Storage capacity of subcutaneous fat in Japanese adults

Abstract

Background: On the basis of our previous study, which examined the nonlinear relationship between visceral fat area (VFA) and percent regional fat mass in the trunk, we hypothesise the presence of some storage capacity of subcutaneous fat. This study aimed to examine the storage capacity of subcutaneous fat on the basis of subcutaneous fat area (SFA) and VFA in 791 Japanese adult males and 563 females. Methods: Regression analyses by using SFA as a dependent variable and VFA as an independent variable were performed for each group classified by visceral fat obesity (VO): VO (VFA ≥100 cm 2) and the no-VO (NVO) groups. To statistically identify an optimal critical point for subcutaneous fat accumulation, we changed the cutoff point for the VO group from 50-150 cm 2 in 10-cm 2 increments and confirmed the significance of the correlation between SFA and VFA for each obesity group, the statistical difference in correlations between NVO and VO groups, and the goodness of fit for the two regression lines using the standard error of estimation values. These analyses were conducted for each sex and age (<65 and ≥65 years) group. Results: The critical point for subcutaneous fat accumulation appears at the following cutoff points of VFA: 130 cm 2 in <65-year-old males, 110 cm 2 in ≥65-year-old males and 100 cm 2 in both female groups. Conclusions: These results suggest the presence of some storage capacity of subcutaneous fat. As a further application, these findings may serve to improve the risk assessment of obesity-related diseases.