Have you ever heard of the term “healthy obese”? Can anyone who is obese actually be healthy? Apparently, it appears to be true!

So, how do you classify an obese person as healthy? What scientists have observed is that there are certain obese individuals who are able to break down sugar and generate sufficient amounts of insulin for the job. And such individuals do not develop diabetes or have other risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

To find out what could possibly make a subset of obese individuals immune to developing any health conditions, researchers in Qatar and UK proceeded to analyze 57 obese individuals who have a body mass index (BMI) exceeding 35.

The obese individuals were classified into insulin sensitive and insulin resistant groups. In the insulin resistant groups, there was more oxidative stress and inflammation and as a consequence, increased amounts of IL6.

On the other hand, insulin sensitive individuals did not have increased levels of inflammation or IL6 protein. The observation of IL6 levels points to a potential for IL6 to regulate diabetes.

How does the IL6 protein actually have so much influence on the risk of diabetes?

Well, increased IL6 levels are associated with inflammation and insulin resistance. This is observed in issues with fat cell production. By maintaining the levels of IL6, there is a low degree of inflammation and insulin sensitivity is present.

What this study has shown is that certain obese individuals may have increased levels of IL6 compared to other obese individuals.

“High levels of IL6 then translate to increased inflammation and increased deposits in the liver. This is a recipe for increased risk for developing diabetes.” 

What are the main points to pick up from this study?

A better idea of how fat cells develop in our body will give us a better sense if we have the capability of handling fat or if we have a tough time dealing with fat and the associated energy production. 

This difference in fat cell production is the key to informing us if an obese individual is really susceptible to diabetes. Further research in this area will prove handy in isolating susceptible obese individuals for monitoring for diabetes.