What is brown, white and visceral fat?

Body fat often gets a bad reputation, but it’s more than just a number on the scale or the calories you consume. Though often misunderstood, fat carries out functions that are both beneficial and necessary for good health. And not all fats are the same—different types, primarily white and brown, each serve distinct purposes.

Taylor Cyrus, MS, RD, LD, CNSC, registered dietitian at Texas A&M University Health Services, part of Texas A&M Health, explains the differences between brown, white and visceral fat. She emphasizes that maintaining a healthy body fat percentage through lifestyle and dietary habits is key to reducing the risk of serious health conditions.

“Fat itself isn’t bad—it’s the ratio between the types of fat, the location and amount stored in our body that can be threatening, especially when built up in excess,” Cyrus said.

Brown fat

Brown fat is made of iron-rich mitochondria, which is how it gets its color. It stores and burns energy to help regulate body temperature by producing heat without shivering. You can’t directly increase or decrease brown fat in the body, but you can activate the fat cells through exposure to lower temperature, nutrition and physical activity. When brown fat isn’t active, it doesn’t burn any energy.

According to Cyrus, brown fat is primarily located in the shoulders, neck and upper back, and accounts for 1% to 2% of total fat in adults. In newborns, it makes up 2% to 5% of body weight, but the amount naturally decreases during childhood and adolescence. The exact final amount in adult individuals varies based on genetics, diet and lifestyle.

“Typically, we think about shivering or movement when our body is trying to warm itself up,” Cyrus said. “However, infants don’t shiver yet, so brown fat is how they keep themselves warm.”

White fat

White fat stores excess calories to be used as energy later and helps the body absorb and store fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K (ADEK), Cyrus said. It also plays a role in hormone regulation by producing and releasing hormones throughout the body, such as leptin and insulin. Leptin is released to regulate hunger signals and provides the sensation of feeling full, while insulin helps your body turn food into energy and manages your blood sugar levels.

White fat also acts as insulation to control body temperature and protects muscles and bones by forming protective membranes. Although some white fat is essential for overall health, excess white fat can increase the risk of various health problems, such as obesity.

“White fat is what you would normally think of as fat,” Cyrus said. “It’s the fat under your skin that you can pinch and feel on your arm. It can also be stored in your abdomen as visceral fat, but they have very different roles.”

Visceral fat

Visceral fat surrounds your stomach, liver and intestines behind the abdominal wall, Cyrus explained. When visceral fat levels are high, it puts added pressure on these organs and contributes to chronic inflammation in the body. This inflammation can trigger a cycle of metabolic issues, increasing the risk of conditions like Type 2 diabetes. Visceral fat is also strongly linked to high cholesterol, heart disease and stroke. Talking with your health care provider can help you track weight-related health issues and create a personalized plan to manage them.

“Even though a client’s weight may be higher than recommended for their health, it’s reversible, and we can bring that number back down,” Cyrus said. “The long-term benefits of maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle are essential for cardiovascular health and preventing heart disease in the future.”

Measuring body fat

The gold standard for measuring body composition is the dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, or DXA, scanner, which uses X-rays to show where your body fat is located and the percentage you have, Cyrus said. The scan also provides the number of pounds of fat in specific areas, such as the right arm compared to the left. It measures visceral fat in the abdomen and calculates the android-to-gynoid ratio, which compares fat stored in the abdomen (android) to fat stored in the hips (gynoid). A higher concentration of fat in the hips is generally considered healthier, as it reduces pressure and inflammation around vital organs.

“Evaluating the android-to-gynoid ratio can predict the risk of metabolic diseases in people,” Cyrus said. “If it’s higher than one in men and higher than 0.8 in women, you’re at much higher risk for metabolic diseases.” 

Managing body fat

Although you can’t target fat loss in specific areas, combining cardio and resistance training can help reduce overall body fat—including visceral fat, as your total body fat decreases. Exercise stimulates the release of a hormone called irisin, which encourages white fat to behave more like brown fat. This transformation creates beige fat, which contains both white and brown fat, helping burn more calories and improving body composition.

When your resting metabolic rate is low due to factors such as stress, poor sleep, unhealthy diet or inactivity, it can increase the risk of obesity, Cyrus said. That’s why it’s important to raise your baseline energy expenditure as much as possible. Activating brown fat is one way to do this, helping your body burn more calories even at rest.

Along with regular physical activity, staying hydrated and eating a healthy diet supports brown fat activation. According to Cyrus, maintaining a calorie deficit—burning more calories than you consume—helps reduce excess body fat. A high-protein diet rich in fruits and vegetables is especially effective at lowering white fat levels.

“I usually calculate protein for weight loss as a percent of total caloric intake,” Cyrus said. “A client eating 1,800 calories a day should aim for 20% to 25% of their total calories coming from protein. That percentage would ensure a high protein diet that remains under 2g/kg—dangerously high protein intake—but above 0.8 g/kg—minimum protein intake—which is still safe for weight loss.”

Certain healthy fats, like the omega-3 fatty acids found in salmon, tuna, mackerel, sardines, herring, walnuts, flaxseed and fish oil supplements, have been shown to promote brown fat activity. This can help increase the amount of energy your body burns at rest, which is beneficial for weight loss and long-term weight management. Additionally, capsaicin, the compound that gives spicy peppers their heat, may also help boost metabolism.

While some fat is essential for vital functions like hormone regulation and temperature control, excessive fat, especially around the midsection, can raise the risk of chronic disease.

“I encourage clients to focus on balanced nutrition, regular exercise and healthy lifestyle habits to manage body fat more effectively and reduce the risk for serious health issues down the line,” Cyrus said.