Fat is a better insulator, but muscle is what creates the heat. The more muscle one has, the more heat they generate, but the heat dissipates quickly without any insulation (fat). Arctic seals have a lot of fat on the outside of their body but a large central core of dense muscle, enabling them to get warm and stay that way.
If one has a high amount of body fat and low muscle mass, one will slowly become cold and take a long time to heat back up. If one is the opposite (e.g., high muscle and low fat) one will get cold fast but heat up quickly.
http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/2000-08/967757097.An.r.html says:
"Fat is the way people, and animals, store some of the extra food they have
eaten. Because the fat does not have another routine job, like the
muscles and bones do, the fat deposits do not have very many blood vessels
in them. Anything that slows down the heat escaping from your body helps
keep you warm. That is why you wear more clothes when it is cold
outside. Clothes slow down the heat loss from your body to the air around
you. Your fat layers perform the same work because of the low blood flow
through them. The fat keeps some of your blood from getting too close to
the skin where it can quickly lose heat. The result is almost like
carrying a blanket around with you under your skin. One large, thick
layer of fat is just under the layers of muscle across your abdomen
(stomach area). There are a lot of blood vessels in your abdomen
associated with your intestines and other internal organs. This fat
layer, called the greater omentum, is a very good use of body fat to
preserve body heat.
People whose ancestors developed in cold climates (like the Eskimos of the
Arctic), have more body fat and the fat is distributed over much of their
bodies uniformly. This protects more of their bodies from heat loss.
People whose ancestors developed in hot climates (like the African
natives), have fat deposits in more localized parts of their bodies,
leaving large areas of skin with many blood vessels near the skin. This
allows these people to cool off more quickly if they become overheated.
You also asked if there are any other ways fat helps keep us warm. Fat is
the most concentrated source of energy of the three basic food types (fat
9 calories per gram, protein 4 calories per gram, and carbohydrates 4
calories per gram). Your body burns some of your stored fat when you have
not eaten enough food to supply all of your body's needs. So, not only
does a fat layer help keep you warm by preventing heat loss to the air but
it is one of the primary fuels that your body burns to produce the heat in
the first place!" there is a protion for you to get 5-a-day healthy diet
You burn calories and some from fat to keep warm. Particularly when it is cold, your body uses more calories.
They have a thick layer of fat so they can keep warm.
to keep ur body warm
They huddle together and their body fat and body heat keep them warm during a storm.
To keep warm of your body
Their layer of body fat and their fur.
To keep you Warm Like a polar bear ! :D
The fat cells store excess energy from food. Fat cells are highly active. They provide triglycerides, keep the body warm, support and cushion vital organs, and help the body use carbohydrates and protein.
fat can keep you extra warm when it is cold but fat isn't very good for you because it can make you very unfit and it is very hard to shift but everyone needs fat in their body to keep healthy.
Fat is insulating, so it helps keep warmth in the human body. It works the same way clothing and jackets do.
Larger bodies generally mean more fat of insulation.
They have a layer of blubber to keep themselves warm.
by there warm fat