Obesity is a nationwide problem, with an estimated 72 million Americans considered obese, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity is the excess amount of fat on your body, which translates into a heavier weight and larger body size. Unfortunately, this excess fat not only affects appearance, but can also affect internal body function, especially in regards to your internal organs.
Liver
Excess body fat can distribute itself on the liver, resulting in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This disease occurs when your liver has issues keeping up with breaking down fat. The result is fat buildup around the liver, which, in serious cases, can cause inflammation, leading to liver scarring and improper liver function. Non-alcoholic liver disease from excess body fat is typically treated through a weight-loss program.
Heart
As you gain excess levels of fat, you may also accumulate fat in the abdomen, specifically around the area of your heart. Fat produces inflammatory proteins, which when gathered around the heart, may cause problems with inflammation, leading to a greater chance of heart diseases like arteriosclerosis, suggests Jingzhong Ding, M.D., Ph.D. from the Wake Forest University School of Medicine. This can increase your risks for heart attack.
Like fat around the liver, losing weight can be used to reduce the fat around the heart. When excess fat around the heart is worsened by an unhealthy diet high in calories and saturated fat, additional heart effects may occur. For example, an increase in unhealthy cholesterol can lead to the buildup of arterial plaque, which can also lead to heart diseases.
Lungs
Carrying around excess weight can also affect the function of your lungs, especially if you qualify as obese with a body mass index score of 30 or more. Excess fat around the lungs changes the relationship between the lungs, chest wall and diaphragm. This means that the excess fat can lower functional residual capacity, or the lung volume of air that's used for physiologic tasks or normal functioning. This means obesity and excess fat can reduce respiratory health, even without the presence of a respiratory illness, or can increase the effects of a respiratory disease if one is present, suggests the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research.
Cancer
One way that excess body fat can impact multiple organs at once is the increased risk of cancer associated with obesity. According to the National Cancer Institute, excess body fat in the form of obesity can place you at a higher risk for cancer of the colon, kidney, gall bladder, pancreas and lung as well as other parts of your body, such as the breasts, esophagus, prostate and ovaries.
References
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Halting the Epidemic by Making Health Easier: At A Glance 2011
- ScienceDaily; Researchers Use Computed Tomography To Study Effects Of Fat Around The Heart; 2006
- MayoClinic.com; Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Mayo Clinic staff; Feb. 2011
- American Heart Association: Obesity Information
- "Journal of Applied Physiology"; Physiology of obesity and effects on lung function; Woolcock Institute of Medical Research; CM Salome, et al.; Jan. 2010
- National Cancer Institute: Obesity and Cancer
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