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Facial fat and its relationship to abdominal fat: a marker for insulin resistance?
Justo Sierra-Johnson1, Bruce D Johnson
1Division of Cardiovascular Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic Foundation, The Cardiovascular Health Clinic, Rochester MN, USA.
Abstract:
Reports of relationships between measures of insulin sensitivity and measures of body fat and fat distribution suggest that abdominal fat accumulation is a predictor of insulin resistance. It has been previously suggested that facial fat (primarily in the cheeks and neck) is strongly associated with visceral abdominal fat accumulation. The facial fat is a rich vascular region, that seems to be metabolically active and resembles abdominal white adipose tissue. We, therefore, hypothesize that facial fat could be a good predictor of insulin resistance. Whether facial fat can be used as an accurate marker for insulin resistance remains to be determined.
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