Obesity affects the human body in various ways, and one among them is its impact on brain function.
A recent study has revealed that the impact on brain function depends not only on how much fat the body carries, but also on where it is stored. This links pancreatic fat and 'skinny fat' body types to accelerated brain aging, cognitive decline, and higher neurological disease risk.
"Our work leveraged MRI's ability to quantify fat in various body compartments, especially internal organs, to create a classification system that's data-driven instead of subjective. The data-driven classification unexpectedly discovered two previously undefined fat distribution types that deserve greater attention," said study co-author Kai Liu, an associate professor at The Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University in China.
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Although earlier studies have linked obesity with a decline in brain health, the latest study highlights the specific risks tied to different fat storage patterns.
As per the researchers, data of nearly 26,000 individuals from the UK Biobank were analysed and the brain health outcomes were compared with patterns in how body fat was distributed.
Findings:
The analysis "revealed distinct patterns of body fat distribution, where pancreatic-predominant and skinny-fat patterns, in particular, were associated with adverse neurologic outcomes."
Experts revealed that the body fat profiles were mostly associated with extensive gray matter shrinking, an accelerated brain aging, cognitive decline and an increased risk of neurological disease, with risks present in both men and women.
It was also found that people with 'skinny fat' profiles showed the highest fat burden in nearly all areas except the liver and pancreas, unlike a balanced 'high obesity' profile, skinny fat tends to be more concentrated in the abdomen.
"Most notably, this type does not fit the traditional image of a very obese person, as its actual average BMI ranks only fourth among all categories. The increase is perhaps more in fat proportion," Liu said.