talking: Speak to others and have a social support network

     • Walking: Get active!

     • Relaxing: Find hobbies and activities that you enjoy and that allow you time to kick back and recharge

Knowing the different types of body fat and how to measure them is a tool you can use to look at your overall health. While working with your doctor and health coach, you become an active participant in your health journey… not only making lifestyle changes, but understanding the “why” behind them!