Visceral Fat: A Key Factor that Impacts Your Health, Wellness & Weight Loss

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By Eric Ramos, PA-C

Ever hear of visceral fat? We could all do with less of it. It can be a major culprit behind an inability to lose any gained weight even after trying some of the things that used to work in the past.

Adipose tissue, or fat cells, have long been considered simply a storage depot for fat stores. We have discovered that our fatty tissue can impact our overall metabolism significantly and often in a negative  impactful way. Our fat cells are responsible for making, secreting and transporting a number of hormones and other chemical signals that can have both short and long-term consequences. 

Visceral fat is the fat that is around all the internal organs like the heart, liver and kidneys. It is often compared to subcutaneous fat that is just underneath the skin.

There are a number of reasons any one individual may have more visceral fat than the next, such as age, genetics, gender and hormones ⁽²⁾ “ for example, as  hormones testosterone and estrogen decline in most people during their 40’s and 50’s, visceral fat is more likely to accumulate”. ⁽²⁾

“ Experimental data suggest that there are some differences, in respect to synthesis and secretion, between visceral fat and subcutaneous adipose tissue.  

Visceral fat appears to be more active. “ ⁽¹⁾  ‘More active’ in this case is not a good thing. There are a number of inflammatory proteins such as tumor necrosis factor- alpha, interleukin 1 and 6, and PA-1, plasminogen activator inhibitor, that have clearly been shown to be produced more from, and be present in higher proportions in visceral fat,  which  ultimately leads to a chronic state of inflammation.

All these factors are “associated with increased risk of  heart disease, coronary artery disease, atherosclerosis and unstable angina” ⁽¹⁾ high blood pressure and insulin resistance.

The Revibe Men’s Health team can help!  At Revibe, our weight loss programs and range of customized options are geared specifically towards addressing all the health issues discussed. All of our programs are specifically designed using decades of published research. Our personalized weight loss medications not only help with weight loss but will address inflammation as well. Our partnership with Prolon FMD® and their scientifically designed Fasting Mimicking Diet, FMD, has already led to some impressive achievements and big smiles from patients who have taken initiative and decided to obtain something that is within everyone’s reach…better health. 

1) Coelho et al. Biochemistry of adipose tissue: an endocrine organ

    Arch Med Sci. 2013 Apr 20; 9(2): 191–200.

    Published online 2013 Feb 10. doi: 10.5114/aoms.2013.33181

2) Kahan, Williams, “Why Does Body Fat Cluster in Certain Areas?”, Weight Matters, Winter 2022, p. 22-23, 27-28.