Question

Where are fat reserves in the body, and how much can be stored? Please elaborate for my understanding!

Answer 1

When fats are ingested it is stored in fat cells known as as adipocytes, these fat cells are found all over the body, but mostly under the skin and more prominantely in our abdominal region, fats are stored in the form of triglycerides. Fats can be stored as, Essential fats, this type of fats are essential for your body and is found in the brain, membranes of organ, bone marrow, nerves, etc. Subcutaneous fat, these are fats stored under our skin. Visceral fat, (belly fat) these type of fat are stored in the abdominal region and all major organs like, liver, kidney, heart,etc.

If the fat is not burned for energy, it is continously stored in our body leading to obesity, as you continously eat more food and do less exercise, or lead less active life, the body will expand the number of fat cells and the size of fat cells to accomodate the excess calorie, and it will go on depositing these extra fats cells in our muscles,liver, abdominal region, etc. A thin person can still have around 20 to 27 million of fat cells, while an obese or overweight individual can have from 75 to 300 billion fat cells distributed all over the body.