Recently I came across a new term called TOFI, which means THIN OUTSIDE FAT INSIDE.
If you are not overweight, how can you tell if you have potentially harmful fat inside or if you have skinny fat?
If you are naturally slim you might think that’s a sign that you are in good health, however, outward appearances can be deceiving. Someone who has healthy Body Mass Index (between 18.5 and 24.9) but has an unhealthy diet, drinks to excess, smokes, and sedentary lifestyle may have fat hidden inside their body. In fact they may be considered TOFI, and this hidden ‘visceral’ fat, which settles on the internal organs is linked with large health problems including diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.
The fat we carry around our waist is visceral. When you develop beer belly, that is also a sign of having visceral fat.
What is Visceral Fat?
The weight that we accumulate under the skin on our arms, legs and bottom is called ‘subcutaneous fat’, and is ‘considered the more metabolically healthy type’. Visceral fat is deposited around internal organs and is often called abdominal fat.
What is Skinny Fat?
You may have heard the term ‘skinny fat’-this is essentially the same as being TOFI, when people with a normal BMI higher than average levels of fat which are usually hidden abdominal variety.
What are the Dangers of this Active Abdominal Fat?
Often called ‘active fat’, it’s a risk factor for metabolic syndrome (the combination of diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity). ‘Visceral fat is metabolic, which means it produces chemicals and hormones that the body has to deal with, and is associated with hormone-driven-cancer.
Visceral fat makes it harder for the hormone insulin to work and causes insulin resistance, which can lead to pre diabetes and type 2 diabetes as well as obesity. It is a risk factor for 13 different cancers including cancer of the stomach, gall bladder, breast, ovarian, endometrial, prostate, kidney and liver. According to research having visceral fat can also be a sign that someone also has a fatty liver, which can lead to liver disease.
How do You Know if You have Visceral Fat?
If you are overweight or obese, have an apple shape or beer belly, the chances are that you have visceral fat. Some smart scales use an electric current to calculate body composition and determine whether that is the case. But most of the health experts prefer to use a tape measure. It is cheap, cost effective and easily repeated-great when you are making dietary and lifestyle changes, as improvements are motivating.
Even if you have a healthy BMI, you can still have a waist circumference higher than. Do not depend on your trouser size though-men’s waistband will sit below the widest point of their waist. To calculate your true waist measurement, find the halfway point between the bottom of you ribcage and the top of your hipbone.
For European and American region people- the recommended waist circumference of 31.5 inches for women, and 37 inches for men. For persons of African Caribbean, South Asian, Chinese and Japanese origin, a waist circumference above 35 inches for men and 32 inches for women is considered ‘very high risk’.
This is because these groups tend to carry more fat and less muscle at the same weight as white Europeans and Americans. The risk of diabetes and heart and circulatory diseases starts to increase at a lower weight gain than for Europeans/Americans.
Factors which causes Visceral Fat
- Diet-eating too many calories, especially fatty foods and carbohydrates
- Exercise- Not doing any exercise and leading a sedentary lifestyle.
- Stress- Your body releases cortisol, when you are stressed, which can impact your metabolism and trigger the storage of visceral fat. People often turn to food when they are stressed.
- Sleep- Shorter sleep durations are linked with increased visceral fat.
- Genetics- It determine your body shape and how your body stores visceral fat.
- Other factors- they include inflammation, hormonal changes, alcohol consumption, and smoking.
Some people are at greater risk for storing extra energy as visceral fat, including: males, females who have reached menopause, people who had a low birth weight, people with genetic predisposition, and people who drink too much alcohol.
Diet to get rid of Visceral Fat
The Mediterranean diet is thought to be the best for overall health. (In one of my blogs, I have written about this diet). Reduce your meat intake and eat more oily fish, and increase the variety of fruit and vegetables inyour diet, aiming for up to 30 unique plants, including whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds and herbs in a week.
Lifestyle Changes help to reduce this hidden fat
Sleep is very important. It affects two hunger hormones: ghrelin, which drives appetite, and leptin, which makes you feel full. If you have a sleep deficit, these hormones get disrupted and if you attempt to reduce your food intake you will be fighting a losing battle.
Regular exercise is also crucial. Adults should do some physical activity everyday, either spending 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity over a week, or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity spread over 4 to 5 days. Build muscle in your body. Start losing muscle mass at the age of 30, but it is metabolically active and burns calories even while you are sleeping. You do not have to go to gym-you can just lift a bottle of water, or use your own body weight with squats.
Waiting for your feedback on this blog.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
4th December 2024