Belly fat is worse for you than fat
elsewhere on your body.
Excess
accumulation of belly fat is more dangerous than excess fat around
your hips and thighs. Belly fat is associated with serious health
problems, such as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. Your
genes can contribute to your being overweight and help determine
where you carry this extra fat, but poor lifestyle choices are likely
to worsen the issue.
Fatty foods, such as butter, cheese,
and fatty meats, are the biggest cause of belly fat.
Eating
high-fat foods is not helpful, but excess calories of any kind can
increase your waistline and contribute to belly fat. Still, there is
no single cause of belly fat. Genetics, diet, age, and lifestyle can
all play a role. Changing dietary habits can help you fight the
battle of the bulge and fight belly fat: Read labels, reduce
saturated fats, increase the amount of fruits and veggies you eat,
and control and reduce your portions.
Calories from alcohol are worse for
belly fat than other calories.
Excess calories -- whether from
alcohol, sweetened beverages, or over-sized portions of food -- can
increase belly fat. Our bodies need calories, yet gram for gram,
alcohol has almost as many calories as fat.
Alcohol does seem to have a
particular association with an increased waistline, though. In
general, that’s because when you drink alcohol, your liver is too
busy burning off alcohol to burn off fat, leaving you with a beer
belly. Studies show that alcohol can cause you to feel hungry by
affecting hormones that regulate a sense of satiety.
Which of the following fats not only
can make you gain weight, but also can move fat from other parts of
your body to your belly?
Researchers
at Wake Forest University found that trans fats, which are created by
partially hydrogenated oil, increase the amount of fat around the
belly and redistribute fat tissue to the abdomen from other parts of
the body. Trans fats may be found in such foods as margarine,
pastries, cookies, crackers, and fried and convenience foods.
Which of the following shows promise
for fighting belly fat?
Green
tea, in combination with exercise, could help you lose weight,
according to the Journal of Nutrition. Researchers think
substances in green tea known as catechins stimulate the body to burn
calories and enhance loss of belly fat. Blueberries also show
promise, at least in rodents. In one study, rats bred to become obese
were fed either a high-fat diet or a low-fat diet rich in
blueberries. Rats fed a blueberry-rich diet had less abdominal fat.
Fast food can contribute to belly
fat because the items are often:
Many fast-food options are typically
high-fat, calorie-dense foods that are eaten in large portions -- all
of which contribute to over-consumption of calories, weight gain, and
an increase in belly fat when eaten frequently. Many fast-food
restaurants don’t provide nutritional information, but studies have
shown that when this is available, people tend to pick lower-calorie
meals.
Substituting diet soft drinks for
regular soft drinks is a good way to trim belly fat.
According to the American Heart
Association, “soft drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages are
the No. 1 source of added sugars in the American diet.” Added
sugars mean added calories -- something you want to avoid to help
with weight loss and cut down on belly fat. Yet, high-fructose corn
syrup has gradually replaced refined sugar as the main sweetener in
soft drinks and has been blamed as a potential contributor to the
obesity epidemic.
Does switching to diet sodas
help? Although some research has suggested that people who drink
artificially sweetened sodas as part of a calorie-restricted diet do
lose weight, other studies have suggested that diet soft drinks could
even lead to weight gain.
To help trim your waistline, you
should eat a diet high in fiber.
To trim your waistline, add whole
grains to your diet. For example, choose brown or wild rice instead
of white rice. Refined and other highly processed foods can
contribute to weight gain and interfere with weight loss. A
study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed
that a calorie-controlled diet rich in whole grains can trim extra
fat from the waistline of obese subjects.
Studies suggest you can trim your
waistline by replacing refined grains with whole grains. Which of the
following is a whole-grain food?
Couscous, spaghetti, and cornflakes
are made from refined grains (though whole-grain options may be
available). But popcorn is a whole-grain food that can boost fiber.
The best way to prepare popcorn is with an air-popper, which requires
no oil for cooking. Read labels to see what oils have been added to
microwave popcorn.
All else being equal, whole grains
are better than refined grains because they tend to be high in fiber
and take longer to digest. This satisfies your hunger better and
helps lower blood glucose levels and reduce fat.
Men tend to collect more belly fat
than women.
Overall, men tend to store fat in the
abdominal area more than women do, thanks to sex hormone differences.
Before age 40, women tend to store most of their fat in the hips,
thighs, and buttocks. After 40, as estrogen levels drop, body fat is
redistributed to the abdomen.
Belly fat is harder to lose than fat
elsewhere on your body.
When you lose weight, you’re much
more likely to lose it in your midsection. Losing weight on a
well-balanced plan will melt body fat, including belly fat. The best
way to decrease your waist size is through healthy eating and regular
exercise.
Spot exercises, such as sit-ups or
crunches, target belly fat.
Doing sit-ups, crunches, or other
abdominal exercises will strengthen your core muscles and help you
lose fat, but they don’t specifically work on belly fat. In other
words, spot exercise won’t decrease belly fat. The only way to lose
belly fat (or any kind of fat) is through dieting and exercise.
Aerobic exercises, such as running, swimming, cycling, and tennis,
are some of the best to help reduce body fat.
Belly fat has been linked to which
of the following health problems:
Belly fat appears to be especially
bad for the heart. Studies have linked belly fat to heart failure,
atherosclerosis, and other cardiovascular problems. It also has been
associated with osteoporosis, dementia, Alzheimer's disease,
diabetes, colorectal cancer, metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure,
and other health problems.
Which of the following is the best
plan for reducing belly fat?
Most scientific evidence suggests
that a calorie-controlled diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole
grains, low-fat dairy, beans, nuts, seeds, lean meat, fish, eggs, and
poultry is the foundation for a diet that provides all the nutrients
you need while helping to whittle your waistline. Weight loss experts
recommend combining this diet with 30 to 60 minutes of exercise most
days of the week.
