All terms in the LMM model were significant. Because these findings may be confounded by indicators of total body adiposity, BMI and total fat mass were additionally added to the model as covariates to determine whether the associations were attenuated.

Table 2 shows the region by ethnicity comparisons with both observed data and data adjusted for ethnicity. See Figure 2. No difference between android and gynoid for NHW. The central purpose of this study was to determine whether differences exist among ethnic and racial groups of young men in central that is, android and trunk and peripheral that is, arm, leg and gynoid regional fat mass.

As with a previous study in women, these data reveal that fat in each of these regions varies by ethnicity. Our hypotheses were largely verified. The present data support findings that assert that HI have a higher level of whole body adiposity, lower fat-free mass and bone mineral content compared with NHW, even when controlling for numerous factors.

For instance, differences between ethnicities exist for bone mineral content, limb length, muscle density and many other factors. Comparisons between these groups are most prevalent in the literature, with numerous studies finding ethnic differences. Additional studies have concluded that AA men have lower measures of abdominal visceral fat than NHW and HI men, even when controlling for total adipose tissue.

The current study found that AA and NHW men were higher in fat-free mass than AS and HI ethnicities, but did not differ from each other. However, a different pattern of results is evident for women. When specifically examining appendicular muscle and skeletal mass from DXA , AA women are higher than NHW women.

Furthermore, Stults-Kolehmainen et al. Making direct comparisons between the extant literature and our results, however, is hampered by two sets of issues. First, we did not adjust data for covariates of central fat mass, as is commonly reported.

And second, other ethnic comparisons for body composition have typically employed skinfolds or measures of central adiposity determined from MRI or computed tomography. An important question of interest regarding our data, then, is whether our measurements of android fat as determined by DXA are a proxy for more-established measures of visceral fat.

Therefore, our findings show that AS and HI men distribute fat differently than AA and NHW; the key difference being that AS and HI tend to store more fat in the lower torso relative to the hips and upper thighs. Body distribution of fat is important because, as mentioned above, fat deposited more centrally—and particularly visceral or intra-abdominal fat—is related to a number of chronic health conditions, such as insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease.

However, some data suggest that abdominal fat has an ethnic-dependent association with these chronic conditions. Limitations to the current study exist. First, despite the fact that our sample was ethnically representative from the larger university population, it is possible that it was not representative for obesity status or adiposity distribution.

Participants were self selected and only a study design including a random sample would resolve this issue. It should also be noted that our sample was composed of young men, whereas many studies have utilized a much larger age range.

Another problem centers on the self report of ethnicity and race, and the lack of precise criteria to classify individuals into ethnic groupings.

We also did not assess behavioral factors, such as chronic physical activity status, which is a factor some studies have controlled. SES and cultural factors are also likely relevant 32 as are the experience of psychological stress and poor coping behaviors, which are related to central fat distribution.

Consequently, the anatomical specification of the android region varies throughout the literature, and direct comparisons with other studies are not always possible. Despite the aforementioned limitations, this investigation, alongside a paired study in women, 7 represents a strong methodological advance in the literature on ethnic differences in body composition.

To our knowledge, this is the first study in men to utilize DXA technology to complete analyses of fat mass for five regions. Finally, this is also one of few studies to compare four major ethnic groups.

Specifically, investigations incorporating both AA and AS groups have been uncommon. Indeed, most studies have limited ethnicity comparisons, 27 , 28 a subject selection biased by the use of convenience groups, a focus on one obesity status for example, overweight individuals , 26 or examine only non-exercisers.

This stands in contrast to a recent study which found that among women, the AA ethnicity has the greatest total and central adiposity. Interestingly, there were no differences observed between AA and NHW men, which contrast many previous findings. Future research needs to determine whether ethnic differences in central body fat modulate risk for suboptimal health outcomes.

If such is the case, ethnic-specific cutoffs should be developed to improve risk assessment and intervention. Shen W, Punyanitya M, Chen J, Gallagher D, Albu J, Pi-Sunyer X et al. Waist circumference correlates with metabolic syndrome indicators better than percentage fat.

Obesity ; 14 : — Article Google Scholar. Yusuf S, Hawken S, Ounpuu S, Bautista L, Franzosi MG, Commerford P et al. Obesity and the risk of myocardial infarction in 27, participants from 52 countries: a case-control study.

Lancet ; : — Lee CC, Glickman SG, Dengel DR, Brown MD, Supiano MA. Abdominal adiposity assessed by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry provides a sex-independent predictor of insulin sensitivity in older adults.

J Gerontol Ser A-Biol Sci Med Sci ; 60 : — Folsom AR, Kushi LH, Anderson KE, Mink PJ, Olson JE, Hong CP et al. Arch Intern Med ; : — Article CAS Google Scholar. Manolopoulos KN, Karpe F, Frayn KN.

Gluteofemoral body fat as a determinant of metabolic health. Int J Obes ; 34 : — Okura T, Nakata Y, Yamabuki K, Tanaka K. Regional body composition changes exhibit opposing effects on coronary heart disease risk factors.

Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol ; 24 : — Stults-Kolehmainen MA, Stanforth PR, Bartholomew JB. Fat in android, trunk, and peripheral regions varies by ethnicity and race in college aged women.

Obesity ; 20 : — Malina RM. Variation in body composition associated with sex and ethnicity. In: Heymsfield SB, Lohman TG, Wang Z, Going SB eds.

Human Body Composition. Human Kinetics: Champaign, IL, p — Google Scholar. Mott JW, Wang J, Thornton JC, Allison DB, Heymsfield SB, Pierson RN. Relation between body fat and age in 4 ethnic groups. Am J Clin Nutr ; 69 : — Wang J, Thornton JC, Burastero S, Shen J, Tanenbaum S, Heymsfield SB et al.

Comparisons for body mass index and body fat percent among Puerto Ricans, Blacks, Whites and Asians living in the New York City area.

Obes Res ; 4 : — Wu CH, Heshka S, Wang J, Pierson RN, Heymsfield S, Laferrere B et al. Truncal fat in relation to total body fat: influences of age, sex, ethnicity and fatness. Int J Obes ; 31 : — Marcus MA, Wang J, Pi-Sunyer FX, Thornton JC, Kofopoulou I, Pierson RN. Effects of ethnicity, gender, obesity, and age on central fat distribution: comparison of dual x-ray absorptiometry measurements in White, Black, and Puerto Rican adults.

Am J Hum Biol ; 10 : — Wang D, Li YP, Lee SG, Wang L, Fan JH, Zhang G et al. Ethnic differences in body composition and obesity related risk factors: study in Chinese and White males living in China. PLoS One ; 6 : e Aleman-Mateo H, Lee SY, Javed F, Thornton J, Heymsfield SB, Pierson RN et al.

Elderly mexicans have less muscle and greater total and truncal fat compared to African-Americans and caucasians with the same BMI. J Nutr Health Aging ; 13 : — Hoffman DJ, Wang ZM, Gallagher D, Heymsfield SB.

Comparison of visceral adipose tissue mass in adult African Americans and whites. Obes Res ; 13 : 66— Carroll JF, Chiapa AL, Rodriquez M, Phelps DR, Cardarelli KM, Vishwanatha JK et al. Obesity ; 16 : — Hill JO, Sidney S, Lewis CE, Tolan K, Scherzinger AL, Stamm ER.

Racial differences in amounts of visceral adipose tissue in young adults: the CARDIA coronary artery risk development in young adults study. Stanforth PR, Jackson AS, Green JS, Gagnon J, Rankinen T, Despres JP et al. Generalized abdominal visceral fat prediction models for black and white adults aged y: the HERITAGE Family Study.

Int J Obes ; 28 : — Zillikens MC, Conway JM. Anthropometry in blacks—applicability of generalized skinfold equations and differences in fat patterning between blacks and whites.

Am J Clin Nutr ; 52 : 45— Hill AM, LaForgia J, Coates AM, Buckley JD, Howe PRC. Estimating abdominal adipose tissue with DXA and anthropometry. Obesity ; 15 : — Rissanen P, Hamalainen P, Vanninen E, TenhunenEskelinen M, Uusitupa M. There are differences in android and gynoid fat distribution among individuals, which relates to various health issues among individuals.

Android body fat distribution is related to high cardiovascular disease and mortality rate. People with android obesity have higher hematocrit and red blood cell count and higher blood viscosity than people with gynoid obesity.

Blood pressure is also higher in those with android obesity which leads to cardiovascular disease. Women who are infertile and have polycystic ovary syndrome show high amounts of android fat tissue.

In contrast, patients with anorexia nervosa have increased gynoid fat percentage [16] Women normally have small amounts of androgen , however when the amount is too high they develop male psychological characteristics and male physical characteristics of muscle mass, structure and function and an android adipose tissue distribution.

Women who have high amounts of androgen and thus an increase tendency for android fat distribution are in the lowest quintiles of levels of sex-hormone-binding globulin and more are at high risks of ill health associated with android fat [17].

High levels of android fat have been associated with obesity [18] and diseases caused by insulin insensitivity, such as diabetes. The larger the adipose cell size the less sensitive the insulin. Diabetes is more likely to occur in obese women with android fat distribution and hypertrophic fat cells.

There are connections between high android fat distributions and the severity of diseases such as acute pancreatitis - where the higher the levels of android fat are, the more severe the pancreatitis can be. Even adults who are overweight and obese report foot pain to be a common problem. Body fat can impact on an individual mentally, for example high levels of android fat have been linked to poor mental wellbeing, including anxiety, depression and body confidence issues.

On the reverse, psychological aspects can impact on body fat distribution too, for example women classed as being more extraverted tend to have less android body fat. Central obesity is measured as increase by waist circumference or waist—hip ratio WHR. in females. However increase in abdominal circumference may be due to increasing in subcutaneous or visceral fat, and it is the visceral fat which increases the risk of coronary diseases.

The visceral fat can be estimated with the help of MRI and CT scan. Waist to hip ratio is determined by an individual's proportions of android fat and gynoid fat. A small waist to hip ratio indicates less android fat, high waist to hip ratio's indicate high levels of android fat.

As WHR is associated with a woman's pregnancy rate, it has been found that a high waist-to-hip ratio can impair pregnancy, thus a health consequence of high android fat levels is its interference with the success of pregnancy and in-vitro fertilisation.

Women with large waists a high WHR tend to have an android fat distribution caused by a specific hormone profile, that is, having higher levels of androgens.

This leads to such women having more sons. Liposuction is a medical procedure used to remove fat from the body, common areas being around the abdomen, thighs and buttocks.

Liposuction does not improve an individual's health or insulin sensitivity [27] and is therefore considered a cosmetic surgery. Another method of reducing android fat is Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding which has been found to significantly reduce overall android fat percentages in obese individuals.

Cultural differences in the distribution of android fat have been observed in several studies. Compared to Europeans, South Asian individuals living in the UK have greater abdominal fat.

A difference in body fat distribution was observed between men and women living in Denmark this includes both android fat distribution and gynoid fat distribution , of those aged between 35 and 65 years, men showed greater body fat mass than women.

Men showed a total body fat mass increase of 6. This is because in comparison to their previous lifestyle where they would engage in strenuous physical activity daily and have meals that are low in fat and high in fiber, the Westernized lifestyle has less physical activity and the diet includes high levels of carbohydrates and fats.

Android fat distributions change across life course. The main changes in women are associated with menopause. Premenopausal women tend to show a more gynoid fat distribution than post-menopausal women - this is associated with a drop in oestrogen levels.

An android fat distribution becomes more common post-menopause, where oestrogen is at its lowest levels. Computed tomography studies show that older adults have a two-fold increase in visceral fat compared to young adults. These changes in android fat distribution in older adults occurs in the absence of any clinical diseases.

Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Table 1. Participants characteristics including body composition measured by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry DXA and computed tomography CT.

Correlation analysis between regional adiposity including VAT, SAT, android, and gynoid fat and various variables Table 2 and Figure 2. Figure 2. Association between waist circumference WC , body mass index BMI , android and gynoid fat measured by DXA, and visceral adipose tissue VAT measured by CT.

Table 2. Correlation analysis between adiposity indices including visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue VAT and SAT measured by CT and android and gynoid fat measured by DXA with various variables. Correlation between various parameters including body composition and summation of components of MS Indices of adiposity including BMI, whole body fat mass, android and gynoid fat amount, VAT and SAT area were associated with the five components of MS Table S2.

Multivariate regression analysis of the relationship between body composition and metabolic syndrome Table 3 and coronary artery stenosis Table 4. Table 3. Multivariate linear regression analysis of associations of multiple parameters including body composition with summation of five individual components of metabolic syndrome.

Table 4. Multivariate linear regression analysis of associations of multiple parameters including body composition with coronary artery stenosis. Discussion In this study with community-based elderly population, of the various body compositions examined using advanced techniques, android fat and VAT were significantly associated with clustering of five components of MS in multivariate linear regression analysis adjusted for various factors.

Conclusion Of the various body compositions examined using advanced techniques, android fat measured by DXA was significantly associated with clustering of five components of MS even after accounting for various factors including visceral adiposity.

Supporting Information. Table S1. s DOC. Table S2. Table S3. Author Contributions Conceived and designed the experiments: SMK JWY HYA SYK KHL SL. References 1.

Despres JP, Lemieux I Abdominal obesity and metabolic syndrome. Nature —7. View Article Google Scholar 2. Fox CS, Massaro JM, Hoffmann U, Pou KM, Maurovich-Horvat P, et al. Circulation 39— View Article Google Scholar 3.

Pi-Sunyer FX The epidemiology of central fat distribution in relation to disease. Nutr Rev S—S View Article Google Scholar 4. Canoy D Distribution of body fat and risk of coronary heart disease in men and women.

Curr Opin Cardiol —8. View Article Google Scholar 5. Kim SK, Park SW, Hwang IJ, Lee YK, Cho YW High fat stores in ectopic compartments in men with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes: an anthropometric determinant of carotid atherosclerosis and insulin resistance.

Int J Obes Lond — View Article Google Scholar 6. Van Gaal LF, Vansant GA, De L, I Upper body adiposity and the risk for atherosclerosis. J Am Coll Nutr 8: — View Article Google Scholar 7. Oka R, Miura K, Sakurai M, Nakamura K, Yagi K, et al. Obesity Silver Spring — View Article Google Scholar 8.

Despres JP Cardiovascular disease under the influence of excess visceral fat. Crit Pathw Cardiol 6: 51—9. View Article Google Scholar 9. Ibrahim MM Subcutaneous and visceral adipose tissue: structural and functional differences. Obes Rev 11—8. View Article Google Scholar Rhee EJ, Choi JH, Yoo SH, Bae JC, Kim WJ, et al.

Diabetes Metab J — Rexrode KM, Carey VJ, Hennekens CH, Walters EE, Colditz GA, et al. JAMA —8. Wang J, Thornton JC, Kolesnik S, Pierson RN Jr Anthropometry in body composition.

An overview. Ann N Y Acad Sci — Isomaa B, Almgren P, Tuomi T, Forsen B, Lahti K, et al. Diabetes Care —9. Meigs JB Invited commentary: insulin resistance syndrome?

Syndrome X? Multiple metabolic syndrome? A syndrome at all? Factor analysis reveals patterns in the fabric of correlated metabolic risk factors. Am J Epidemiol — Alberti KG, Zimmet P, Shaw J The metabolic syndrome—a new worldwide definition.

Lancet — Lim S, Yoon JW, Choi SH, Park YJ, Lee JJ, et al. Matthews DR, Hosker JP, Rudenski AS, Naylor BA, Treacher DF, et al. Diabetologia —9. JAMA — Hind K, Oldroyd B, Truscott JG In vivo precision of the GE Lunar iDXA densitometer for the measurement of total body composition and fat distribution in adults.

Eur J Clin Nutr —2. Yoshizumi T, Nakamura T, Yamane M, Islam AH, Menju M, et al. Radiology —6. Lim S, Choi SH, Choi EK, Chang SA, Ku YH, et al. Atherosclerosis — Austen WG, Edwards JE, Frye RL, Gensini GG, Gott VL, et al.

Report of the Ad Hoc Committee for Grading of Coronary Artery Disease, Council on Cardiovascular Surgery, American Heart Association.

Circulation 5— Lim S, Kwon SY, Yoon JW, Kim SY, Choi SH, et al. Obesity Silver Spring —8. Marquis K, Debigare R, Lacasse Y, LeBlanc P, Jobin J, et al. Am J Respir Crit Care Med — Shen W, Punyanitya M, Wang Z, Gallagher D, St-Onge MP, et al.

Am J Clin Nutr —8. Brenner DJ, Hall EJ Computed tomography—an increasing source of radiation exposure. N Engl J Med — Zillikens MC, Uitterlinden AG, van Leeuwen JP, Berends AL, Henneman P, et al.

Calcif Tissue Int — Berends AL, Zillikens MC, de Groot CJ, Rivadeneira F, Oostra BA, et al. BJOG — Niederauer CM, Binkley TL, Specker BL Effect of truncal adiposity on plasma lipid and lipoprotein concentrations. J Nutr Health Aging — Park YW, Heymsfield SB, Gallagher D Are dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry regional estimates associated with visceral adipose tissue mass?

Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord — Treuth MS, Hunter GR, Kekes-Szabo T Estimating intraabdominal adipose tissue in women by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.

Am J Clin Nutr — Lohman M, Tallroth K, Kettunen JA, Marttinen MT Reproducibility of dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry total and regional body composition measurements using different scanning positions and definitions of regions.

Metabolism —8. Ellis KJ Human body composition: in vivo methods. Physiol Rev —

Why do men accumulate abdominal visceral fat? Front Physiol. Body mass index: considerations for practitioners. Accessed March 31, Kanaya AM, Vaisse C. In: Gardner DG, Shoback D, eds. New York, NY: McGraw Hill Education; Powell-Wiley TM, Poirier P, Burke LE, et al.

Obesity and cardiovascular disease: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Pogodzinski D, Ostrowska L, Smarkusz-Zarzecka J, Zysk B. Secretome of adipose tissue as the key to understanding the endocrine function of adipose tissue. Int J Mol Sci.

Huang PL. A comprehensive definition for metabolic syndrome. Dis Model Mech. Bergman RN, Kim SP, Catalano KJ, et al. Why visceral fat is bad: mechanisms of the metabolic syndrome.

Obesity Silver Spring. Masharani U, German MS. Pancreatic hormones and diabetes mellitus. Scheja L, Heeren J. The endocrine function of adipose tissues in health and cardiometabolic disease. Nat Rev Endocrinol. McGown C, Birerdinc A, Younossi ZM. Adipose tissue as an endocrine organ.

Clin Liver Dis. Sell H, Eckel J, Dietze-Schroeder D. Pathways leading to muscle insulin resistance—the muscle-fat connection. Arch Physiol Biochem. Coelho M, Oliveira T, Fernandes R. Biochemistry of adipose tissue: an endocrine organ. Arch Med Sci. Matsuzawa Y, Shimomura I, Nakamura T, et al.

Pathophysiology and pathogenesis of visceral fat obesity. Obes Res. Klein S. Is visceral fat responsible for the metabolic abnormalities associated with obesity? Diabetes Care. Gastaldelli A, Miyazaki Y, Pettiti M, et al. Metabolic effects of visceral fat accumulation in type 2 diabetes.

J Clin Endocrinol Metab. Després JP. Obesity and cardiovascular disease: weight loss is not the only target. Can J Cardiol. Body fat distribution and risk of cardiovascular disease: an update. Liu J, Fox CS, Hickson DA, et al. Impact of abdominal visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue on cardiometabolic risk factors: the Jackson Heart Study.

Kanai H, Matsuzawa Y, Kotani K, et al. Close correlation of intra-abdominal fat accumulation to hypertension in obese women.

Jordan J, Grassi G. Belly fat and resistant hypertension. J Hypertens. Hotoleanu C. Association between obesity and venous thromboembolism. Med Pharm Rep. Bureau C, Laurent J, Robic MA, et al. Central obesity is associated with non-cirrhotic portal vein thrombosis.

J Hepatol. Ageno W, Di Minno MN, Ay C, et al. Association between the metabolic syndrome, its individual components, and unprovoked venous thromboembolism: results of a patient-level meta-analysis.

Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. Goldhaber SZ, Grodstein F, Stampfer MJ, et al. A prospective study of risk factors for pulmonary embolism in women. Mazzoccoli G, Dagostino MP, Grilli M, et al. Idiopathic deep venous thrombosis and epicardial fat thickness: the age, gender and obesity connection.

Biomed Aging Pathology. Mazzoccoli G, Copetti M, Dagostino MP, et al. Epicardial adipose tissue and idiopathic deep venous thrombosis: an association study.

Manabe S, Kataoka H, Mochizuki T, et al. Impact of visceral fat area in patients with chronic kidney disease. Clin Exp Nephrol. Lee J, Lee JY, Lee JH, et al. Visceral fat obesity is highly associated with primary gout in a metabolically obese but normal weighted population: a case control study.

Arthritis Res Ther. Lee JY, Lee HS, Lee DC, et al. Visceral fat accumulation is associated with colorectal cancer in postmenopausal women. PLoS One. Le Marchand L, Wilkens LR, Castelfranco AM, et al. Circulating biomarker score for visceral fat and risks of incident colorectal and postmenopausal breast cancer: the Multiethnic Cohort Adiposity Phenotype Study.

Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. Harvard Health. Taking aim at belly fat. Accessed March 29, Neeland IJ, Marso SP, Ayers CR, et al. Effects of liraglutide on visceral and ectopic fat in adults with overweight and obesity at high cardiovascular risk: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial.

Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. American Heart Association. American Heart Association recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.

Mayo Clinic. The pathway involving decreased endothelial function in this setting of higher android fat remains to be established. In addition, subjects with higher android fat content were characterized by an abnormal lipid profile in the form of elevated plasma concentration of TG and five other lipidomic classes.

Elevated fasting TG levels are a common dyslipidemic feature that accompanies the prediabetic state and is associated with CV risk in young men Tirosh et al. Serum TG have previously been reported to be positively associated with android fat in a large study in adults in the general population Min and Min, Such abnormal serum TG in those with higher android fat content may negatively impact endothelial function as a strong link between serum TG and endothelial function was demonstrated in a large community-based study Kajikawa et al.

Among the many lipid classes, some have been implicated in metabolic and CV disease development in animal models and in humans. Within the system-wide lipid network, Stegemann et al.

While it is uncertain why these lipid species are elevated in those with higher android fat, it may add to their elevated CV risk. Individuals with higher android fat content were characterized by elevated serum UA compared to those with lower android fat.

UA has emerged as an important marker of end organ damage Lambert et al. Therefore, increased UA in those with elevated android fat content may be an additional CV risk factor. In line with our findings, a previous study conducted in a large cohort of Chinese subjects indicated that increasing risk of blood pressure outcomes across UA quartiles was most prominent in individuals with abdominal obesity Yang et al.

Hyperuricemia is strongly associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis and UA has also been shown to induce vascular endothelial dysfunction via oxidative stress and inflammatory responses Puddu et al. However, whether elevated UA in the group of young males with high levels of android fat affects their endothelial function is uncertain because lowering UA fails to improve endothelial function Borgi et al.

While low endothelial function was noticed in individuals with higher fat content, we noticed that the arterial stiffness assessed from the augmentation index from the digits as well as the renal function were not different between subjects with higher or lower android fat content.

Both arterial stiffness Corrigan et al. The young age and absence of cardiometabolic abnormalities in our participants even in the presence of higher android fat may explain the lack of difference. Our results of a lower endothelial function in those with higher android fat depot are different to those of Weil et al.

who found that abdominal obesity assessed with waist circumference was not associated with greater impairment in endothelial function in overweight and obese adult men Weil et al.

Discrepancies in the findings may be due to differences in subject age, assessment of endothelial function and assessment of abdominal fat content. Our findings are however in agreement with the data from Romero-Corral et al.

Overweight is a well-recognized risk factor for pre-hypertension and hypertension and studies have suggested that the risk of developing hypertension may be linked to body fatness and body fat distribution Wiklund et al. Similarly, excess adiposity is characterized by elevated sympathetic nervous system activity, even in young healthy individuals, which is likely to impact on their CV risk including hypertension development Lambert et al.

Contrary to expectation, we found that MSNA, expressed as bursts incidence was not different between our subjects with high and low android fat content.

Of note burst frequency was significantly higher in participants with higher android fat but this increase was no longer noticed after adjusting for the heart rate. This is surprising considering that sympathetic activation to the skeletal muscle is usually observed in the presence of glucose intolerance Straznicky et al.

Blood pressure and cardiac vagal baroreflex function were also found to be similar between the 2 groups suggesting that in this cohort of young overweight males, excess android fat may not further alter hemodynamic control. One exception was noticed for the heart rate which, as noticed above, was higher in those with high android fat content.

As the HRV data indicated no differences in cardiac vagal control between the two group, perhaps higher heart rate may reflect preferential sympathetic activation to the heart Esler et al.

Limitations of the study include the small number of participants and the cross-sectional aspect of our study which does not permit the determination of causality. The EndoPat technique uses pulse volume changes at the fingertips after an occlusion of the brachial artery as an index of endothelial function.

Although the method has been validated Kuvin et al. Dietary habits and physical activity were not assessed in these participants hence we are not able to determine if these factors may have influenced our results.

Strengths of the study includes the number of different outcomes assessed with regards to both metabolic and end organ damage as well as direct sympathetic nervous system activity measurements and the use of iDXA.

In conclusion, our study indicated that in young overweight but otherwise healthy males, preferential fat depot in the android region was associated with impaired glucose and lipid profile, increased serum UA concentrations and worsening of endothelial function.

On the other hand renal function and arterial stiffness were comparable. Contrary to expectation, sympathetic tone as assessed with MSNA and expressed as burst incidence was not elevated in participants with higher android fat content.

These data suggest that elevated android fat may confer heightened CV risk and interventions to slow down the development of CV disease should specifically target android fat.

MS received research support and speaker fees from Abbott. GH received research support from Boehringer Ingelheim. The datasets generated for this study are available on request to the corresponding author.

EL, CS, NE, GH, MS, and GL contributed to the conception and design of the study. CS collected the clinical data, organized the database, and performed the statistical analysis. NE and PM performed all the lipidomic analysis. EL and CS wrote the first draft of the manuscript.

All authors contributed to the manuscript revision, and read and approved the submitted version. This study was supported by a project grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia. The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Abramowitz, M. Muscle mass, BMI, and mortality among adults in the United States: a population-based cohort study. PLoS One e doi: PubMed Abstract CrossRef Full Text Google Scholar. Alvarez, G. Subcutaneous obesity is not associated with sympathetic neural activation. Heart Circ.

Sympathetic neural activation in visceral obesity. Circulation , — PubMed Abstract Google Scholar. Aucouturier, J. Effect of android to gynoid fat ratio on insulin resistance in obese youth. Borghi, C. Serum uric acid levels are associated with cardiovascular risk score: a post hoc analysis of the EURIKA study.

Borgi, L. Effect of uric acid-lowering agents on endothelial function: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Hypertension 69, — Calle, E. Body-mass index and mortality in a prospective cohort of U.

Corrigan, F. III, Kelli, H. Changes in truncal obesity and fat distribution predict arterial health. Eikelis, N. Muscle sympathetic nerve activity is associated with elements of the plasma lipidomic profile in young Asian adults. Esler, M. Measurement of overall and cardiac norepinephrine release into plasma during cognitive challenge.

Psychoneuroendocrinology 14, — Guglielmi, V. Obesity phenotypes: depot-differences in adipose tissue and their clinical implications. Eat Weight Disord. Hamburg, N. Cross-sectional relations of digital vascular function to cardiovascular risk factors in the Framingham heart study.

Imboden, M. Reference standards for body fat measures using GE dual energy x-ray absorptiometry in caucasian adults. Indumathy, J. Association of sympathovagal imbalance with obesity indices, and abnormal metabolic biomarkers and cardiovascular parameters.

Kajikawa, M. Relationship between serum triglyceride levels and endothelial function in a large community-based study. Atherosclerosis , 70— Kang, S. Android fat depot is more closely associated with metabolic syndrome than abdominal visceral fat in elderly people.

PLoS One 6:e Kim, J. Reciprocal relationships between insulin resistance and endothelial dysfunction: molecular and pathophysiological mechanisms. Kim, T. The relationship between the regional abdominal adipose tissue distribution and the serum uric acid levels in people with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Kuvin, J. Assessment of peripheral vascular endothelial function with finger arterial pulse wave amplitude. Heart J. Laakso, M. How good a marker is insulin level for insulin resistance?

Laaksonen, R. Plasma ceramides predict cardiovascular death in patients with stable coronary artery disease and acute coronary syndromes beyond LDL-cholesterol. Lambert, E. Sympathetic nervous system activity is associated with obesity-induced subclinical organ damage in young adults.

Hypertension 56, — Dyslipidemia is associated with sympathetic nervous activation and impaired endothelial function in young females. Serum uric acid and the relationship with subclinical organ damage in adults.

Effects of moxonidine and low-calorie diet: cardiometabolic benefits from combination of both therapies. Obesity 25, — Marinou, K. Structural and functional properties of deep abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue explain its association with insulin resistance and cardiovascular risk in men.

Diabetes Care 37, — Min, K. Android and gynoid fat percentages and serum lipid levels in United States adults. Muniyappa, R. Role of insulin resistance in endothelial dysfunction. Oh, I. Estimating negative effect of abdominal obesity on mildly decreased kidney function using a novel index of body-fat distribution.

Korean Med. Onkelinx, S. Reproducibility of different methods to measure the endothelial function. Parati, G. Autonomic cardiac regulation in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome: evidence from spontaneous baroreflex analysis during sleep.

Peterson, M. Android Adiposity and Lack of Moderate and Vigorous Physical Activity Are Associated With Insulin Resistance and Diabetes in Aging Adults. A Biol. Puddu, P. Relationships among hyperuricemia, endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular disease: molecular mechanisms and clinical implications.

Reaven, G. Insulin resistance: the link between obesity and cardiovascular disease. North Am. Romero-Corral, A. Modest visceral fat gain causes endothelial dysfunction in healthy humans. Rothney, M. Precision of GE lunar iDXA for the measurement of total and regional body composition in nonobese adults.

Samsell, L. Snijder, M. Independent and opposite associations of waist and hip circumferences with diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidemia: the ausdiab study. Stegemann, C. Lipidomics profiling and risk of cardiovascular disease in the prospective population-based Bruneck study.

Straznicky, N. Neuroadrenergic dysfunction along the diabetes continuum: a comparative study in obese metabolic syndrome subjects. Diabetes 61, — Tirosh, A.

Changes in triglyceride levels over time and risk of type 2 diabetes in young men. Diabetes Care 31, — Vecchie, A. Obesity phenotypes and their paradoxical association with cardiovascular diseases. von Eyben, F. Intra-abdominal obesity and metabolic risk factors: a study of young adults.

Weil, B. Obesity 19, — Weir, J. Plasma lipid profiling in a large population-based cohort. Lipid Res. Wiklund, P.

In middle aged subjects, android fat was found to be a determinant of arterial stiffness independent of traditional risk factors Corrigan et al.

Morphological and functional heterogeneity among adipose depots, together with genetic and environmental factors may contribute to differential cardiometabolic risk Guglielmi and Sbraccia, Of note is the fact that sympathetic overdrive Lambert et al.

Sympathovagal imbalance has been reported to be the potential contributor to the obesity related co-morbidities such as diabetes, insulin resistance, hypertension, dyslipidemia and CV dysfunctions Indumathy et al. Sympathetic nervous system overactivity is likely to negatively impact on glucose metabolism, lipid profile, blood pressure and end organ damage Lambert et al.

Alvarez et al. Such sympathetic activation occurring preferentially in relation to the abdominal fat level may be an important link between abdominal obesity and the development of CV risk although this remains to be investigated.

Serum UA has recently emerged as an important independent risk factor for increased CV disease Borghi et al. Some studies have suggested that increased serum UA may be more pronounced in subjects with increased visceral adiposity Kim et al.

Whether fat distribution is an important determinant of CV risk in young healthy overweight individuals and whether this is associated with autonomic nervous activity sympathetic and vagal function and serum UA remains uncertain.

We hence evaluated the metabolic profile, end organ damage renal, endothelial function and augmentation index , sympathetic nerve activity and serum UA concentration in healthy overweight men with low and high level of android fat. They were all male and were recruited through two major universities in the Melbourne metropolitan area.

They were non- smokers and not on any medication. None of the participants had a history of CV, metabolic or cerebrovascular disease. The Alfred Hospital Human Ethics Committee approved the study protocol and all subjects gave written informed consent before participating in the study.

Participants were studied in the morning after an overnight fast. There were allowed one drink of water in the morning. Demographic details of age, gender, race, clinical status and blood pressure were obtained from standard measurements and questionnaires.

A detailed history and physical examination were conducted to exclude obesity and CV related comorbidities. Supine blood pressure was measured 3 times after 5 minutes rest using a Dinamap monitor Model SX, Critikon Inc.

Body weight was measured in light indoor clothes without shoes using a digital scale. Waist circumference was measured at the midpoint between the lowest rib and iliac crest, and hip circumference at the level of the greater trochanters. The endothelial function was assessed using the digital pulse amplitude measured in the fasting state with a pulse amplitude tonometry PAT device placed on the tip of each index finger Itamar Medical Ltd.

PAT was assessed in response to reactive hyperemia. Measurements were obtained for 5 to 10 min at baseline followed by 5 min of occlusion of 1 arm, with the cuff inflated on the upper arm to suprasystolic pressure 60 mm Hg above systolic pressure or mm Hg and then released to induce reactive flow-mediated hyperemia, measured for 5 to 10 min.

This calculation was made independent of the automatic algorithm provided by Itamar Medical Ltd. The pulse amplitude waveform analysis of the PAT signal was used to derive a measure of arterial stiffness and was expressed as augmentation index AI normalized to a heart rate of 75 bpm AI Recording of multiunit postganglionic MSNA was made with participants resting in a supine position.

A tungsten microelectrode FHC, Bowdoin, ME, United States was inserted directly into the right peroneal nerve just below the fibular head. A subcutaneous reference electrode was positioned 2—3 cm away from the recording site. The nerve signal was amplified , , filtered bandpass — Hz , rectified and integrated.

During MSNA recording, blood pressure was measured continuously using the Finometer system Finapress Medical System BV, Enschede, Netherlands , and heart rate was determine using a three-lead echocardiogram.

Resting measurements were recorded over a min period and averaged. In addition, all of the participants underwent ambulatory BP monitoring over 24—26 h using an oscillometric monitor model No.

Blood pressure and heart rate values were averaged over the total period of the recording. Baroreflex sensitivity was assessed using the sequence method Parati et al. The baroreflex efficacy index BEI and slope of the regression line between cardiac interval and systolic blood pressure was calculated for each validated sequence and averaged during a min supine recording.

Heart rate variability HRV was assessed from the resting ECG recordings obtained during the MSNA recording and was determined using commercially available software HRV Module for Chart 5 Pro; ADI Instruments, Bella Vista, Australia.

Parameters derived were root mean square of successive R-R intervals RMSSD in the time domain analysis and Low Frequency LF: 0. Fasting blood samples were drawn from a cannula placed in an antecubital vein for biochemical analysis of creatinine, electrolytes, non-esterified fatty acids NEFA , insulin, leptin, uric acid UA , total cholesterol, triglycerides TG , high-density lipoprotein HDL , low-density lipoprotein LDL , cholesterol, glucose, and liver enzymes alanine aminotransferase ALT and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase GGT.

A standard g oral glucose tolerance test OGTT was performed and another blood sample was withdrawn min post glucose administration Glucaid, Fronine PTY, LTD. Fasting insulin levels was measured as a surrogate index for insulin resistance as this has been shown to a reliable measure in healthy subjects Laakso, The creatinine clearance was used to assess renal function.

All the participants provided a h urine collection on the day of the test. Lipidomic analysis was performed by liquid chromatography, electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry using an Agilent liquid chromatography system with a 50x-mm Zorbax Eclipse Plus 1.

The methods and lipid species within classes and subclasses analyzed have been described previously Weir et al. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scans were performed using Lunar iDXA GE Health.

Participants were wearing standard hospital gown. All jewelries were removed prior to the scan. The participants were lying down with their body fitted in the box outline on the iDXA table. All iDXA users were trained by the company with regards to correct placement. The iDXA unit was calibrated daily using the GE Health Lunar calibration phantom.

Using this system, regional body composition precision error was previously reported to be less than 2. Total body, android and gynoid fat and lean masses were determined using the software provided by the manufacturer. The GE Healthcare systems define the android region as the area between the ribs and the pelvis that is totally enclosed by the trunk region.

The gynoid region includes the hips and upper thighs and overlaps both the leg and trunk regions Imboden et al. Those above the median value 9. The model included the 2 quantiles of the ratio and was adjusted for BMI.

We assessed the validity of the models by plotting the residuals against quantiles of the normal distribution. All statistical analyses were performed using Stata College Station, TX, United States. The characteristics of the subjects are presented in Table 1. There was no difference in age and ethnicity between the 2 groups.

Except for android fat mass, there was no significant difference in any other anthropometric measures between the 2 groups of subjects. Hemodynamic assessments are presented in Table 2. Systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure as assessed either in the clinic or over a 24h period did not differ, but the heart rate was significantly higher in those with higher android fat content.

Similarly, the slope and the BEI derived from the cardiac baroreflex function analysis were not different. None of the HRV parameters differed between the two groups. Table 2. Blood pressure, heart rate, muscle sympathetic nerve activity MSNA , and cardiac baroreflex function.

High sensitivity-CRP, NEFA and leptin plasma levels were not different. Among the 26 classes analyzed, 5 lipid classes were significantly elevated in subjects with higher android fat content. Those were: Ceramide CER , Diacylglycerol DG , phosphatidylethanolamine PE , phosphatidylglycerol PG and triacylglycerol TAG Table 3.

Among the liver enzymes, ALT was slightly not but significantly higher in subjects with higher android fat content. Reactive hyperemia index and pulse amplitude tonometry ratio were significantly less in those with higher android fat content compared to those with lower android fat RHI: 1.

Arterial stiffness as assessed by AI 75 was similar between the two groups Figure 1. Figure 1. Endothelial function as assessed by the reactive hyperemia index RHI and Pulse Amplitude Tonometry PAT ratio and augmentation index AI 75 in subjects with low and high android fat content. In this study, we show that for the same level of BMI and fat mass, young overweight males with preferential fat in the android region present with an impaired metabolic profile and endothelial function compared to those with lower android fat content.

These differences were observed in the absence of any difference in blood pressure and sympathetic tone. The group of subjects with higher android fat content presented with reduced insulin sensitivity and decreased glucose tolerance as measured by fasting insulin concentrations and OGTT respectively compared to individuals with lower android fat depot, after correction for BMI.

Our study is in line with previous findings demonstrating that excess body fat in abdominal rather than in peripheral fat depot is involved in the development of insulin resistance in adults Peterson et al. This is of particular relevance because decreased insulin sensitivity is thought to be the underlying linkage between obesity, type 2 diabetes and CV disease Reaven, Decreased insulin sensitivity in the setting of high android fat depot may reflect structural and functional differences between android and peripheral fat tissue with android tissue possibly expressing higher pro-inflammatory, lipogenic and lipolytic genes and containing higher proportions of saturated fatty acids Marinou et al.

We found no difference however between the 2 groups in serum CRP and leptin concentrations and, although serum NEFA tended to be higher in the group with higher android fat, it did not reach significance.

Of note in this study was the finding that endothelial function was significantly lower in the group of young males with higher android fat content. Impaired endothelial function is considered an early marker of atherosclerotic disease, with important clinical implications including cardiac dysfunction, coronary artery disease, hypertension, diabetes, and neurologic disorders, leading to increased mortality and morbidity Kim et al.

Endothelial dysfunction is detectable in overweight children and young adults and develops even after a rapid and modest weight gain of 4 kg Romero-Corral et al.

Decreased insulin sensitivity observed in the group with high android fat may have important consequences in the development of endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis Muniyappa and Sowers, The pathway involving decreased endothelial function in this setting of higher android fat remains to be established.

In addition, subjects with higher android fat content were characterized by an abnormal lipid profile in the form of elevated plasma concentration of TG and five other lipidomic classes. Elevated fasting TG levels are a common dyslipidemic feature that accompanies the prediabetic state and is associated with CV risk in young men Tirosh et al.

Serum TG have previously been reported to be positively associated with android fat in a large study in adults in the general population Min and Min, Such abnormal serum TG in those with higher android fat content may negatively impact endothelial function as a strong link between serum TG and endothelial function was demonstrated in a large community-based study Kajikawa et al.

Among the many lipid classes, some have been implicated in metabolic and CV disease development in animal models and in humans. Within the system-wide lipid network, Stegemann et al. While it is uncertain why these lipid species are elevated in those with higher android fat, it may add to their elevated CV risk.

Individuals with higher android fat content were characterized by elevated serum UA compared to those with lower android fat. UA has emerged as an important marker of end organ damage Lambert et al.

Therefore, increased UA in those with elevated android fat content may be an additional CV risk factor. In line with our findings, a previous study conducted in a large cohort of Chinese subjects indicated that increasing risk of blood pressure outcomes across UA quartiles was most prominent in individuals with abdominal obesity Yang et al.

Hyperuricemia is strongly associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis and UA has also been shown to induce vascular endothelial dysfunction via oxidative stress and inflammatory responses Puddu et al. However, whether elevated UA in the group of young males with high levels of android fat affects their endothelial function is uncertain because lowering UA fails to improve endothelial function Borgi et al.

While low endothelial function was noticed in individuals with higher fat content, we noticed that the arterial stiffness assessed from the augmentation index from the digits as well as the renal function were not different between subjects with higher or lower android fat content.

Both arterial stiffness Corrigan et al. The young age and absence of cardiometabolic abnormalities in our participants even in the presence of higher android fat may explain the lack of difference. Our results of a lower endothelial function in those with higher android fat depot are different to those of Weil et al.

who found that abdominal obesity assessed with waist circumference was not associated with greater impairment in endothelial function in overweight and obese adult men Weil et al.

Discrepancies in the findings may be due to differences in subject age, assessment of endothelial function and assessment of abdominal fat content. Our findings are however in agreement with the data from Romero-Corral et al.

Overweight is a well-recognized risk factor for pre-hypertension and hypertension and studies have suggested that the risk of developing hypertension may be linked to body fatness and body fat distribution Wiklund et al.

Similarly, excess adiposity is characterized by elevated sympathetic nervous system activity, even in young healthy individuals, which is likely to impact on their CV risk including hypertension development Lambert et al.

Contrary to expectation, we found that MSNA, expressed as bursts incidence was not different between our subjects with high and low android fat content. Of note burst frequency was significantly higher in participants with higher android fat but this increase was no longer noticed after adjusting for the heart rate.

This is surprising considering that sympathetic activation to the skeletal muscle is usually observed in the presence of glucose intolerance Straznicky et al. Blood pressure and cardiac vagal baroreflex function were also found to be similar between the 2 groups suggesting that in this cohort of young overweight males, excess android fat may not further alter hemodynamic control.

One exception was noticed for the heart rate which, as noticed above, was higher in those with high android fat content.

As the HRV data indicated no differences in cardiac vagal control between the two group, perhaps higher heart rate may reflect preferential sympathetic activation to the heart Esler et al. Limitations of the study include the small number of participants and the cross-sectional aspect of our study which does not permit the determination of causality.

The EndoPat technique uses pulse volume changes at the fingertips after an occlusion of the brachial artery as an index of endothelial function. Although the method has been validated Kuvin et al. Dietary habits and physical activity were not assessed in these participants hence we are not able to determine if these factors may have influenced our results.

Strengths of the study includes the number of different outcomes assessed with regards to both metabolic and end organ damage as well as direct sympathetic nervous system activity measurements and the use of iDXA. In conclusion, our study indicated that in young overweight but otherwise healthy males, preferential fat depot in the android region was associated with impaired glucose and lipid profile, increased serum UA concentrations and worsening of endothelial function.

On the other hand renal function and arterial stiffness were comparable. Contrary to expectation, sympathetic tone as assessed with MSNA and expressed as burst incidence was not elevated in participants with higher android fat content. These data suggest that elevated android fat may confer heightened CV risk and interventions to slow down the development of CV disease should specifically target android fat.

MS received research support and speaker fees from Abbott. GH received research support from Boehringer Ingelheim. The datasets generated for this study are available on request to the corresponding author. EL, CS, NE, GH, MS, and GL contributed to the conception and design of the study.

CS collected the clinical data, organized the database, and performed the statistical analysis. NE and PM performed all the lipidomic analysis. EL and CS wrote the first draft of the manuscript. All authors contributed to the manuscript revision, and read and approved the submitted version.

This study was supported by a project grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia. The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Abramowitz, M. Muscle mass, BMI, and mortality among adults in the United States: a population-based cohort study. PLoS One e doi: PubMed Abstract CrossRef Full Text Google Scholar.

Alvarez, G. Subcutaneous obesity is not associated with sympathetic neural activation. Heart Circ. Sympathetic neural activation in visceral obesity. Circulation , — PubMed Abstract Google Scholar. Aucouturier, J. Effect of android to gynoid fat ratio on insulin resistance in obese youth.

Borghi, C. Serum uric acid levels are associated with cardiovascular risk score: a post hoc analysis of the EURIKA study. Borgi, L. Effect of uric acid-lowering agents on endothelial function: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Hypertension 69, — Calle, E. Gynoid fat is not associated with as severe health effects as android fat. Gynoid fat is a lower risk factor for cardiovascular disease than android fat. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history.

Tools Tools. What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Cite this page Get shortened URL Download QR code Wikidata item.

Download as PDF Printable version. Female body fat around the hips, breasts and thighs. See also: Android fat distribution. Nutritional Biochemistry , p. Academic Press, London. ISBN The Evolutionary Biology of Human Female Sexuality , p.

Oxford University Press, USA. Relationship between waist-to-hip ratio WHR and female attractiveness". Personality and Individual Differences. doi : Acta Paediatrica. ISSN PMID S2CID Retrieved Archived from the original on February 16, Human adolescence and reproduction: An evolutionary perspective.

School-Age Pregnancy and Parenthood. Hawthorne, NY: Aldine de Gruyter , Exercise Physiology for Health, Fitness, and Performance , p. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Annals of Human Biology.

Cytokines, Growth Mediators and Physical Activity in Children during Puberty. Karger Medical and Scientific Publishers, , p. Exercise and Health Research. Nova Publishers, , p. Handbook of Pediatric Obesity: Etiology, Pathophysiology, and Prevention.

CRC Press, , p. PLOS ONE. Bibcode : PLoSO.. PMC cited in Stephen Heyman May 27, The New York Times. Retrieved 10 September Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

CiteSeerX Evolution and Human Behavior.