Butt fat can be good for your health

The study contrasts this subcutaneous fat with visceral fat, which is wrapped around the organs, and raises the risk of ill health.

It is thought subcutaneous fat may produce hormones known as adipokines which boost the metabolism.

The Harvard Medical School study appears in the journal Cell Metabolism.

The researchers, who worked on mice, transplanted fat from one part of the animals' body to the other.

When subcutaneous fat was moved to the abdominal area, there was a decrease in body weight, fat mass, and blood sugar levels.

The animals also became more responsive to the hormone insulin, which controls the way the body uses sugar. A lack of response to insulin is often the first stage on the path to type 2 diabetes.

In contrast, moving abdominal visceral fat to other parts of the body had no effect.

Lead researcher Professor Ronald Khan said: "The surprising thing was that it wasn't where the fat was located, it was the kind of fat that was the most important variable.