Large Artery Stiffening With Weight Gain in Humans: Role of Visceral Fat Accumulation

We tested the hypothesis that weight gain would increase arterial stiffness in healthy nonobese adults. To address this, we overfed 14 nonobese men (age23±1 years) ≈1000 kcal/d for 6 to 8 weeks until a 5-kg weight gain was achieved. Carotid diameters (high-resolution ultrasound) and pressures (applanation tonometry), body composition (dual energy x-ray absorptiometry), and abdominal fat distribution (computed tomography) were measured at baseline and following 4 weeks of weight stability at each individual’s elevated body weight. Overfeeding increased body weight 5.1±0.1 kg and body fat 3.4±0.4 kg (both P