Beer Bellies and Tummy Fat
Someone recently sent me this question:
Are there specific foods, or specific patterns of eating, that cause more fat to accumulate in the abdominal area? On a related note, does beer really cause a beer belly by preferentially storing fat there?
Yes, foods with too many calories and too much sugar.
Does that clear it up for you?
Okay, seriously, it’s a good question and here’s the answer that I got from Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., CNS:
www.jonnybowden.comWhen you drive insulin levels up high as you do with high-sugar foods or high intakes of processed “CC’s” (crappy carbs — it’s a technical term from my medical physiology textbook), you increase the chances of insulin resistance.
Insulin resistance nearly always goes hand-in-hand with a big fat belly.
In fact, the “low-tech” test for insulin resistance is this: If you walk towards a wall, does your belly hit the wall before you do? A guy with a waist over 40 inches and a woman with a waist over 35 inches nearly always have insulin resistance.
You bring insulin resistance down with a PROPER lower-carb diet, based on your activity level.
Now obviously, it’s not just sugar and carbs that make you fat, but they do send insulin — also known as the “fat storage hormone” — into overdrive. You could eat 10,000 calories a day from coconut oil and you’d be fat as a horse, even though there aren’t any any carbs in it. And you could conceivably get fat and carry most of that fat on your back or your thighs, hips, and butt.
Still, if I were trying to avoid a spare tire around the middle, the first place I’d look to cut would be sugar and processed carbs.
As for beer bellies: Although a lot of beers don’t have a ton of carbs, the belief is that beer may contain estrogenic compounds that cause the fat to accumulate on your body in a pattern that makes you look like Rosie O’Donnell — or Rosie Greer.
In any case, if you’re putting away a six-pack every night, just from a calorie point of view it’s going to create fat storage. Remember, they didn’t start calling it “beer belly” because the term “steak belly” was already taken.
Should I Use Pam or Butter?
Did you know that the USDA allows food companies to label a food as ZERO grams of fat if it is less than or equal to .49 grams of fat? Pam spray has .49 grams of fat per serving.
Look above at the serving size.
1/3 Second Spray? Are you kidding me? I can’t move my finger that fast!!!
Next time you use a “fat-free” spray, time how long you use it, multiply that by .49 grams of fat and see how much you are really getting.
I guarantee it is not ZERO! AND to top it all off, it is canola oil, which is a lot less healthy than butter, and expecially olive oil, which is your best bet. Even though canola oil has less saturated fat as butter, it is processed at a very high heat, which changes everything! Toss the Pam and use a healthier choice of fats. A small amount of olive oil is always your best bet…
Have a GREAT Weekend!
Cliff Latham, M.S.
979-695-6400
Fitness Together Personal Training Studio
Voted BCS’s #1 Trainer Seven Years in a Row 2002-2008
Elements Therapeutic Massage Studio Bryan Location NOW Open!
Posted June 21st, 2009 under Uncategorized. RSS 2.0 feed.
Leave a response, or trackback.
Loading ...
July 20th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
Buy:Lasix.Female Cialis.Acomplia.Lipothin.Cozaar.Zetia.Ventolin.Aricept.Amoxicillin.Zocor.Nymphomax.Buspar.Lipitor.Advair.Prozac.SleepWell.Female Pink Viagra.Benicar.Wellbutrin SR.Seroquel….
August 29th, 2010 at 7:56 pm
favors http://fcustomwu2.ANTIQUEFURNINISHING.INFO/tag/favors+Printable+Games/ : favors…
Printable…