Leg Fat Does Not Increase Heart Disease Risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Studies show that abdominal fat can be bad for the heart, but middle-age women who only store fat in their legs, thighs and hips appear to have no increased risk of cardiovascular disease, suggesting that not all fat is created equal, according to new study findings.

"If a woman is fortunate enough to store her fat primarily in the legs, hips and thighs and can keep from gaining much fat in the abdominal region, then her risk of cardiovascular disease will likely be low," study author Dr. Rachael E. Van Pelt of the University of Colorado at Denver told Reuters Health.

In the last 20 years, researchers have zeroed in on the importance of abdominal fat in cardiovascular disease, Van Pelt and her colleagues note in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

For instance, experts now believe that the reason men have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease is that they are more likely to accumulate abdominal fat. After menopause, the risk of both cardiovascular disease and abdominal fat appears to climb in women, as well.

To investigate further, the researchers measured fat levels in 95 postmenopausal women, along with other risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as unhealthy levels of fasting insulin, and high levels of so-called "bad" cholesterol and blood fats called triglycerides.

The investigators found that excess leg fat alone, without abdominal fat, appeared to have no unhealthy influence on any cardiovascular risk factors. In fact, women who carried extra leg fat appeared to have lower levels of triglycerides in their blood, suggesting that leg fat may even protect women against cardiovascular disease.

"In other words, the more leg fat a woman had, irrespective how much abdominal fat she had, the lower were her blood triglycerides," Van Pelt noted.

She explained that abdominal fat may be more dangerous to health because it is close to the organs responsible for secreting and clearing substances that can damage the cardiovascular system, such as blood lipids, sugar and insulin. "Leg fat may simply be far enough removed the central circulation that it has less of an influence," Van Pelt noted.

In addition, leg fat may also act as a "sink" or "trap" for triglycerides, the researcher noted, keeping them out of circulation.

"It appears that not all fat is detrimental to our health. In fact, there are some places that we store fat that appear to be beneficial to our health," she concluded.

SOURCE: The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, August 2005.