Liver Fat More Dangerous Than Belly Fat

Photo: Darren Hester, Flickr

For years, fat carried around the abdominal area has been regarded as the detrimental by-product of our fast-food consuming, activity-loathing society -- and not just because it looks awful hanging over the edge of your low-cut jeans. Belly fat is just plain bad for your health. In fact, it's the worst kind of fat to have. Or so we thought.

Recent findings from the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are suggesting that our obsession with belly fat is misguided -- it's actually the fat that's collected in the liver that we should be concerned with. "Visceral (abdominal) fat tracks closely with liver fat," lead author Dr. Samuel Klein says in a press release. "We have found that excess fat in the liver, not visceral fat, is a key marker of metabolic dysfunction. Visceral fat might simply be an innocent bystander that is associated with liver fat."

The bad news? Unlike belly fat, you can't really tell if your liver is fatty (well, not in a mirror, anyway.) But there is good news. "Fatty liver disease is completely reversible," says Klein. "Even two days of calorie restriction can cause a large reduction in liver fat and improvement in liver insulin sensitivity." So what are you waiting for? Help that liver of yours slim down.

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