BELLY FAT – MUCH MORE THAN EXCESS WEIGHT – Part III

BELLY FAT – MUCH MORE THAN EXCESS WEIGHT – Part III

Excess visceral fat also increases heart disease via inflammatory molecules. They are the top root causes for heart disease. Visceral fat can lead to high triglycerides and increase bad cholesterol, as well. It also leads to high blood pressure and the formation of plaque in our arteries.

Visceral fat increases an enzyme in our body that can lead to estrogen dominance. Too much estrogen, in turn, favors the development of visceral fat, and can cause hormone resistance for insulin and leptin (our fat-burning hormone). It’s a vicious cycle Another major risk factor of visceral fat is estrogen dominance, which in turn, feeds more visceral fat. Estrogen dominance is pretty common, actually, and can lead to PMS, endometriosis, infertility, hot flashes, menstrual cramps, fibrocystic breasts, uterine fibroids, cysts, weight gain, headaches, depression, brain fog, thyroid issues and even cancer, among other things.

Furthermore, cancer risk also is higher with increased visceral fat. One of the reasons for this is increased estrogen levels, which can be more problematic after menopause, because estrogen made by the fat cells of women starts to multiply faster in the breast and womb after menopause.

Another cause of obesity-related cancer is insulin, and something called “growth factors.” Excess fat can cause insulin levels and growth factors to rise, which can cause cells to divide more rapidly, causing increased cancer cell growth.

Another damaging effect of visceral fat was cited in a 2013 study in Frontiers in Neuroscience, linking visceral fat to mood disorders, including depression and anxiety. They found that mood is greatly affected by our diet, in that a poor diet and overeating negatively affects mental health while increasing anxiety and depression.

Excess visceral fat and obesity has been shown to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. A 2008 study in the journal Neurology checked the abdominal measurements of 6,583 males and females from 1964 to 1973. They followed these same patients three decades later, whose ages ranged from 73 to 87 years of age at the time. They found that a whopping 1,049 of the original participants had dementia. When they looked at the abdominal measurements early in the study, those with higher visceral fat were more likely to develop dementia. Those with an apple shape also were more likely to develop dementia than those with a pear shape. They also found that obese participants with the highest abdominal measurements had a 360% higher chance of developing dementia than those with the lowest measurements.

When we consider that increased visceral fat leads to greater cardiovascular risks, insulin resistance, inflammation, high blood pressure and atherosclerosis, we can see that a decline in cognitive function may include several factors – yet they all begin with visceral fat.

Look, there is a lot of scary and overwhelming information here. Just remember, this information is provided not to scare us, but to help motivate us to take charge of our weight loss and, therefore, our health. Be encouraged that we not only have the knowledge to understand these principles now, but we also have a plan to combat them!