As it turns out, belly fat goes much deeper than the love handles you can pinch off from your waist. In fact, belly fat actually extends deeper into the abdomen and around your vital organs. Having fat deposits around your organs is harmful because, according to Dr. Paula Johnson, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, rather than being just inert deposits of fat that do nothing other than take up space, they are also doing damage that you may not be aware of until it is too late.
"The fat around the belly is particularly metabolically active, meaning that it produces a number of factors that increase the risks for heart disease," states Dr. Paula Johnson in a press release explaining that those factors include hormones and other substances that promote inflammation, raise blood pressure, alter cholesterol levels, and interfere with normal blood vessel activity. In other words, belly fat paves the way for women to suffer from metabolic syndrome—a constellation of factors that has been linked to heart disease, stroke, and Type 2 diabetes.
A diagnosis of metabolic syndrome is typically made by a physician when a patient presents with just 3 of the following risk factors:
• A waist measurement of 35 inches or more in women (40 inches in men).
• A triglyceride (blood fat) level of 150 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or higher.
• HDL ("good") cholesterol level of less than 50 mg/dL in women (40 mg/dL in men).
• A blood pressure reading of 130/85 mm Hg or higher.
• A fasting blood sugar level of 100 mg/dL or higher.
Health authorities are in agreement that our national epidemic of obesity or being overweight and carrying around an inordinate amount of belly fat is primarily due to our modern diet that is rich in processed foods consisting of white flour and sugar, eating portions that are greater than what the body needs and a decrease in the amount of exercise the average American gets per week.
Prevent the Accumulation of Belly Fat
And now that the holidays are almost upon us, the chances of eating more of the types of foods that add to belly fat are much higher and more difficult to avoid. To help people get a start on eating right, Harvard Health Publications offers these tips for this holiday as simple modifications you can make toward preventing the accumulation of additional belly fat:
• Peel the skin off your turkey and eat the white meat only—it's lower in fat than dark meat.
• Use low-sodium chicken broth in your stuffing recipe instead of butter.
• Add cornstarch and water to bird drippings instead of butter and flour to slim down your gravy.