Propensity for Intra-abdominal and Hepatic Adiposity Varies Among Ethnic Groups.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: We compared fat storage in the abdominal region among individuals from 5 different ethnic/racial groups to determine whether fat storage is associated with disparities observed in the metabolic syndrome and other obesity-associated diseases.

METHODS: We collected data from 1794 participants in the Multiethnic Cohort Study (60-77 years old; of African, European (white), Japanese, Latino, or Native Hawaiian ancestry) with body mass index values of 17.1-46.2 kg/m2 . From May 2013 through April 2016, participants visited the study clinic to undergo body measurements, an interview, and a blood collection. Participants were evaluated by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and abdominal magnetic resonance imaging. Among the ethnic groups, we compared adiposity of trunk, intra-abdominal visceral cavity, and liver, adjusting for total fat mass; we evaluated the association of adult weight change with abdominal adiposity; and we examined the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome mediated by abdominal adiposity.

RESULTS: Relative amounts of trunk, visceral, and liver fat varied significantly with ethnicity-they were highest in Japanese Americans, lowest in African Americans, and intermediate in the other groups. Compared with African Americans, the mean visceral fat area was 45% and 73% greater in Japanese American men and women, respectively, and the mean measurements of liver fat were 61% and 122% greater in Japanese American men and women. The visceral and hepatic adiposity associated with weight gain since participants were 21 years old varied in a similar pattern among ethnic/racial groups. In the mediation analysis, visceral and liver fat jointly accounted for a statistically significant fraction of the difference in metabolic syndrome prevalence, in comparison to white persons, for African Americans, Japanese Americans, and Native Hawaiian women, independently of total fat mass.

CONCLUSIONS: In an analysis of data from the participants in the Multiethnic Cohort Study, we found extensive differences among ethnic/racial groups in the propensity to store fat intra-abdominally. This observation should be considered by clinicians in the prevention and early detection of metabolic disorders.