Metabolic imaging centre could change the way obesity is assessed

Current BMI threshold for defining obesity primarily based on data from Caucasian men

- Judith Tan

A new centre to identify body fat that is uniquely Asian has opened at the National Heart Centre Singapore (NHCS).

The Centre for Advanced Metabolic Imaging (Cami) identifies specific areas where fat accumulates, which could change the way in which obesity and metabolic disorders are assessed, especially in Asians.

It uses a process called hyperpolarisation to increase the detectability of biomolecules—which are chemical compounds, including those involved in energy production, in living cells—in MRI scans, making it easier to track glucose breakdown.

Associate Professor Calvin Chin, a senior consultant and clinician scientist with NHCS' Department of Cardiology, said this advanced technology allows real-time tracking of how the body metabolises sugar into energy, offering insights into metabolic pathways and pinpointing how different organs process nutrients into energy and where fat deposits accumulate.

The current tools for measuring body fat, such as body mass index (BMI) and body roundness index, do not accurately reflect the amount of fat in the body or indicate where the fat is deposited.

Moreover, the BMI threshold for defining obesity and being overweight was primarily based on data from Caucasian men.