Why you should embrace body fat

New scientific research shows that the fat supplies found in women’s bottoms and thighs are vital in brain formation in children. According to study findings, these fat banks help fuel the brains of newborns through breastfeeding.

What you need to know:

  • Previous research has shown that over the years, the human brain has increased in size.

  • This could be why women’s  bodies are also bigger and curvier to make up for these required nutrients for their young ones.

  • It may be time to stop stressing about those extra five kilos that will simply not go away and just smile at the knowledge that your child may turn out to be really smart.

New scientific research shows that the fat supplies found in women’s bottoms and thighs are vital in brain formation in children. According to study findings, these fat banks help fuel the brains of newborns through breastfeeding.

This study also explains the fundamental differences between the male and the female form and solves the mystery of  why women have so much fat in their bodies, typically 30 per cent of their body weight, compared to their male counterparts who have between five and 10 per cent of body fat and thus a more linear body shape.

Epidemiologists at Pittsburgh University in Pennsylvania conclusively found that women with larger thighs and bottoms had higher levels of brain-building breast milk lipids.

Professor Will Lassek, one of the study leads, explains that a lot of fat is needed to make the nervous system and the fat in these areas is enriched with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an important component in the human brain. It seems as if women have evolved to accumulate these fats in certain parts of their bodies and hold onto them until a baby arrives.

Nutrient reserves

This extra fat in women’s bodies is lost during breastfeeding when it is needed in the formation of the baby’s brain. The fat reserves contribute directly to brain formation. Mothers who breastfed lost an average of a half a kilo of fat each month.

These findings, which have been published in Professor Lassek’s new book, Why Women Need Fat, perhaps explain why it is very difficult for women to lose weight in these areas popularly termed as problem areas as the fat they are trying to lose is a vital nutrient reserve for their unborn babies.

Women with such large quantities of fat are thus presumed to have more intelligent babies as these fat reserves are mobilised during pregnancy to allow the babies brains to soak up in their enriched nutrients.

Previous research has shown that over the years, the human brain has increased in size.

This could be why women’s  bodies are also bigger and curvier to make up for these required nutrients for their young ones.

It may be time to stop stressing about those extra five kilos that will simply not go away and just smile at the knowledge that your child may turn out to be really smart.