The skinny fat epidemic
Why being thin doesn’t always mean being healthy
Almost each and every one of us has that one, effortlessly thin friend who subsists on a diet of cheese and bread without gaining even an ounce of weight. They avoid the gym like the plague, always order non-diet sodas and wouldn’t even know what the word ‘carbs’ meant had it not been for us, weight-conscious fools. Admit it, ladies! We are all guilty of secretly envying this person’s ability to look like a million bucks, no matter what they eat or drink, thanks to the extremely high metabolism they are apparently blessed with. But appearances can be deceiving and your skinny fat friend may be at risk of major chronic illnesses.
Throughout our lives, we have grown up believing that excess weight and obesity are the root causes of many medical conditions, such as high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, strokes, cardiovascular and metabolic problems and even cancer. While this is indeed true, medical advances have proven that underweight or overly thin people are just as vulnerable to these ailments, owing to a condition called ‘Skinny Fat’. The term represents a large proportion of people, who seek assistance for various medical conditions associated with weigh gain but don’t look fat or out of shape. Keeping this in mind, one can safely conclude that being thin doesn’t always equate to being healthy. In fact, in some cases it is by far much more dangerous to be underweight than obese.
In most cases, a skinny fat person is thin but with excess fat around some parts of their body. Medically speaking, this layer of flab is called visceral fat as it surrounds the organs in the abdominal region of the human body, such as the stomach, liver, pancreas, intestines and ovaries. Generally, men tend to have more visceral fat compared to women and are therefore, at a greater risk of related ailments. The extent of visceral fat can be measured through various body fat analysis and genetic profiling methods but it often takes too long as the patient appears ‘deceptively healthy.’
On the contrary, however, the patient may be far from it. Excess visceral fat exposes patients — especially those with a Body Mass Index of 30 or above — to lethal illnesses. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, nearly one in every four skinny persons are pre-diabetic and ‘metabolically obese’ and therefore, face a higher risk of death. Diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular and metabolic problems, as mentioned earlier, are just some of the possible outcomes of the skinny fat condition. Many patients also suffer from sleep apnea — a sleeping disorder that constricts the patient’s respiration during sleep — which ultimately causes headaches, high blood pressure, strokes and even depression.
What happens is that inactivity, even amongst thin people, causes visceral fat to accumulate around the organs. The fat doesn’t always manifest itself externally, all the while wreaking havoc internally. On the other hand, a person with evident excess weight problems may maintain a healthy level of activity and store less visceral fat. This means that we can’t judge how healthy a person is simply by looking at them.
Unfortunately, the idea that a person is unhealthy only if their fat is visible and that a thin person is good to go remains too deeply embedded in our minds for us to realise just how critical the skinny fat epidemic can get. Being skinny is, nowadays, an obsession without which one does not feel they can look good. Models, celebrities and even the average person is so warped in trying to become skinny that they don’t always realise they might be hampering their health. The most dangerous phenomenon is when youngsters try to emulate the skinny celebrities they look up to and begin dieting during their developemental years.
Nonetheless, prevention is better than cure. Medical officials across the world are now urging thin people to have themselves checked regularly to prevent problems. If you feel that you might be at risk of becoming a skinny fat person, you should start by reviewing your lifestyle and most importantly, improving your diet. A balanced diet plan — one which includes the right amounts of proteins, carbs and all other food groups — will help you bulk up, keep your digestive system clean and eliminate toxins from your body. Sodas, artificially sweetened products, processed meal and canned food items should be avoided as they are all rich in unhealthy fats that add to the visceral fat in the body. Most importantly, however, one must incorporate as much physical activity into their daily schedules as possible. Not only will this help a thin person build muscle, regular exercise also melts away visceral fat, improves blood flow and keeps the vital organs healthy. Being skinny fat isn’t a disease in itself and can easily be rectified — all it takes is a little bit of determination and hardwork.
You can take the following medical tests to find if you are skinny fat
• Lipid profile
• Blood pressure checks
• Blood sugar level testing
• A complete body fat analysis, which shows your muscle percentage, fat percentage and visceral fat levels.
Published in The Express Tribune, Ms T, December 21st, 2014.
Throughout our lives, we have grown up believing that excess weight and obesity are the root causes of many medical conditions, such as high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, strokes, cardiovascular and metabolic problems and even cancer. While this is indeed true, medical advances have proven that underweight or overly thin people are just as vulnerable to these ailments, owing to a condition called ‘Skinny Fat’. The term represents a large proportion of people, who seek assistance for various medical conditions associated with weigh gain but don’t look fat or out of shape. Keeping this in mind, one can safely conclude that being thin doesn’t always equate to being healthy. In fact, in some cases it is by far much more dangerous to be underweight than obese.
In most cases, a skinny fat person is thin but with excess fat around some parts of their body. Medically speaking, this layer of flab is called visceral fat as it surrounds the organs in the abdominal region of the human body, such as the stomach, liver, pancreas, intestines and ovaries. Generally, men tend to have more visceral fat compared to women and are therefore, at a greater risk of related ailments. The extent of visceral fat can be measured through various body fat analysis and genetic profiling methods but it often takes too long as the patient appears ‘deceptively healthy.’
On the contrary, however, the patient may be far from it. Excess visceral fat exposes patients — especially those with a Body Mass Index of 30 or above — to lethal illnesses. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, nearly one in every four skinny persons are pre-diabetic and ‘metabolically obese’ and therefore, face a higher risk of death. Diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular and metabolic problems, as mentioned earlier, are just some of the possible outcomes of the skinny fat condition. Many patients also suffer from sleep apnea — a sleeping disorder that constricts the patient’s respiration during sleep — which ultimately causes headaches, high blood pressure, strokes and even depression.
What happens is that inactivity, even amongst thin people, causes visceral fat to accumulate around the organs. The fat doesn’t always manifest itself externally, all the while wreaking havoc internally. On the other hand, a person with evident excess weight problems may maintain a healthy level of activity and store less visceral fat. This means that we can’t judge how healthy a person is simply by looking at them.
Unfortunately, the idea that a person is unhealthy only if their fat is visible and that a thin person is good to go remains too deeply embedded in our minds for us to realise just how critical the skinny fat epidemic can get. Being skinny is, nowadays, an obsession without which one does not feel they can look good. Models, celebrities and even the average person is so warped in trying to become skinny that they don’t always realise they might be hampering their health. The most dangerous phenomenon is when youngsters try to emulate the skinny celebrities they look up to and begin dieting during their developemental years.
Nonetheless, prevention is better than cure. Medical officials across the world are now urging thin people to have themselves checked regularly to prevent problems. If you feel that you might be at risk of becoming a skinny fat person, you should start by reviewing your lifestyle and most importantly, improving your diet. A balanced diet plan — one which includes the right amounts of proteins, carbs and all other food groups — will help you bulk up, keep your digestive system clean and eliminate toxins from your body. Sodas, artificially sweetened products, processed meal and canned food items should be avoided as they are all rich in unhealthy fats that add to the visceral fat in the body. Most importantly, however, one must incorporate as much physical activity into their daily schedules as possible. Not only will this help a thin person build muscle, regular exercise also melts away visceral fat, improves blood flow and keeps the vital organs healthy. Being skinny fat isn’t a disease in itself and can easily be rectified — all it takes is a little bit of determination and hardwork.
You can take the following medical tests to find if you are skinny fat
• Lipid profile
• Blood pressure checks
• Blood sugar level testing
• A complete body fat analysis, which shows your muscle percentage, fat percentage and visceral fat levels.
Published in The Express Tribune, Ms T, December 21st, 2014.