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Body fat facts

PETE GLADDEN
Pete’s World

Published: August 19, 2019

Body fat: Like it, hate it, feel indifferent towards it, it’s still essential to our health, in the right amount.

Now believe it or not, before the 20th century, a little excess body fat wasn’t viewed as a bad thing. It was actually kind of “in.” But remember, that was a time when men and woman expended an exponential amount of calories on laborious life tasks, so though a little excess body fat was common, obesity was pretty much a rare occurrence.

Things are way different now. By and large today’s society deplores excess body fat. Yet because we’re so tuned in, so online, so mechanized, so high tech, and, well, so less physically active, a significant percentage of our population has far more body fat than our predecessors ever did.

So how much body fat is good––and essential––and conversely how much is bad––and deleterious? And while we’re at it, what the heck is body fat?

Let’s examine the last question first. The scientific term for body fat is adipose tissue, and the Encyclopedia of Sports Medicine and Science defines adipose tissue as “specialized connective tissue that functions as the major storage site for fat in the form of triglycerides.”

Okay, so the fat itself is not the adipose tissue, but rather the triglyceride. And this adipose tissue is made up of fat cells - adipocytes - which are kind of like microscopic containers that hold the tiny droplets of triglycerides.

Now the human body needs body fat, so despite all the bad press it’s currently getting, and the notion that it’s generally associated with poor health, a certain level of body fat is absolutely necessary for overall good health.

That’s because body fat has many important functions.

It surrounds and cushions vital organs like the kidneys, and it insulates us against the cold. What’s more, those triglycerides inside the adipose tissue are crucial in maintaining skin, hair, and nail health.  

Fat helps to ensure the production of hormones - including our sex hormones, and fat’s important in warding off illness and/or chronic fatigue.

And finally, fat is also a transporter of vitamins A-D-E-K. So without a minimal percentage of body fat we could end up with vitamin deficiencies - which can lead to disease.

Which brings us to essential fat, the minimum amount of body fat required for the human body to function efficiently. So scientists have determined that the essential body fat needed for minimum health is five percent for men and eight percent for women. But remember, we’re talking minimal health here, because these are scary low percentages that reside on the too low/low border. Yup, too little body fat can be just as unhealthy as too much.

According to The National Institutes of Health, a healthy body fat percentage is 13 to 17 percent for men, and 20 to 21 percent for women. The current average for American men and women is 17 to 19 percent and 22 to 25 percent respectively. So actually, that kind of parallels our predecessors. Not bad right? Unfortunately, the good news ends there.

Because the real issue with respect to body fat today is the fact that 66% of Americans are considered either overweight or obese. And according to the National Institute of Diabetes Digestive and Kidney Diseases, both of these situations are considered unhealthy.

A body fat percentage of 20-24% for men and 26-30% for women is considered overweight, and is deemed somewhat unhealthy. A body fat percentage of 25+ for men and 32+ for woman is considered obese, and it’s deemed quite unhealthy - yet one in three American adults currently dwell in this body fat percentage zone.

Obesity stresses bones, joints, and organs, making them work harder than normal. That extra body fat also raises blood pressure and cholesterol levels - which make the likelihood of heart disease and strokes more likely. And finally, conditions like osteoarthritis, asthma, and sleep apnea are exacerbated by high percentages of body fat.

So ultimately, the body fat issue comes down to this: we absolutely need it, but its percentage of our body weight should reside within a narrow “safety” zone. Have too little, and you deny your body a host of essential functions. Have too much, and you risk the potential for a plethora of diseases.

And that’s the skinny on the body fat debate.


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