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Metabolic Health
I explain the importance of ten other lifestyle factors to decrease accumulated visceral fat and lower the risk of obesity.
This article highlights ten risk factors (apart from sugar) for visceral fat gain and obesity. I provide practical ways to mitigate these risks at a high level. This post is not health advice. Instead, my goal is to inform, inspire, and create awareness of these risk factors based on my research and experience.
Subscribers of my content related to metabolic health mention that everyone talks about cutting sugar. I also touched on the adverse effects of consuming excessive refined carbs on the fat gain leading to obesity in multiple articles.
Some of these readers said they significantly reduced sugar from their diet for a while, but their waistlines kept expanding. In addition, they are concerned that obesity skyrockets globally. Some think that it must be genetic faults.
I agree with their observations. Our genes play a role in adipose tissue formation, but multiple lifestyle factors also contribute to fat gain leading to obesity that we can control by taking personal responsibility.
To address subscribers’ concerns, I created a short article highlighting other factors causing fat gain and obesity in a summary format with practical takeaways. Excessive sugar consumption is a well-known factor for fat gain and obesity, but there are many more factors that I explain.
First, I’d like to give a brief background on obesity so that the mentioned factors might make sense to readers.
Obesity is a highly complex metabolic health issue adversely affecting millions globally. In general, obesity is the excessive visceral fat accumulation that breaks the balance and reduces the body’s functions.
According to World Health Organization, obesity has nearly tripled since 1975. Almost two billion people are overweight. Unfortunately, over 340 million children and adolescents were overweight or obese in a 2016 survey.
Qualified healthcare professionals diagnose obesity using various methods. In addition to blood tests (sugar/insulin), standard methods in some countries are to measure weight/height, waistline, and waist and hip ratio for metabolic syndrome. Body mass index is an acceptable measure in some countries.
Insurance companies require specific artifacts from specialists to pay for obesity treatment, such as private medication or surgery for weight loss.
To determine obesity at the clinical level, medical professionals measure the amount of adipose tissue using DEXA or MRI scans in developed countries. As I explained in this article, weight on a scale is not a good indicator of obesity.
Obesity is the leading cause of metabolic and mental health disorders. Being obese or having excessive visceral fat creates risk factors for these disorders. Even though the common belief is that root causes relate to lifestyle choices, obesity also has a strong genetic connection.
Literature indicates that genetic defects impact obesity. There is substantial evidence from studies investigating defective genes. Interestingly most of these faulty genes are in the brain affecting signals such as leptin.
As documented in the body of knowledge, such as in this paper, “increase in the prevalence of obesity has become a worldwide major health problem in adults, as well as among children and adolescents.”
However, World Health Organization and many scientific papers point out obesity is preventable and treatable. From my reviews, obesity requires a multidisciplined and multi-pronged approach.
There are effective treatments and preventive strategies for obesity and lowering visceral fat. The critical point is seeking support from loved ones and qualified professionals timely.
In the next section, I answer the question, “apart from reducing sugar consumption from food and drinks and addressing defective genes, what else affects obesity?”
I provide a summary of key factors based on my review of literature, observations during my studies, and personal experience with healthy weight management.
As these topics are comprehensive, I only focus on the critical points related to obesity and fat gain.
As I wrote about sugar before, I excluded it from this list. Interested readers might check my article titled Sugar Paradox: Key to Solve Metabolic and Mental Health Disorders.
Healthy fats are essential for energy and hormonal balance. However, as mentioned in the nutritional literature, unhealthy fats cause serious health issues. Many studies documented the adverse effects of trans fats on our physical and mental health.
For example, MedlinePlus (National Library of Medicine) states, “Of all the fats, trans fat is the worst for your health. Too much trans fat in your diet increases your risk for heart disease and other health problems.” MedlinePlus highlights that:
“Eating too much trans fat can cause you to gain weight. It may also increase your risk for type 2 diabetes. Staying at a healthy weight can reduce your risk for diabetes, heart disease, and other health problems. Trans fats mainly found in processed foods can raise LDL (bad) cholesterol, and they lower HDL (good) cholesterol.”
In addition, even healthy fats, when consumed in large amounts, can cause fat gains. I explained it in an article titled Why High Triglyceride Levels Matter and How to Optimize Them.
Takeaway
Refraining from unhealthy fats (in processed and fried foods) is a viable solution for reducing the risks of fat accumulation and obesity.
Like healthy fats, protein is also an essential macronutrient serving as the building blocks of our cells and hormones. However, like other macronutrients, proteins also include calories.
When we consume adequate protein, the body mainly uses it to build and maintain tissues such as muscles and create hormones and neurotransmitters from amino acids.
However, the body turns the excess protein into sugar, and excess glucose turns into fat molecules.
Protein requirements vary from person to person based on several factors. Therefore, we need to customize our protein consumption, ensuring to get an adequate amount from bioavailable sources.
Takeaway
Consuming adequate and bioavailable protein from whole foods is a valuable approach. Seeking support for optimized protein from a qualified dietician or a certified nutritionist might help.
Carbs, fats, and proteins are macronutrients that we need for energy and building blocks for the body. However, we also need micronutrients such as minerals and vitamins.
Deficiencies of essential micronutrients in our diets lead to imbalances in the body. Some micronutrients are required as co-factors for biochemical and electrical functions in the body.
Nutritional deficiencies can slow down metabolism and cause the accumulation of visceral fat. As I documented in this article, nutritional mistakes caused my metabolism to malfunction, inducing fat gain and weak muscles.
Takeaway
A viable way to meet the body’s nutritional requirements is to consume whole foods from plants and/or animal-based sources based on our preferences and needs.
Like what we eat and how much we eat, how many calories we consume matters for fat loss and gain.
Even though calorie expenditure from exercise is not the primary factor for fat loss, movement plays a critical role in the functioning of our metabolism.
Exercise is essential to make the body insulin sensitive. Insulin resistance is one of the root causes of visceral fat gain.
In addition, exercise is needed to enable blood flow, oxygenate the tissues, and clear toxins from the body.
Takeaway
Regular exercise in the form of resistance training and cardio based on our needs is essential. To prevent metabolic and immune diseases, experts recommend weekly 150 minutes of physical activity.
A leaky gut refers to damage in the epithelial lining causing harmful materials might enter our bloodstream, leading to autoimmune responses and inflammation. I cover inflammation in section #9, which affects our metabolism.
From my experience and observations having a leaky gut and other digestive issues can slow down metabolism and lead to visceral fat gain.
I documented a case of a friend who lost 50 pounds after fixing her leaky gut. I also experienced metabolic improvement after fixing my leaky gut. I provided Six Tips to Heal a Leaky Gut via Lifestyle Choices and Support from Professionals.
Takeaway
To have a well-functioning metabolism, we need to fix digestive issues via healthy lifestyle habits and with support from qualified healthcare professionals.
Autoimmune conditions do not directly cause fat gain, but they indirectly affect our metabolism. The immune system impacts metabolic activities.
For example, when I had arthritis years ago, exercising was impossible due to excessive pain and inflammation. Thus, it caused me to gain visceral fat and lose muscle mass.
Autoimmune conditions cause significant stress in the body and create anxious feelings, as I touch on in the next section.
Takeaway
As autoimmune conditions are highly complex, seeking support from qualified healthcare professionals is necessary. From my experience, a customized and elimination diet and reducing chronic stress can lower the risks.
Stress and anxiety adversely affect our metabolism via various mechanisms. The primary mechanism is through hormones and neurotransmitters.
Stress hormones like cortisol cause fat accumulation by interacting with metabolic hormones like insulin and leptin. People with chronic stress and anxiety are prone to obesity. For example, stress and anxiety might cause excessive hunger and food cravings for people.
Stress and anxiety also cause emotional hunger. Therefore, we must find ways to manage our stress and reduce anxiety.
Dysregulated emotions can cause chronic stress manifesting as physical and mental health conditions putting us in a metabolically vulnerable position. Based on my experience, I identified three essential tools to regulate emotions.
Takeaway
To reduce stress, we need both physical and mental activities. Apart from rest and restorative sleep, we need good nutrition, regular exercise, and fun. Meditation is an effective way to reduce daily stress. Slowing down when needed and working in a flow state were excellent solutions for me.
Chronic inflammation is the root cause of many metabolic disorders, including obesity, insulin resistance, and overall metabolic syndrome.
Inflammation also affects the energy balance in the body and leads to fatigue and stress. Chronically inflamed people don’t have the energy to move their bodies.
Energy imbalances due to inflammation might also affect mood and cause extra hunger. Inflammation in the brain also contributes to obesity. For example, this paper in the Journal of Clinical Investigation informs that:
“Hypothalamic inflammation has been linked to the development and progression of obesity and its sequelae. There is accumulating evidence that this inflammation not only impairs energy balance but also contributes to obesity-associated insulin resistance and deterioration of glucose metabolism via altered neurocircuit functions.”
Takeaway
As there are multiple steps, I documented my experience with chronic inflammation in an article titled Here Is How I Defeated Chronic Inflammation via 9 Lifestyle Habits.
Many hormones affect our metabolism. When these hormones are balanced and optimized, the body burns fat and keeps metabolic activities intact. However, imbalances of these hormones might cause fat accumulation and other metabolic issues.
Hormonal balance might play more critical than reducing calories for fat loss. The critical hormones affecting fat accumulation as positive or negative are insulin, glucagon, leptin, ghrelin, adiponectin, cholecystokinin, growth hormone, and cortisol.
In addition to stress hormones like cortisol, “thyroid hormones are involved in regulating metabolism, thermogenesis, food intake, and fat oxidation,” as documented in this paper.
Sex hormones (testosterone and estrogen) also play a role in fat loss or gain. Besides, a lack of growth hormone in adults can cause the accumulation of visceral fat. We can burn fat and build muscle by balancing and optimizing our sex hormones and growth hormone.
As I covered hormonal intelligence and specific hormones in several articles, I won’t repeat them here. Interested readers might check the previous articles from this post titled Lose Visceral Fat by Understanding the Intricacies of Six Critical Hormones.
Takeaway
Hormonal balance depends on lifestyle factors like restorative sleep, quality nutrition, regular exercise, rest, fun, and timely recovery.
Obesity is closely related to our behavior and habits. Risky behavior like drug use and excessive alcohol consumption can lead to obesity directly or indirectly.
Even though smoking is believed to cause weight loss due to the appetite suppressant effects of nicotine, too many toxins in cigarette smoke might cause an imbalance of hormones, increase stress and lead to chronic inflammation.
Binge-watching television shows are also linked to obesity. Eating in front of the TV can be a problem for some people as they focus on the show rather than the food. They might miss the body’s satiety signals, or the programs might create unpleasant emotions causing unnecessary stress.
Social media addiction also might contribute to obesity, especially in younger people. Addictive behavior seeking constant dopamine spikes might cause overeating.
Eating too fast while dealing with the virtual world can cause excessive consumption of calories from food or beverages. Eating too frequently when stressed due to the effects of addictions can also lead to fat gain.
Takeaway
Observing our behavior and keeping a journal might be helpful. We must address our addiction issues and seek timely help from qualified professionals.
Even though excessive sugar consumption is a well-known factor for fat gain and obesity, there are many more factors, as I highlighted in this post.
Obesity is a highly complex and involved health condition. Therefore, it requires a multi-pronged and multi-disciplined approach to solve growing issues globally.
The increase in obesity also relates to the economy in some countries. For example, processed foods are much cheaper than whole foods.
Unfortunately, genetics also play a critical role. However, fortunately, we might make epigenetics effects with healthy lifestyle habits that I touched on under these ten headings.
I firmly believe that unless we have underlying health conditions and genetic defects, healthy lifestyle habits can prevent the visceral fat formation and reduce the risks of obesity for most of us.
In addition to how much we eat and the quality of nutrition, how often we eat might matter to some. Therefore, some people might benefit from time-restricted eating or fast-mimicking diets with support from their health consultants.
For example, after skipping a meal or using a one-meal eating regimen, fat gain or obesity has never been an issue for me. In addition to growing literature, I also heard the benefits of time-restricted eating for sustainable fat loss from many people in my circles.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a happy and healthy life.
As a new reader, you might check my holistic health and well-being stories reflecting on my reviews, observations, and decades of sensible experiments. Here are sample health improvement articles for new readers:
Metabolic Syndrome, Type II Diabetes, Fatty Liver Disease, Heart Disease and Strokes, Liver Cancer, Lungs Health, Pancreas Health, Kidneys Health, Brain Health, Brain Atrophy, Dementia, Depression, NCDs, Infectious Diseases, Cardiovascular Health, Neonatal Disorders, Skin Health, Dental Health, Bone Health, Leaky Gut, Leaky Brain, Brain Fog, Autoimmune Conditions, Chronic Inflammation, Insulin Resistance, Elevated Cortisol, Leptin Resistance, Anabolic Resistance, Cholestrol, High Triglycerides, Metabolic Disorders, and other Major Diseases.
I also write about valuable nutrients. Here are the links for easy access:
Boron, Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, PQQ, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, and other nutrients that might help to improve metabolism and mental health.
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