New long-term research indicates that targeting deep abdominal fat may provide lasting health advantages, including lower diabetes risk, even if overall weight is regained. The findings underscore the importance of body composition over weight alone in assessing health risks.
A person’s success in losing weight is often judged by the number on the scales, but that can miss the point. New evidence highlighted by Focus and supported by a long-term follow-up published in Circulation suggests that the location of fat matters as much as the amount. Deep abdominal, or visceral, fat appears to carry a greater metabolic burden than fat stored under the skin, and reducing it may leave a lasting health benefit even if some of the lost kilos eventually return.
That distinction matters because visceral fat sits around the organs and is linked to insulin resistance, higher triglycerides, lower HDL cholesterol, high blood pressure and chronic inflammation. According to Katharina Lechner, a cardiologist quoted by Focus, body composition is often a better guide to metabolic risk than weight or BMI alone. Earlier research in the field has also found that reducing visceral fat has more favourable effects on metabolic syndrome markers than losing subcutaneous fat.
The Circulation follow-up drew on two 18-month lifestyle trials that paired different diets with structured exercise and measured fat depots using MRI. Of 381 eligible participants, 366 were followed and 325 returned for reassessment five or ten years later. By then, average weight loss had been regained, yet waist size and visceral fat remained below starting levels. The paper’s analysis found that every 10% drop in visceral fat during the intervention was associated with a 28% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, even after taking account of later weight change, diet and physical activity.
The findings are encouraging, but they do not prove cause and effect. More than 90% of the participants were men, which limits how confidently the results can be applied to women, and the study did not measure heart attacks or strokes. Still, the broader evidence points in the same direction: aerobic exercise can reduce visceral fat, and the waist-to-height ratio offers a simple way to spot risk in everyday life. A waist smaller than half a person’s height is commonly used as a practical target, though it is only a screening measure. As Focus notes, the aim is not a crash diet or a single exercise, but a sustained combination of eating well, moving more and preserving muscle mass.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
