The progression of cardiovascular risk to cardiovascular disease.

A cluster of risk factors associated with obesity defines the metabolic syndrome and identifies cardiometabolic risk. Accumulation of fat in the visceral depot is a more reliable predictor of cardiovascular disease than is total body mass or body mass index. The recent discovery of the endocannabinoid-CB1 receptor system and its impact on the regulation of energy metabolism represents a significant advance that will help target visceral fat and its metabolic implications. As a highly active endocrine organ, visceral fat secretes many bioactive molecules, known as adipokines. Dysregulation of these adipokines contributes to the pathogenesis of the obesity-associated metabolic syndrome, resulting in insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and vascular disease. Even modest weight reduction leads to reduced cardiometabolic risk by affecting the individual components comprising the metabolic syndrome.