Belly Fat Associated with Heart Disease, Cancer Risk

Fat around the belly can increase risk of heart disease and cancer, according to a new study.

High level of fat around the abdomen has been linked with increased risk of fractures and kidney diseases. Previous research has suggested that body's shape is a better indicator of death risk in overweight or obese people than body mass.

In the current study, researchers used CT scans to assess the specific fat deposits in the abdomen area to prove a direct link between fat around the abdomen and disease risk.

"Given the worldwide obesity epidemic, identification of high-risk individuals is important, as it allows targeting of preventive and therapeutic measures," said Kathryn A. Britton, MD, instructor of medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and lead author of the study, according to a news release.

The study was based on data from over 3,000 participants, of which half were women. Researchers studied the ectopic fat in the abdominal area, the region around the heart and also around aortic artery of the participants.

In the study group, there were about 90 cardiovascular events, 141 cancer cases and 71 deaths.  Researchers found that abdominal fat level was a good indicator of health complications in later years.

"Contrary to previously published studies comparing BMI and waist circumference, the presence of abdominal fat improved the ability to predict for cardiovascular disease, supporting the hypothesis that abdominal fat may partially underlie the association of body fat and heart disease and cancer," said Caroline S. Fox, MD, at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Laboratory for Metabolic and Population Health in Framingham, Mass., and a senior author of the study.

The study is published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.