One Habit to Make Belly Fat Healthier, Experts Say

Not all belly fat is the same. New research published on September 10 in Nature Metabolism has found that people with obesity who engage in regular aerobic exercise tend to store healthier fat in their bellies compared to those with obesity who don’t exercise.

This study followed 32 participants, both men and women. Half of them exercised four times per week for two years or more, while the other half did not. At the end of the study, despite having the same overall body fat percentage, those who exercised regularly had healthier belly fat.

Understanding Fat

“Fat is often misunderstood,” says Jeffrey Horowitz, a professor of exercise physiology at the University of Michigan, who was part of the study. “The fat we have, especially the fat stored under our skin, is a very important place to store energy.”

Horowitz and his team matched the two groups of participants by age, body fat percentage, sex, and body mass index (BMI). After taking samples of fat tissue from the participants’ bellies, they measured blood flow, rigidity, and the fibrousness of the tissue. The results showed that exercise helped restructure the abdominal fat of the group that exercised. Their fat tissue was less fibrous, meaning certain fat cells could expand and store fat more efficiently, which is a positive outcome.

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Types of Fat

There are different types of fat in the body. Subcutaneous fat is the fat just under the skin, the kind you can pinch around your midsection. Another type is visceral fat, which is deeper in the belly and surrounds your organs. Visceral fat is linked to many health risks.

The key takeaway here is that regular exercise makes fat cells more flexible, allowing the body to store more fat subcutaneously (under the skin), which is less harmful. When fat cells are inflexible and unable to store fat in this way, the fat ends up between the organs, leading to more health problems.

The Health Impact of Belly Fat

Previous studies have shown that belly fat—whether it’s from obesity, age, menopause, genetics, or dietary habits—can have serious effects on your health. Particularly, visceral fat is linked to increased risks of high blood pressure, sleep apnea, heart disease, stroke, and diabetes, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The study also revealed that the fat tissue in the exercise group was less inflamed and had more blood vessels than the sedentary group. This means they were able to derive more energy from their fat stores.

Exercise and Insulin Sensitivity

The participants who exercised regularly also had higher insulin sensitivity, which helps lower the risk of diabetes. Dr. Jaime Almandoz, a medical director at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, who wasn’t involved in the study, told NBC News, “If you have more blood vessels going into these cells, it suggests they are metabolizing more.”

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What’s the Conclusion?

“People who exercise regularly appear to have much healthier subcutaneous adipose tissue (body fat), which would suggest they have better overall metabolic function,” Dr. Aayush Visaria, an internal medicine resident at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, said. “This adds to the idea that obesity is a very complex issue, with many variables involved, and we should not make blanket statements about someone’s body type.”

Should We Be Afraid of Fat?

While fat is often considered bad, it is actually essential for our health. It is responsible for storing energy, releasing energy, insulating the body, and aiding hormone signaling. However, too much or too little fat can disrupt bodily functions.

If you want to reduce belly fat, consider eating foods that take longer to digest, increase your fiber and protein intake, exercise regularly, monitor your sleep and stress levels, and reduce alcohol consumption.