White fat versus brown fat (versus beige fat) – just what are all these types of fat and how will your life significantly be altered by bothering to know the difference!?
Below I’ll explain the main differences between the 3 types of fat and what they do for your body, so you can understand the basics of the white fat versus brown fat discussion.
I’ll also go through the most effective brown and beige fat activators that you can add to your lifestyle and diet (*spoiler alert: you’ll want to increase them!*).
First, the basic concepts of fat
Before we get into the specifics of white fat versus brown fat, and each type of fat, let’s talk about body fat in general.
There are three major types of fat (or adipose tissue) in the body: white, brown and beige. They’re differentiated based on their location, their physiological traits and their function (more on that below).
People who are metabolically healthy will have a good balance of these pro- and anti-inflammatory reactions. As fat tissue grows (on the way to obesity) there’ll be a shift towards inflammation, putting you at risk for developing metabolic syndrome. (*)
Related content: Boost Your Immune System Naturally & Holistically
White fat versus Brown fat (versus Beige fat) – DEFINITIONS
White fat / White Adipose Tissue / WAT
This is basically the fat people generally refer to when they talk about fat. It’s the insulating layer of fat droplets we have beneath our skin (subcutaneous) and around our belly (visceral).
It tends to grow very easily in response to caloric excess (eating more calories than we expend) and it’s our main storage of energy.
Excess of this type of fat, in particular of belly fat, is what’s linked to the development of metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance and cardiovascular diseases. (*)
This is the fat you want to keep in check!
Brown Fat / Brown Adipose Tissue / BAT
Now, brown fat is a very different type of fat that is found in all mammals but in infinitely smaller amounts.
It begins to form already in the womb and it is essential to the temperature regulation of newborn babies.
Babies are not born with the ability to shiver – we all have to develop it. Shivering is a skeletal-muscle reaction that enables us to raise our body temperature when exposed to cold. Brown fat helps us generate heat through a different process, called non-shivering thermogenesis.
Brown fat comprises about 5% of a newborn’s body weight, but that slowly drops throughout childhood and adolescence. (*) Only about half of teenagers have detectable amounts of brown fat and by the time we’re adults, brown fat makes up less than 1% of our body weight. (*)
Fun fact: active brown fat deposits are more frequently found in women than men, especially around the neck and above the collarbone. (*)
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Beige fat / Brown-like-in-white Adipose Tissue / Brite
This type of fat was discovered more recently and it’s basically a mix of white and brown fat. Specifically, they’re brown-like fat cells that emerge from white fat deposits, in response to specific conditions.
It was originally discovered when studying rats exposed to cold temperatures. Since then, beige fat has been shown to be created also in response to things like exercise and certain plant bio-actives. (*)
The process by which white fat cells develop brown fat-like behavior, in response to certain stimulants and conditions, is called “WAT (White Adipose Tissue) browning”.
White fat versus Brown fat (versus Beige fat) – LOCATION
White fat is:
- subcutaneous (beneath the skin)
- intra-abdominal (in the belly)
- epicardial (between the heart and the pericardium)
- gonadal (around the ovaries and testis).
Brown fat is:
- interscapular (between the shoulder blades)
- paravertebral (along spinal cord)
- perirenal (surrounding the kidney)
- cervical (around the neck)
- supraclavicular (above the collarbone)
Beige fat:
- can basically emerge wherever white fat deposits exist
- again, in response to specific external or environmental cues.
White fat versus brown fat (versus beige fat) – COMPOSITION
White fat
Brown fat
Beige fat
White fat versus Brown fat (versus Beige fat) – FUNCTION
White fat
WAT was traditionally thought of as a form of passive storage of energy (excess calories). This view has evolved to understand how essential it is in glucose (sugar) and lipid (fat) homeostasis (balance) in the body. (*)
White fat does indeed store excess calories, in the form of triglycerides (aka, those fat droplets). In times of greater energy demand or food shortage, it will in turn release free fatty acids as fuel. (*)
However, white fat cells also secrete different types of hormones, enzymes, growth factors, and other compounds. These help regulate metabolism, food intake, energy use, immunity, and even blood pressure. (*)
Related content: How To Increase Growth Hormone Naturally
Brown fat
Brown fat, as mentioned earlier, is mostly involved in non-shivering thermogenesis – it “burns” calories by producing heat. It does this in response to outside cues, which can be exercise-induced, cold-induced, or diet-induced. (*)
There is also a lot of evidence mounting that brown fat helps to regulate fat and blood sugar levels in the body, helping to maintain a healthy metabolic balance. (*)
Beige fat
Beige fat, by sharing characteristics of both white and brown fat, can act as energy storage (like white), or as a heat generator (like brown). This will depend on the environmental conditions. (*)
So why should you care about the white fat versus brown fat discussion?
Much like the stress response, “fat” is neither 100% good or 100% bad – it has functions and a purpose. Even white fat, as unaesthetic as it might seem sometimes, has purpose. The problems come when there’s excess.
This is also known as “inflammaging” – to put it simply, chronic inflammation will age your body faster, in every way. (*)
By activating brown fat and “browning” white fat you’ll increase energy output, speeding up metabolism and decreasing unhealthy white fat stores. This in turn will improve blood sugar metabolism and insulin sensitivity, in effect rejuvenating your body. (*)
Related content: How To Relieve Stress Quickly (just 2 minutes!)
Brown fat activation and white fat “browning” (bio-hacks)
As we’ve seen, you can activate brown fat, or help to “brown” white fat, through certain types of stimulation.
The most studied so far are cold exposure, exercise, and certain plant compounds. (*)
1 – Cold Exposure
Prolonged and consistent cold exposure activates brown fat and “browns” white fat. (*)
Of all the methods for BAT activation or WAT “browning” studied so far, cold exposure seems to be the most effective. (*)
Related content: 8 Amazing Cold Water Benefits To Get Excited About!
2 – Exercise
When we exercise, our energy deposits (i.e., white fat stores) are released back into circulation as free fatty acids for fuel.
3 – Diet
Every time you eat, your body goes into what’s called “diet-induced thermogenesis”, meaning your body temperature goes up.
This thermogenesis is divided into two types: obligatory and facultative.
Obligatory refers to the energy necessary for the simple digestion, absorption, and storage of the nutrients.
Facultative (or adaptive) refers to any additional response that may or may not be present, on top of the obligatory ones. In the case of diet, this might be the act of overfeeding, or any active compounds present in the food ingested that might affect the sympathetic nervous system. That might cause it to regulate the temperature up or down. (*)
Of all the factors so far known to activate BAT and “brown” WAT, the diet-induced ones are the most “flimsy”.
The vast majority of studies have been performed on animals, specifically rodents, and there’s still a lot to be backed up by human trials.
It’s worth noting that, apparently, rodents (and other smaller mammals) have a higher biological tendency towards white fat “browning”. They’re more dependent on temperature regulation through these mechanisms than humans. (*)
It’s important to have that in mind when adding any of the following bio-actives to your diet, for the purposes of activating BAT or “browning” WAT.
Capsaicin and capsinoids
Capsaicin is the active compound in hot chilies and capsinoids are the active component of “sweet” red peppers.
Resveratrol
Resveratrol is a well-known powerful antioxidant and sirtuin activator – in other words, it makes you young(er)!
Related content: Best Sirtfoods For Anti-aging & Weight Loss
Curcumin
Another very famous polyphenol found in turmeric roots, which is a member of the ginger family.
Green tea
A powerful ingredient to induce weight loss and fat “burning”.
According to studies, this is in part due to the catechins naturally present in tea, but particularly in green tea, the most active of which being EGCG.
Menthol
Menthol is naturally present in all mints, especially peppermint. It has a host of proven health benefits.
Fish-derived Omega-3 fatty acids
There is evidence mounting that fish-derived Omega-3 fatty acids stimulate brown fat activation and white fat “browning”, by improving blood sugar balance and energy output (metabolism). (*)
Pre- , pro- and postbiotics
The microbiome composition in your gut directly impacts your chances of developing certain diseases, like obesity and metabolic syndrome.
It plays an essential role in energy output and metabolism balance. There are a number of studies relating the gut microbiome with the thermogenic (heat creation) ability of brown fat and the “browning” effect on white fat. (*)
Prebiotics are all those non-digestible food compounds that are able to influence your existing gut microbiome towards a “healthier” profile. They can come under the form of plant polyphenols (like the resveratrol mentioned earlier but also quercetin, catechins, etc.), as well as from complex carbohydrates, and the soluble dietary fiber in fruits and vegetables. They’ll boost the proliferation of “good bugs” and/or kill “bad bugs” in your gut.
Probiotics, on the other hand, are all those fermented foods you consume that have the actual live cultures in them. Foods like yogurt and kefir, sauerkraut or kimchi, drinks like Kombucha, or vinegars with the “mother”. Consuming them will add those live cultures to your microbiome.
Postbiotics are all the by-products of microbiome metabolism (“digestion”) in your gut.
I hope the whole white fat versus brown fat thing makes a bit more sense now.
Please let me know if anything is confusing or if you have any questions that are not covered in this post – I’ll do my best to find the answers!