Why Do We Store Fat Near Stomach & Buttocks?

  • Thread starter Thread starter PhysicBeginner
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Weird
AI Thread Summary
Excess fat is primarily stored around the stomach and buttocks due to the higher concentration of lipocytes, or fat cells, in these regions. These lipocytes respond significantly to sexual hormones, influencing fat distribution. Additionally, storing fat in these areas may provide a protective advantage, as the increased volume can absorb shock and reduce impact during physical activities, making falls or impacts less painful compared to areas with less fat.
PhysicBeginner
Messages
35
Reaction score
0
I'm not sure if this question is suppose to be in this section but I'll ask anyway.
Does anyone know why we store our excess fat mostly near the stomach and buttocks. I heard it has something to do with forces and physics, and it also seems to be an advantage.
 
Biology news on Phys.org
More volume = more shock (force) absorbed? Like when your bee-hind hits an object, it doesn't hurt THAT bad because the more fat there cushions the impact. Your foot hitting the object will hurt more because there's less fat there.

I'm doing this question too...btw, which class are you in?
 
Hi,

it is simply because there is more lipocytes (cells containing fat) in these areas and lipocytes are well responding to some sexual hormons.
 

Thread 'Chagas disease now established in US'

Chagas disease, long considered only a threat abroad, is established in California and the Southern U.S. According to articles in the Los Angeles Times, "Chagas disease, long considered only a threat abroad, is established in California and the Southern U.S.", and "Kissing bugs bring deadly disease to California". LA Times requires a subscription. Related article -...
View full post »

Thread 'I need help understanding this quote about recent Natural Selection'

I am reading Nicholas Wade's book A Troublesome Inheritance. Please let's not make this thread a critique about the merits or demerits of the book. This thread is my attempt to understanding the evidence that Natural Selection in the human genome was recent and regional. On Page 103 of A Troublesome Inheritance, Wade writes the following: "The regional nature of selection was first made evident in a genomewide scan undertaken by Jonathan Pritchard, a population geneticist at the...
View full post »

Thread 'Flesh-eating New World Screwworm re-occurrence in US'

Deadly cattle screwworm parasite found in US patient. What to know. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2025/08/25/new-world-screwworm-human-case/85813010007/ Exclusive: U.S. confirms nation's first travel-associated human screwworm case connected to Central American outbreak https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/us-confirms-nations-first-travel-associated-human-screwworm-case-connected-2025-08-25/...
View full post »

Similar threads

Odd evolutionary outcomes: green fur, body fat, anything else?
Replies
40
Views
5K
Why We Store Fat Near Stomach & Buttocks: Forces & Advantages
Replies
2
Views
2K
Virtual Doctor's Visits - Do/Would You Use Them?
Replies
4
Views
1K
Shooting Hoops with a Schizophrenic Basketball Savant
Replies
16
Views
2K
Questions about the book "Why we sleep?"
Replies
7
Views
3K
Natural Selection, why not even better?
Replies
37
Views
9K
Why do we store open bottles of hydrogen mouth down?
Replies
3
Views
3K
B Calc Excess Rad on Earth in Curved 3D Space | Feynman Lectures 6-2
Replies
29
Views
2K
B How do physicists know if limits exist, things are integrable, etc?
Replies
12
Views
2K
Why do we spend so much time learning grammar in the public school system?
2
Replies
98
Views
2K

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top