Let’s Discuss Belly Fat Health Risks
You wake up one morning and find that your pants do not fit you as well as they did before, and whenever you wear those skinny jeans, you get marks on your waist and belly. Those are not good signs, and chances are, you have too much belly fat.
Not All Fats Are Bad:
Before we continue, let us make one thing straight – not all fats are bad for the body. In fact, fats are essential parts of the human system because they act as cushions for certain organs to protect them from getting damaged. Fats also play a vital role in keeping the body warm especially during the winter season. Having said that, getting too much of a good thing can be bad, and this applies for fats too.
How Belly Fat Can Be a Health Hazard:
Visceral fat, or what is more commonly known as belly fat, is not one of those ‘good’ fats. Dangerous belly fat accumulates whenever your body does not successfully burn all the calories that you have taken in by eating too much. And while many of us think that those excess calories simply stay in one place and do nothing, researchers have found out that belly fat actually releases hormones and substances that can harm the body. The negative effects of belly fat do not stop at just giving you an ugly appearance – they go deep inside your body.
Producing Bad Cholesterol:
Lewis Kuller, professor and former chair of epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Public Health, stated that “Abdominal fat is thought to break down easily into fatty acids, which flow directly into the liver and into muscle…” This poses great risk to the body, because the chain reaction triggered by the acids flowing into the liver increase the chances of producing LDL and triglycerides, which are more commonly referred to as ‘bad cholesterol’.
Major Cause of Heart Disease:
Additionally, researchers have found that having belly fat also affects the proper flow of blood in that excess fat also destabilizes the management of blood sugar, allowing clots to develop, thus causing high blood pressure, and in worst cases, stroke and heart attack.
Metabolism Break-Down:
Metabolism is also slowed down by having belly fat. Recent studies show that the hormones produced by visceral fat play a significant role in ‘metabolic syndrome’, which causes body dysfunctions such as high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and low levels of good cholesterol. Having low metabolism also means that food is digested a lot slower, thus increasing stored fat.
Men and women react differently to the effects of having visceral fat but overall, belly fat greatly reduces your lifespan because it makes you more vulnerable to cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and other life-threatening ailments. Because of this, it is absolutely necessary to keep yourself from accumulating belly fat as much as possible.
Choosing the food you eat, regularly exercising, always getting a good night’s rest and managing stress are just some of the ways that would help you make sure that you would not suffer the effects of having a huge belly.
