What is fat (adipose)?

Per wikipedia:
In biology, adipose tissue or body fat or fat depot or just fat is loose connective tissue composed of adipocytes. It is technically composed of roughly only 80% fat; fat in its solitary state exists in the liver and muscles. Adipose tissue is derived from lipoblasts. Its main role is to store energy in the form of lipids, although it also cushions and insulates the body. Far from hormonally inert, adipose tissue has in recent years been recognized as a major endocrine organ, as it produces hormones such as lepin and estrogen.

Moreover, adipose tissue can affect other organ systems of the body and may lead to disease. Obesity or being overweight in humans and most animals does not depend on body weight, but on the amount of body fat, to be specific, adipose tissue.

^{Ok, so what dose this all mean?}

<sup>Fat, we all know of it as the stuff that sticks out when your trying to put clothes on or that jiggle you feel when you run.  Having too much fat is an area of concern and can lead to many issues down the road.

Some are:
Diabetes
Coronary Heart Disease
Cancer
Gallstones
Heart Attack
Obesity
Asthma
Sleep Apnea
Osteoarthritis
Death

Healthy ranges for body fat are:</sup>

Age	Female	Male
18-39	21-32%	8-19%
40-59	23-33%	11-21%
60-79	24-35%	13-24%

Right now, some 60 percent of American adults are overweight, and about 25 percent are obese.  Too much body fat shortens and lessens the quality of your life. 

For women, ages 40 – 60 is the most difficult time in a woman’s life to maintain normal weight for a number of reasons, such as slowed metabolism, hormonal changes, less physical activity and higher stress levels. In fact, some 65 percent of women between the ages of 45 and 54 are either overweight or obese.  Women gain, on average, 5 pounds from perimenopause through menopause, and many put on much more.  In women, excess body fat can lead to all of the health problems above, as well as hormone imbalances that contribute to cancer risk.

 Men, keep this in mind: The more weight a man gains from age 25 on, the shorter his expected life span.  If case that isn’t enough to get your attention guys, excess fat in men can cause a conversion of precious midlife testosterone into estrogen, which can lead to decreased libido, poor muscle tone, slower healing time from injuries, diminished vitality, and so on.  

Abdominal fat is the most dangerous fat.  While excess weight is unhealthy no matter where it is, carrying weight around your middle is the most harmful because deep abdominal fat is a biologically active organ. It secretes inflammatory chemicals that contribute to a buildup of hard plaque in the arteries, also known as atherosclerosis.  Fat around the waist and abdomen is especially associated with a higher risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, early onset of heart disease, and certain types of cancer.
^{Now that you know more about fat are you ready to lose some?}