Greater visceral fat mass accumulation with high alcohol consumption

Regular alcohol consumption is commonly perceived to contribute to abdominal adiposity, particularly visceral fat mass (VFM). Observational studies in this area have either been small or used imprecise measurement methods of VFM (e.g., waist circumference). More precise methods, such as dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), have not been used at scale to explore the association between alcohol consumption and VFM. We investigated the relationship between alcohol consumption and VFM in a population-based cohort of n = 5 761 men and women from the Oxford Biobank who underwent a DXA-scan and provided information on regular alcohol consumption using a structured questionnaire. After adjustment for key confounders - age, smoking, height, physical activity, socio-economic status, and total fat mass (TFM) - alcohol consumption remained dose-dependently associated with VFM, in males (ß = 1.104 (1.040-1.167), p < 0.001) and females (ß = 1.102 (1.029-1.180), p = 0.006). The mean VFM percentage (%VFM) in the highest alcohol consumption quartile was over 10% greater, relative to the mean %VFM in the adjacent lower quartile, in both males (median 24 vs 12 units/week) and females (median 14 vs 7 units/week). Elevated VFM among heavier drinkers may contribute to poorer cardiovascular and metabolic health and is relevant in the search for mechanisms of regional fat repositioning.