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Why Belly Fat Is The Most Dangerous Body Fat

No matter what you call it, spare tire, pot belly or beer keg, having excess fat in your abdominal area is not a good thing. As a matter of fact, it presents a very serious danger.

Belly fat is not like the fat on other parts of your body. It is far more serious. When you have excess belly fat it increases your risk for things such as:

· Sleep apnea

· Metabolic syndrome

· Diabetes

· Cardiovascular disease

· Breast cancer

The fat that rests between your skin and abdominal wall is known as subcutaneous fat. The next layer of fat, the fat that surrounds your internal organs is known as visceral fat. This type of fat is nothing to play with. It is biologically active and can produce an excess of hormones.

Researchers often describe it as an active organ in the body that creates hormones and inflammatory substances.

This type of fat turns into fatty acids that can get into the liver and muscle of the body, according to Lewis Kuller, MD, DPH.

This type of drainage causes various changes, such as, an increase in bad LDL cholesterol and triglycerides.

Along with this reaction, insulin stops being as effective in controlling blood sugars, which, results in insulin resistance. Insulin resistance often leads to Type 2 Diabetes and other conditions such as, heart disease.

Belly Fat In Men

One of the reasons men are more likely to have heart disease is because they tend to collect more belly fat than women, and, also earlier in life.

One study showed that too much of this type of fat in men is a risk for “all-cause mortality”, which means death from any kind of cause.

Too much belly fat in men has also been linked to erectile dysfunction in men over age 60.

Belly Fat In Women

The hormonal imbalance caused by this type of fat, can also leads to breast cancer in women, where the risk is 1/3 higher than that in women without it.

It can also cause inflammation in the body. And if you know anything about inflammation you know it is the cause of a variety of different health conditions and diseases.

According to one Danish study, women are five times more likely to die from heart disease when they have lots of belly fat, large waists and high levels of fat in the blood stream.

What Causes Belly Fat?

Genetics

There are a lot of different factors that can cause someone to have an excess of belly fat. One such factor is genetics. If your parents have a lot of belly fat you are more likely to have belly fat as well. The sad truth is it can move down from generation to generation.

Hormones also play a huge role. For example, after a woman goes through menopause the hormonal changes that take place can cause fat to gather in the belly.

Poor Diet

The most common cause of belly fat is poor dietary habits and a lack of exercise. These days people live on a fast food diet and never take the time to go to the gym. This not only leads to belly fat but it can also lead to obesity. So now the question is how can you get rid of belly fat?

The first thing you need to do is get your diet in check. No more eating unhealthy fast food 5 nights a week. It’s time to start cooking. You need to eat lots of fresh veggies, fruits and proteins. Things such as broccoli, spinach, carrots, oranges, pineapples, mango and chicken are all great for losing weight.

Exercise

But it’s not just enough to get your diet right. You also need to start exercising. Exercising and eating right help keep your metabolism revved up. And the best part is you don’t have to workout a long time to see the results.

All it takes is 30 minutes a day of intense exercise and you would be surprised how fast your body starts to change.

When you workout be sure to incorporate resistance training. The more muscle you build the more fat you will burn during a 24 hour period.

So, ladies don’t be afraid to increase your muscle mass. It will go a long ways towards helping you shed those extra pounds.

J Russell Hart