Belly bulge. Love handles. We have a lot of cute names for the stubborn ring of fat that likes to form around our mid-sections. But the results of this extra weight may not be so cute. In fact, even if you have a healthy body mass index, that extra belly fat could double your risk of death!
A new study from the Epidemiology Research Program of the American Cancer Society in Atlanta followed more than 48,000 men and 56,000 women ages 50 and older from 1997 until 2006.
It found that men having at least a 47-inch waist and women with at least a 43-inch waist had twice the risk of death compared with men with 35-inch or smaller waists and women with 30-inch or smaller waists.
Health and death risks were seen across the group, healthy BMI or not.
Dr. Robert Cooper, a bariatric surgeon in Seymour, said when the stomach gets larger and a person is obese, a chain reaction occurs that starts to affect the entire body.
"Other tissues start dying off to make room for the fat," Cooper said. The omentum, the fat inside the abdominal cavity that cushions the organs, starts to get too big and extremely heavy.
"It (fat) becomes an organ," Cooper said.
When this happens, the risk of hypertension, polycystic ovarian disease, sleep disturbances, non-alcoholic atherosclerosis, asthma, arthritis and depression increases significantly.
On top of those problems, cancers such as breast, colon and uterine are more prevalent, and the possibility of type two diabetes is almost guaranteed.
As for sleep apnea, other sleep disorders and asthma, even a small gut can worsen the symptoms or cause the symptoms.
"That big central gut pushes your diaphragm up," Cathy Hildebrand, a nurse practitioner in the surgical weight loss department at Schneck Medical Center, said. "This fat (abdominal) affects a lot of stuff."
Monica Durham, a registered dietitian at Schneck Medical Center, offers a few tips and ways to lose the bulge.
"One of the things we talk about to increase your metabolism is eating smaller meals throughout the day and snacks in between," Durham said. "Exercise is going to be very important in increasing metabolism." As for actual foods to eat during those meals, Durham said to keep fresh fruits and vegetables on the menu along with foods high in fiber. When asked why weight tends to sit in the belly for some people, Durham said, "It's more just genetics of where you carry your weight. That's not to say you can't lose weight wherever." Hildebrand said genetic evolution plays a part in how much fat a person's body will keep. "Some people are way more efficient at storing fat," she said. She added fat storage was a means for survival hundreds of years ago, and many have carried that trait into the new century. Both Cooper and Hildebrand said losing that first 20 pounds will drastically improve health. Statistics provided by the Cleveland Clinic show the mid-range effects of someone who has undergone weight-loss surgery. Metabolic syndrome -- factors that lead to coronary artery disease, stroke and type two diabetes -- risks are resolved by 80 percent. Hildebrand also said that women have several benefits when they start to lose weight, including becoming "extremely fertile" and normal menstruations. Recently, female childhood obesity has been linked to girls reaching puberty at ages as early as 6, which could be prevented if the child were at a normal weight. Cooper said he tries to help his patients as early as possible with weight-loss surgeries because the symptoms can almost be completely reversed. Hildebrand cautioned the mid-range fat is more than just unsightly, "This is killer weight." // var ranNum = Math.round(Math.random()*1000000); document.write('http://content.yellowbrix.com/images/content/cimage.nsp?ctype=full_story&story_id=148806287&id=thirdage&ip_id=McClatchy-Tribune+Business+News&source_id=The+Tribune+%28Seymour%2C+Ind.%29&category=Healthcare&random=' + (ranNum));// ]]>//
