New research presented at the Radiological Society of North America Annual Meeting 2025 suggests that having more muscle and less visceral fat may help keep the brain younger as measured by biological age.
The study included over 1,600 adults with an average age of about 55 years who underwent whole-body MRI scans. The MRI scans gave accurate measures of each participant’s muscle mass, body fat, and brain tissue volume. An AI algorithm was then used to estimate each participant’s muscle volume, visceral fat, subcutaneous fat, and predicted brain age. Visceral fat is internal abdominal fat that accumulates around the organs and is sometimes considered ‘hidden,’ while subcutaneous fat is fat that accumulates directly underneath the skin and can easily be seen and pinched. Visceral fat has been associated with a wide variety of negative health outcomes, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and more. Excessive subcutaneous fat has also been associated with health issues, but it is generally considered less harmful than visceral fat. While muscle loss and visceral fat accumulation have generally been associated with chronological aging, it is unknown how these factors may change how the brain ages.
The results of the study showed that individuals with a higher ratio of visceral fat to muscle mass tended to have older predicted brain ages based on their MRI scans. Additionally, people with more muscle mass tended to have younger brain ages. The amount of subcutaneous fat on the scans seemed to be unrelated to brain aging.
The authors of the study noted that people with more muscle and less visceral fat tended to have healthier brains in their study. Having a younger, healthier brain could lead to a lower risk of Alzheimer’s and other brain diseases that become more common with age. These results highlight the importance of consistent exercise and maintenance of body composition as we get older.
Sources: Radiological Society of North America Annual Meeting 2025; Science Daily