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The relationship between muscle mass and metabolic health may be more complicated than previously understood, according to a new study from Pennington Biomedical Research Center. Researchers found that where fat is stored in the body plays an important role in the relationship between fat-free mass and metabolic conditions, including metabolic syndrome and elevated blood sugar.

The study, "Relationship between fat-free mass and metabolic syndrome is shaped by ectopic fat in a UK Biobank cohort," published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, analyzed body composition and metabolic health data from 59,269 participants in the UK Biobank. Using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from UK Biobank, researchers examined how different measures of body composition were associated with metabolic syndrome and elevated blood sugar.

Fat-free mass is often used as an indirect measure of skeletal muscle mass because muscle makes up the largest proportion of fat-free mass in most adults and plays an important role in regulating blood sugar and responding to insulin. However, fat-free mass, a term often used interchangeably with lean body mass, refers to the body's nonfat components, including muscle, bones and organs. The study found that fat-free mass alone may not provide a complete picture of a person's metabolic health.

"The findings suggest that muscle quantity alone may not provide a complete picture of metabolic health and that where fat is stored in the body is an important part of the story," said Dr.

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