- Past studies show one of the most potentially harmful areas to accumulate fat is visceral fat within the abdominal area.
- Previous research has linked high amounts of visceral fat to an increased risk for several health issues, including Alzheimer’s disease.
- A new study found that having a higher muscle mass and lower visceral fat to muscle ratio may help keep your brain young, which may help lower future risk for brain-related diseases.
While fat can be found throughout the body, past studies show one of the most potentially harmful areas to have fat accumulation is within the abdominal area.
Now a new study recently presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) adds to what we know about the possible connection between visceral fat and the brain.
Researchers found that having a higher muscle mass and lower visceral fat to muscle ratio may help keep the brain young, which can help lower a person’s future risk of brain-related diseases like Alzheimer’s disease.
The findings are yet to be published in a peer-reviewed journal.
For this study, researchers recruited 1,164 healthy adults with an average age of about 55 years. All participants were given a whole-body MRI scan using a special technique that helps researchers better identify muscle, fat, and brain tissue during the scan.
“Our prior work shows that visceral fat is linked to Alzheimer’s pathology and neuroinflammation, so it made sense to examine whether this same type of fat relates to accelerated brain aging,” Cyrus A. Raji, MD, PhD, associate professor of radiology at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, associate professor of neurology and director of the Raji Brain Health Imaging Lab at the Washington University School of Medicine in Missouri, and lead author of this study, told Medical News Today.
“Muscle loss often accompanies increases in visceral fat, and together they provide a clearer picture of unhealthy body composition. Because obesity, low muscle mass, and Alzheimer’s risk are intertwined, studying muscle and visceral fat together using whole body MRI allowed us to better understand how these body changes reflect how old the brain appears.”
— Cyrus A. Raji, MD, PhD
At the study’s conclusion, researchers found that having a higher visceral fat to muscle ratio correlated to a higher brain age, while subcutaneous fat showed no significant association with brain age.
“Visceral fat is the biologically active ‘hidden’ fat around the abdominal organs linked to inflammation and metabolic disease, so its relationship with older-appearing brains highlights it as a key driver of impaired brain health,” Raji explained. “The fact that subcutaneous fat, or fat under the skin, showed no relationship tells us that not all fat is the same. This is a key reason why brain and body MRI is a powerful tool for visualizing and quantifying these types of fat and their relationships with brain health.”
Why visceral fat is unhealthy
“Visceral fat drives inflammation and metabolic stress throughout the body, and those same processes can accelerate changes in the brain that make it appear older. At the same time, low muscle mass reduces metabolic resilience and is tied to frailty, inactivity, and hormonal changes that may negatively affect brain structure. Together, more visceral fat and less muscle create a biological environment that can speed up brain aging.”
— Cyrus A. Raji, MD, PhD
Additionally, scientists discovered that in general, study participants with more muscle mass tended to have younger-looking brains.
“Muscle mass is one of the most important indicators of overall metabolic and physical health, so the fact that participants with more muscle had younger-looking brains suggests a meaningful link between muscular health and brain aging,” Raji said.
“Loss of muscle often occurs alongside inflammation, obesity, and other risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. By showing that more muscle mass corresponds to a younger brain age on MRI, our results highlight muscle mass maintenance as a potentially actionable target for supporting healthier brain aging,” he added.
MNT spoke with Manisha Parulekar, M.D, FACP, AGSF, CMD, director of the Division of Geriatrics at Hackensack University Medical Center, and co-director of the Center for Memory Loss and Brain Health at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey, about this research.
“In clinical practice, we consistently advise patients on the importance of maintaining healthy body composition, but this research provides objective evidence linking it directly to brain health through MRI-based data,” Parulekar commented.
Older vs. younger looking brains
“Seeing a quantifiable relationship between higher muscle volume and a ‘younger’ brain age, and conversely, a higher visceral fat to muscle ratio with an ‘older’ brain age, reinforces the advice we give. It moves the conversation from general wellness to a specific, measurable impact on a vital organ, which can be highly motivating for patients.”
— Manisha Parulekar, M.D, FACP, AGSF, CMD
“It is important for researchers to continue exploring accessible methods for slowing brain aging, such as diet and exercise to alter body composition,” she continued. “As our population ages, the prevalence of cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s is increasing, placing a heavy burden on individuals, families, and healthcare systems.”
“Finding modifiable risk factors gives people tangible, empowering strategies to protect their own brain health,” Parulekar added. “Interventions focused on increasing muscle mass and reducing visceral fat are particularly promising because they are achievable through lifestyle changes, offering a proactive way to potentially enhance brain resilience and reduce the risk of future cognitive impairment.”