VAT Trap
Health, Fitness & Longevity
About
The VAT Trap book, blog and digital media series reveals how visceral fat — the hidden metabolic organ — drives heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes. Drawing on 30 years of frontline cardiology and the latest in imaging, app-based tracking, and metabolic science, Dr Ed Leatham translates complex research into clear, actionable steps. Whether you want to avoid heart disease, stabilise your metabolism, or understand GLP-1 therapy, these four concise podcast seasons accompany a four book series that will help you see, track, and reverse the VAT trap. To join the mailing list click on the link below and add your email https://link.scvc.co.uk/vat-trap-join-newsletter
Episodes
- The Five Numbers That MatterMore Than BMI
This episode of VAT Trap discusses five key metrics for assessing cardiovascular risk: blood pressure, ApoB, glucose patterns, waist ratio, and muscle strength. These numbers offer a more comprehensive understanding of health than traditio…
- GLP-1 Therapies in Cardiology Clinical Practice
GLP-1 therapies are shown to reduce cardiovascular events, possibly by reducing visceral adipose tissue. This suggests a shift in cardiology practice towards targeting upstream metabolic diseases.
- The Fourth Pillar: Why I Spent 30 Years as a Cardiologist Without Hearing About the Most Important Risk Factor of All
This episode of VAT Trap is titled The Fourth Pillar: Why I Spent 30 Years as a Cardiologist Without Hearing About the Most Important Risk Factor of All.
- The Sugar Connection No One Was Teaching
This episode discusses the connection between fructose and its effects on visceral fat, insulin resistance, and LDL cholesterol, particularly within the modern ultra-processed food environment.
- Why Your Cholesterol Numbers Might Be Lying To You
This episode discusses how cholesterol numbers, specifically LDL, can be deceptive. It explains that while two patients may have the same LDL level, one might require a statin while the other could benefit from focusing on weight managemen…
- Strength as a Vital Sign — How We Measure It in Clinic and at Home
The VAT Trap episode "Strength as a Vital Sign" explains how grip strength testing can predict heart disease and assess metabolic resilience. Simple muscle function tests can be performed at home to track strength.
- Sarcopenia: Are We Diagnosing the Wrong Muscle Problem?
The VAT Trap episode discusses sarcopenia, highlighting that muscle is a metabolic organ. Evidence shows muscle function, not just mass, predicts health outcomes like insulin resistance and cardiovascular risk in older adults.
- The Cardiometabolic Reset: Escaping the Metabolic Doom Loop
The Eight-Month Metabolic Reset is a program focused on improving cardiometabolic health by reducing visceral fat, maintaining muscle mass, and stabilizing glucose levels. It utilizes a combination of lifestyle adjustments and clinical sup…
- Prediabetes as a Therapeutic Target: A Cardiologist’s Editorial Perspective
This episode discusses prediabetes as an active cardiometabolic disease stage where cardiovascular injury precedes diabetes. It examines potential pharmacological interventions and the importance of lifestyle therapy for managing cardiovas…
- PCSK9, visceral fat, and the modern metabolic environment
This episode discusses LDL cholesterol transport via lipoproteins and the necessity of LDL in small amounts. It highlights the problems associated with excessive circulating LDL cholesterol and its connection to PCSK9 and visceral fat.
- Why a Cardiologist Puts Cream on His Porridge
A cardiologist discusses how adding cream to porridge can positively influence metabolic health by managing glucose spikes, preserving muscle mass, and lowering harmful LDL cholesterol levels. This approach may benefit individuals with vis…
- Menopause, Belly Fat and Long Term Health: why HRT and Visceral Fat Screening Matter
This episode discusses the shift in fat storage to the abdomen during menopause due to falling estrogen and muscle loss. It highlights the importance of visceral fat screening for early risk detection and explains how HRT and lifestyle cha…
- If You Spend 2 Minutes Brushing Your Teeth, Why Not 10 Minutes Saving Your Life?
This episode discusses the benefits of 10 minutes of daily strength training for metabolic health, emphasizing sustainability and gradual progression. It explains how this habit protects muscle, reduces visceral fat, and supports long-term…
- Sarcopenia: Are We Diagnosing the Correct Muscle Problem?
The VAT Trap podcast discusses sarcopenia, highlighting that muscle is a metabolic organ crucial for health. Evidence suggests muscle function, rather than just mass, is key for predicting insulin resistance, cardiovascular risk, and survi…
- Why GLP-1 Withdrawal Trials Fail — and Why Cardiometabolic Care Must Look Different
A 2026 BMJ systematic review found that weight regain is common after stopping pharmacological weight-management therapy. Most patients regain weight and lose metabolic benefits within 24 months, indicating a biological defense of adiposit…
- Smart body composition scales: helpful metabolic tool—or misleading distraction?
Smart body composition scales are not precise metabolic tools. Their value is in user engagement, but readings can be distorted by hydration and glycogen changes, especially during weight loss therapies like GLP-1. They are best used as pa…
- A New Year Reset: Why Your Waist Matters More Than Your Scales
January involves more than just weight loss; visceral fat accumulation increases insulin resistance and cardiovascular risk. Measuring waist circumference offers a better indicator of metabolic health than scales, promoting long-term well-…
- The Insulin Paradox: How GLP-1 Drugs Reduce Belly Fat and Heart Risk
GLP-1 drugs paradoxically reduce belly fat and heart risk by improving insulin timing and reducing chronic exposure, leading to visceral fat loss and better glucose control. Patient cases demonstrate these benefits.
- Why Protein Matters More Than Ever as We Age
This episode explains the importance of adequate protein and resistance training for healthy aging. It highlights how higher protein intake is vital to preserve strength, metabolism, and independence as muscles become less responsive with…
- “ChatGPT Says My Thyroid Might Be Underactive… What Next?”
Raised visceral fat can disrupt thyroid chemistry, increasing reverse T3 and lowering active T3, which slows metabolism. Reducing visceral fat can help restore healthy thyroid activation and improve metabolic resilience.
- Statins: who do you trust?
This episode of VAT Trap discusses investigator bias and how self-proclaimed experts can use cherry-picked data to confirm biases about statins. It emphasizes that true medical understanding requires more than isolated studies or opinions.
- What Your Glucose Curve Is Trying to Tell You: Why Continuous Glucose Monitoring Matters Long Before Diabetes
Continuous glucose monitoring reveals diabetes risk in individuals with technically normal blood sugar levels, indicating a need for closer monitoring beyond standard HbA1c tests.
- What Keto and Atkins Diets Do
The episode discusses how low-carb, high-fat diets like Keto and Atkins may shift LDL particles to a less harmful pattern A. Studies suggest this can lead to reduced inflammation markers, even with a potential rise in LDL-C concentration.
- MASLD/MASH -metabolic dysfunction -associated steatotic liver disease: What You Need to Know
MASLD/MASH is a significant indicator of metabolic dysfunction associated with visceral adipose tissue (VAT). While often found incidentally, it impacts liver and cardiovascular health, but can be managed through lifestyle changes.
- The Hidden Culprit Behind Heart Disease: Small Dense LDL and the Fat You Can’t See
Small dense LDL (sdLDL) is the most harmful form of “bad cholesterol,” forming when the liver overproduces VLDL. This is often driven by visceral fat and high insulin levels, which disrupt metabolism before detection.
- Cholesterol, LDL, and what we learnt from PCSK9 mutations in familial hypercholesterolaemia
This episode discusses familial hypercholesterolaemia, where PCSK9 gene mutations lead to overactive protein, increasing LDL cholesterol to dangerous levels. It also points to alternative explanations for high LDL in individuals without th…
- So what does determine your LDL (‘bad’) Cholesterol?
This episode discusses cholesterol, noting that genetics largely determine LDL levels, which contribute to coronary plaque. However, inflammation, carbohydrate and UPF intake, and lifestyle are key factors in plaque progression and heart a…