Not enough, rather than too much fat, causes metabolic problems of obesity

[salvorhardin]

That’s right – contrary to what many religiously believe, it is the inability to grow more fat during times of energy surpluss, rather than the excess of fat which appears to directly contribute to the metabolic consequence often associated with obesity.

An article in the New Scientist shines some light on this issue:

Obesity kills, everyone knows that. But is it possible that we’ve been looking at the problem in the wrong way? It seems getting fatter may be part of your body’s defense against the worst effects of unhealthy eating, rather than their direct cause.

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The mantra that “fat is bad” is not only myopic, it now stands in the face of much contradictory evidence. As the examples above illustrate, matters related to excess fat and health risk are much more nuanced than what many would have you believe.

Finally, while I only discussed issues related to metabolic health, it is also proposed that the association between excess fat and other conditions such as osteoarthritis, sexual dysfunction, and cancer may also be more closely tied to the function rather than merely the amount of fat in one’s body.

Full post: http://blogs.plos.org/obesitypanacea/2012/09/24/not-enough-rather-than-too-much-fat-causes-metabolic-problems-of-obesity-2