Visceral fat — also known as “belly fat”, a dangerous fat — does more to our bodies than cause our clothes to feel snug. Visceral fat is stored around our organs and contributes to health concerns such as inflammation, coronary heart disease, diabetes, cancer, sleep disorders, and even sexual dysfunction. Because visceral fat is stored deep below the subcutaneous fat (the fat directly under the skin), even people who appear to be thin may have visceral fat lurking around their vital organs.
Visceral fat is stored differently than the fat you can pinch. A stress response, an imbalance in sex hormones, overproduction of cortisol, and excess consumption of dietary fructose all set up the environment within the body to promote visceral fat.