Abdominal Fat and Cardiovascular Risk
The abdominal circumference is a parameter widely used to assess the cardiovascular risk of a subject. The prevalent distribution of subcutaneous fat at the abdominal level is in fact related to the increase in visceral fat and is proportional to its external circumference.
The lipid accumulation in the visceral area, ie in the inner part of the abdomen, represents an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and mortality in general. In other words, with the same body fat, having the characteristic belly instead of a homogeneous distribution of the fat surplus translates into a lower life expectancy.
The simplest method to evaluate the percentage of visceral fat is to go to measure the circumference at the level of the abdomen.
What it is and how it is measured
By definition, the Abdominal Circumference represents:
the minimum circumference between the rib cage and the navel, with the subject standing and with the abdominal muscles relaxed.
The abdominal circumference is evaluated with a common metric tape, not elastic, positioned at the level of the waist, according to a horizontal plane parallel to the floor.
Life represents the narrowest part of the abdomen and is normally located just above the upper portion of the lateral border of the iliac crest. If this area is not well evident, the measurement is taken at the navel level.
It is very important to keep the metric tape horizontally and avoid tightening it excessively or keeping it too loose; the abdomen must also be stripped of clothes.
It is an indirect method, but practical, economical and with a reasonable reliability. Alternatively, much more accurate data is obtained by evaluation with magnetic resonance, CT or ultrasound, even if these are methods that cannot be applied on a large scale.
Interpretation of Results
The abdominal circumference, detected according to the procedure described above, takes on a different meaning in relation to the age and sex of the patient examined. In particular, for an adult individual:
- values greater than 94 cm in men and 80 cm in women are a sign of visceral obesity and are associated with a "moderate risk"
- Values greater than 102 cm in men and 88 cm in women are associated with a "marked risk"
MAN | WOMAN | |
Risk | cm | cm |
|---|---|---|
Very high | > 120 | > 110 |
High | 100 - 120 | 90 - 109 |
Bass | 80 - 99 | 70 - 89 |
Very low | <80 | <70 |
Source: ACSM (2005) ACSM guidelines for exercise testing and prescription, 7th ed. Lippincott, Williams, and Wilkins, 61
These reference parameters are not valid for children and in general for subjects less than 152 cm in height; the test is not very indicative also for bodybuilders (high muscle mass at abdomen level) and, if measured alone without associating it with other parameters, it is not significantly correlated with the mortality risk of women with gynoid obesity (fat mass concentrated in the also, in the buttocks, in the thighs and in the abdomen below the navel).
Monitoring of the abdominal circumference over time is very important, as its increase, even with the same weight, reflects an increase in abdominal fat and, consequently, in the risk of mortality in general.
Abdominal fetal circumference
During pregnancy, the abdominal circumference of the fetus is monitored - via morphological ultrasound and together with other quantities (such as the head circumference) - to assess the degree of growth.
An insufficient development could be an indication of an infection or of certain pathologies; an excess weight (macrosomia) could instead originate from maternal diabetes.
