A common theme that links many diseases and chronic illness is uncontrolled cellular inflammation. It is a factor in diseases including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, arthritis and many autoimmune-related conditions. Obesity has recently been added to this group of diseases as it is now known to present a low grade inflammatory response within many of the body’s tissues, which cause deleterious effects, often leading to the development of cardiovascular and metabolic disease. It is well known that being overweight is detrimental to one’s health, but until recently the known mechanisms were limited. Scientists over the last decade have started to unravel the mystery of why obesity leads to premature death. Although there is still much to learn, it is valuable to comprehend the known effects of chronic inflammation, as the prevalence of obesity continues to be a rising problem among the American population, particularly in children.
Inflammation is, by design, a protective response leading to the repair of tissue. When inflammation becomes chronic, as is the case with obesity, chemical mediators, derived from different cellular activities, change in dynamics causing a progressive state of decline. Fat cells are now considered an immune organ that secretes numerous immune modulating chemicals. Visceral fat, in particular, is associated with the low grade inflammation that seems to be a contributing pathologic feature for metabolic disease through insulin resistance and the promotion of atherosclerotic build-up in circulatory vessels. When high levels of visceral fat are combined with physical inactivity, overnutrition, and advancement in age, the effect becomes more pronounced. Visceral fat is highly metabolic and contributes to cytokine hyperactivity. Adipokines secreted from fat tissue influence the metabolic process and contribute to proper function. The consequent low grade inflammation associated with obesity causes disturbance in the secretion and function of adipokines. Research has identified changes in adiponectin, leptin, and resistin that exhibit harmful effects upon the body in obese individuals.