This is the second part on the series of beer belly aka pot belly discussing causes of  abdomen obesity. If you missed the first part, read it here.

3. Social status.

Culturally, those spotting beer bellies were considered as wealthy, comfortable, powerful, satisfied in life and generally doing well.

Such beliefs discouraged many from taking corrective measures such as physical exercise that helps cut beer belly.

4. Age

Reduced calorie needs, reduced physical activity, wasting of bones and decline of hormonal level in the body are responsible for gaining weight with age.

As the hormone levels decline in men and women with age, they’re more likely to store fat around the middle section of the body.

This is particularly true with women after age of 40 years, due to changes in hormone levels; fat is deposited in the abdomen. However, menopausal women who take hormone replacement supplements experience not as much of a shift toward deposition of fat in the belly compared to women who do not.

5.  Stress

Persistence social, work, family and financial strains create stress. Approximately 40% of those who experience stress result to increased calorie intake, while 40% reduce their calorie intake. The other 20% normally do not change eating habits during stressful situation.

Stress triggers stress-response network in the brain that induces secretion of glucocorticoids, hormones which increases desire for food, and secretion of insulin, which promotes food intake and obesity.

Pleasurable feeding (mainly of sweet and/or fatty foods and beer) then suppresses activity in the stress–response network temporarily abating effects of stress.

This can lead to reinforcing a habit of eating high calorie foods and drinking beer as a quick remedy to stress.

Such objectionable stress countering eating habits can lead to abdomen obesity.

6. Wealth

An increase in wealth is accompanied by sedentary lifestyle and intake of high calorie foods.

These two (sedentary lifestyle and high calorie foods) are key contributor to abdomen obesity.

Can the ‘beer belly’ be prevented?

The Beer belly can be prevented as well as managed. Here are some of the best ways to prevent as well as manage beer belly.

Eat right

As a rule of thumb, eat less calories than you burn. This is the single most important  step towards cutting belly fat.

Reducing calorie intake involves the obvious; eating smaller portions of food, cutting fried foods, reducing sugary beverages, processed carbohydrates especially all white starchy products, fatty meat and fatty dairy products.

Avoid excessive drinking

If it is not possible to cut on beer completely, reducing the amount consumed is a great option. Switching to either light beers (less than 100 calories per drink) or wine can also be a good alternative, but,  limit the amount of wine consumed as well.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2005 Dietary Guidelines recommend limiting alcohol to one serving per day for women and two for men.

Burn Calories

Burning calories requires a physically active lifestyle involving regular exercises such as running, brisk walking, aerobics and other various physical exercises.

Two other considerations that must accompany a regular exercise regime are: healthy foods and calorie-controlled diet.

Which foods can flatten the Belly ?

Whole grains have been shown to generally reduce weight gain.

A recent study carried out by Professor Penny Kris-Etherton and her team from Pennsylvania State University which was published 2008 showed that participants who ate whole grains lost more weight from the abdominal area than another group that ate the same diet, but with all refined grains.

Bottom Line

It is evidently clear that belly fat can lead to severe health consequences such as diabetes, high blood pressure and heart diseases.

Without doubt, this demands investing in behavior that eliminates the belly fat.

The proven way to cut the belly fat is controlling the calories. The second thing is increasing food considered to be healthier and rich in nutrients and fibre such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low fat foods, fish and poultry products. The third and the last but most important is to increase physical activity. Physical activities are not only good for cutting belly fat but also for overall well-being.