Fat distribution in human body

The term fat distribution refers to the relative amounts of fat in the primary compartments where dispose tissue and fat are stored in the body.

Fat is present, in a higher or lesser degree in almost every anatomical compartment, inside parenchymatous organs, muscle and breasts and it is stored mainly in the omentum (intra-abdominal fat); this is the so-called ‘central’ fat and it is the most involved in metabolism variations, increasing in obesity and reducing in the case of weight loss.

There are some anatomical districts where adipose fat are present and these structures devoted to produce more protection in the regions of attrition: around kidneys, inside joint, underneath the breasts, deep in face, inside the hand, and over the os pubis. This fat almost no influence on body silhouette and a few on face traits.

In terms of fat percentage, males reach peak values during early adolescence and then show a decrease throughout adolescent growth, probably due to a rapid accumulation in lean body mass, whereas females, after an initial decline, show a continuous increase in fat percentage throughout their eighteenth year.

With aging, body fat in men slowly increases from 18% in those 18 to 25 years of age to 36% in those 65 to 85 years old; in women, a gradual increase from 33% to 45% is found in similar age groups.

Distribution of body fat is important in evaluating the risk of disease. Excess body fat around the abdomen is associated with higher disease risk than is excess fat around hips and thighs.
Fat distribution in human body

High calorie fast food

Fast food is associated with a diet that is high in total energy and energy density (calories) but low in micronutrients density.

A typical fast food meal provided more than one-third of daily recommended calories, total fat and saturated fat intake.

Although fish, chicken and potatoes alone are relatively low calorie foods, they become high fat, high calorie foods when dipped in batter and fried.

If the fat used in cooking is beef tallow, fried foods – regardless of their source - are also high in cholesterol and in saturated fat, believed to promote clogged arteries.

Pasta salads are usually high in fat because of added dressings, cheese or processed meat toppings.

According to NASH (National Adolescent Student Health) survey, they found that from 11,000 eights and tenth graders, 88% of the girls ate at least one snack the previous day with almost one-fourth (24%) eating four or more snacks.

Almost two-thirds of these snacks (62%) were categorized as high-fat or high-sugar foods (chips, soda, candy, ice cream, cake).

Human passion for high-fat high-salt and high-calorie fast foods has become a major threat to human health.

Heart disease remains the leading killer of North America, largely due to elevated insulin and artery inflammation, both of which are caused by diets high in sugar and refined carbohydrates as well as saturated and transfats – the hallmarks of most fats foods.
High calorie fast food

Summary of Fats

Fats are comprised of fatty acids bound, in bundles of three, to glycerol.

*Fatty acids are either saturated, monounsaturated or polyunsaturated.

*Fats contains mixtures of all three types of fatty acids; the balance of the mix determines whether the fat is generally saturated (hard) or polyunsaturated (soft).

*Fats are insoluble in water and require special treatment for digestion and transport.

*In digestion, bile acids act as detergents to solubilize fats to aids digestion.

*In transport, the fatty material is surrounded by a coat of protein plus phospholipid. The full particle is a lipoprotein.

*The liver can convert carbohydrate to fat, which is exported from the liver as a lipoprotein.

*Certain polyunsaturated fatty acids are nutritionally essentially because:
1. They are the precursors of the vitality important regulators of metabolism, the prostaglandins
2. The body cannot make them from either carbohydrate or existing dietary fatty acids.
Summary of Fats

Fat in our body

Fat is the name given to a broad category of substances we get from our food or make in our bodies.

Fat is an essential nutrient, which contributes approximately 30-45% of food energy in western diets.

In technical they are referred to as lipids.

Fat along with proteins and carbohydrates, one of the three nutrients are used as energy sources by the body.

Energy is one of the principal nutritional requirements of man and fat is a principal source of the energy.

Each grams of fat consumed supplies the body with 9 calories worth of energy.

Total fat: the sum of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Cholesterol is from another lipid family called sterols.

Intake of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats can help reduce blood cholesterol when substituted for saturated fats in the diet.

In chemistry, a compound formed from chemicals called fatty acids. These fats are greasy, solid materials found in animal tissues and in some plants.

For most part, human di not require fat sources in their diets because the body can synthesize most of the fatty acids it needs from other constituents, including carbohydrate and protein.

The brain needs saturated fats, polyunsaturated fat, cholesterol, and a number of other fats.

Fats are also a component of cell membranes, vitamin D and sex hormones.

Some types of fats give cell membranes flexibility and help regulate the transfer of nutrients into and out of cells.

While others serve as precursors to vitamin D and sex hormones, such as estrogen and testosterone.

Most saturated fats come from animal products. Unsaturated fats are prominent in both animal and vegetable foods.

The importance of dietary fat is underscored by the fat that 35% of the weight gain of an infant in early is accounted for by fat.

Most of the dietary fat is in the form of triglyceride formed by the three fatty acids esterified to a glycerol backbone.

The role of fat in the diet is both physiological and psychological. In its psychological aspect, it is important to appearance and taste of foods.
Fat in our body

Fats in Food

Fats in Food
Much attention has been focused on the need to limit dietary intake. Nevertheless, the body does need fats – but the right fats and in appropriate quantities.

Specifically, it needs essential fatty acids. which perform a variety of vital bodily functions.

Essential fatty acids carry the fat soluble vitamins. They are essential for growth and development, and for the maintenance of healthy skin, hair and nails. And they provide the body with energy.

A variety of problems can occur if the body fails to receive adequate amounts of essential fatty acids.

Signs of deficiency may include retarded growth; skin hair and nail disorders; and an impaired metabolism of fats and fat soluble vitamins.

Most of us are aware that there are several kinds of dietary fat – saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated – and that some are better than others.

Cholesterol is white, waxy, fatty substance produced by liver. It is essential to our well being, as it helps to builds cell membranes, to produce hormones, and to manufacture bile acids.

The liver is capable of manufacturing all of the cholesterol needed for good health.

The cholesterol manufactured by the liver is carried through the bloodstream, by molecules known as low density lipoproteins, or LDLs. High levels of LDLs is in the bloodstream are associated with clogged arteries high blood pressure, stroke and heart disease.

This is why LDL is sometimes referred to as “bad cholesterol.” Fortunately, many people can reduce their LDL levels through proper diet.

High density lipoproteins, or HDLs are molecules that carry excess cholesterol from different body tissues back to the liver, where the cholesterol is converted into bile acids and then eliminated through the intestines.

High levels of HDLs are linked with a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. This is why is often called “good cholesterol.”

How are there three types of fats related to cholesterol? Saturated fats – which come from foods of animal origin such as meat, poultry, milk, butter and cheese, as well as from palm, coconut, and palm kernel oil – have been shown to increase total blood cholesterol levels, especially the undesirable LDL portion.

Polyunsaturated fats – found mainly in vegetable oils like corn, sunflower, safflower and soybean – tend to lower levels of both HDL and LDL.

Monounsaturated fats – found mainly in certain vegetable and nut oil, including olive, peanut, and canola- have been shown to reduce total blood cholesterol without lowering levels of the good cholesterol, HDL. Indeed , some monounsaturated fats have been shown to raise HDL levels.

Most experts agree that it is best to limit fat consumption and to choose mostly monounsaturated fats, which increase need for saturated fat.
Fats in Food

Fats and Diet

Fats and Diet
For more than two decades, fats have been in the limelight. With the health advice of today’s experts, we’re advised to moderate the total fat and lower the saturated fats, trans fat, and cholesterol in out food choices.

Certainly media continues to report new research linking various types of fats and cholesterol to health outcomes.

Culinary experts provide flavorful ways to use sensible amounts of fat in food prep.

And the food industry has launched many fat modified products; “reduced fat,” “0 grams trans fat,” and “with omega-3s.”

Not surprisingly, many consumers hear the message and consider the “fat facts” as they buy and prepare food.

While other nutrition-related concerns have emerged, attention to fat likely will be around for some time.

Evidence indicates that a diet high in saturated fats, trans fat and cholesterol increases risks for unhealthy levels of blood cholesterol, and therefore cardiovascular disease.

High fat eating is likely high in saturated fat and risky for heart health.

Managing excess calories is also harder harder with high fat eating.

There may be a link to some cancers, too. As science reveals more, it’s also becoming clear that the links between the different types of fat and health are more complex than once thought.

Aging baby boomers are being forced to face the “fat facts of life.” And people of all ages recognized that cutting back to a moderate fat intake – and eating less “sat fats,” tans fat” and cholesterol and replacing some with healthy oils – will promote good health in the long run.

Many people especially Americans already have cut down on their total fat intake to moderate levels. Yet there’s still room to improve, to make healthier food and fat choices and to consume less saturated and trans fats.
Fats and Diet

The Obesity Battle

The Obesity Battle
Americans have more choices when it comes to food than anyone else on the planet.

While we are constantly seduced by hot fudge sundaes, double cheeseburgers, stuffed-crust pizza and deep-fried doughnuts, we are expected to be as lean as the models that grace the covers of fashion magazines.

How many people have the willpower to resist temptation time and time again?

A small minority, it would seem. In 2005, approximately two thirds of the Americans adult population was classified as overweight or obese, with about one third fitting into the overweight category and the other third being obese.

The harsh reality is that fewer than one third of Americans have healthy body weights.

Overweight and obesity come with a hefty price tag - $100 billion a year in medical bills and more than 400,000 premature deaths each year.

Excess body fat causes unwanted changes to the basic functioning of the human body, adversely affecting blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, respiration, fertility, skin and joint health, hormones and insulin action.

Such changes significantly increase the risk for debilitating and often fatal health conditions, including the following:

• Cancer
• Gallbladder disease
• Gout
• Heart disease and stroke
• Kidney disease
• Osteoarthritis
• Sleep apnea
• Type 2 diabetes

To add insult to injury, a recent report found that being obese affectively ages a person by 20 years (in terms of physical health).

That puts an obese 30 year old in the same risk group as a normal weight 50 year old for developing serious medical problems.
The Obesity Battle

Benefits Associated with Nutrients from Seafood

Benefits Associated with Nutrients from Seafood
The high nutritional quality of seafood makes it an important component of a healthy diet.

While protein is an important macronutrient in the diet, most American already consumes enough and do not need to increase their intake.

Fats and oil are also part of a healthy diet, but the type and amount of fat can be important - for example, with regard to cardiovascular disease.

Many Americans consume greater than recommended amounts of saturated fat as well as cholesterol from high-fat protein foods such as beef and pork.

Many seafood selections are lower in total and saturated fats and cholesterol than some more frequently selected anima protein foods such as fatty cuts of beef, pork and poultry and are equivalent in amount of fat to some leaner cuts of meat.

Since it is lower in saturated fats however by substituting seafood more often for other animal foods, consumers can decrease their overall intake of both total and saturated fats while retaining the nutritional quality of their protein food choices.

Seafood is also a primary source of EPA and DHA in the American diet.

The contribution of the nutrients to improving health and reducing risk for certain chronic disease in adult has not been completely elucidated.

There is evidence however, to suggest there are benefits to the developing infants such as increasing length of gestation, improved visual acuity and improve cognitive development.

In addition, there is evidence to support an overall benefit to the general population for reduced risk of heart disease among those who eat seafood compared to those who do not, and there may be benefits from consuming EPA and DHA for adults at risk for coronary heart disease.
Benefits Associated with Nutrients from Seafood

Fats

Fats
If proteins have been dubbed ‘Beauty’ by advertisers, fats are surely ‘The Beast’, for few nutrients have been subjected to as much suspicion by the health profession. This suspicion is sometime justified, although often for wrong reasons.

The confusion is understandable since the chemistry and metabolism of fats is more c0mplex than that of proteins and carbohydrates, that is, up to the point that need interest us.

There are two obvious characteristics of fats about which we are all aware. First, they are not soluble in water, hence the need for detergents to clean up after a fatty mixed grill.

Secondly, some fats are solid at room temperature, say butter, lard or margarine, while others are liquid, mainly the oils – olive, corn, peanut, etc.

These are good starting points for the study of the nutrition of fats, in that we must explain how fats, insoluble in water are digested and metabolized in the largely watery environment of the body and how the chemistry of fats can explain their physical properties.

The basic units of fats are known as fatty acids, but fat molecules are not made up of repeating fatty acid units. Fat molecules are known as triglycerides and are comprised of glycerol with fatty acids attached to the top, middle and bottom of the glycerol molecule. Hence fatty acids come in threes.

Like –proteins, there are no rules as to what fatty acids must occupy what positions on the glycerol molecule, or what mixes of three fatty acids should cling to a molecules of glycerol.

Three grouping of fatty acids:

• Saturated fats

• Monounsaturated

• Polyunsaturated fats

If you purchase a sample of pure saturated fatty acids from a chemical supplier you would find that they were solid at room temperature. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids would be liquid. Therefore the hardness or softness of a dietary fat depends on temperature and the balance between the three categories of fatty acid.
Fats