The IAA One Minute Blog

Overweight or obese people who exercise regularly over a long period of time may have healthier belly fat, compared to people who don’t exercise.

New Study on Belly Fat

The study revealed that exercise appeared to cause biological and structural changes in belly fat that lowered a person's risk for heart disease and metabolic disorders.

The study involved 32 adults with obesity or overweight, half of whom were regular exercisers. Researchers defined regular, long-term exercise as at least four times per week for at least two years. The average BMI among them was around 30 (the starting value of obesity). They ranged from 25 to 37 years old.

The researchers took samples of people’s belly fat tissue from just under the skin and found different structural and biological traits.

Exercisers’ tissue had a greater capacity to store fat just below the skin on the belly and that tissue functioned differently than the non-exercisers’ tissue. The exercise group’s tissue samples tended to have more blood vessels and beneficial proteins, and differences that meant a lower chance of inflammation and less of a type of collagen that can interfere with metabolism. Regular exercisers had less rigid or fibrous tissue, which allows fat cells beneath the skin to expand to store fat, one of the body’s primary sources of energy.

The findings are important because where fat is stored in the body can have different health impacts. Fat stored just under the skin has less potential for negative health impacts, compared to when the body stores fat more deeply, such as around or even in inside organs. This type of fat is potentially toxic and has been linked to heart disease, diabetes and stroke.

The results of the study were published in the journal “Nature Metabolism.”

Your Physical Activity Needs

Adults need at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity a week. Adults also need two days of muscle strengthening activity each week.

Physical activity is anything that gets your body moving. Physical activity supports physical and mental health.

What IAA has to Say

Insurance Administrator of America knows that physical activity is important to your health. IAA wants you to make the effort to pack in some physical activity during your weekly routine.