12 Main Causes Women To Have A Big Belly | Reasons for a Fat Belly

A big belly, fat belly, or An expanding waistline is sometimes considered the price of getting older. For women, this can be especially true after menopause, when body fat tends to shift to the abdomen.

Main Reasons for a Fat Belly

1. Poor diet

Sugary food such as cakes and candy, and drinks such as soda and fruit juice, can:

cause weight gain

slow a person’s metabolism

reduce a person’s ability to burn fat

Low-protein, high-carb diets may also affect weight. Protein helps a person feel fuller for longer, and people who do not include lean protein in their diet may eat more food overall.

Trans fats, in particular, can cause inflammation and may lead to obesity. Trans fats are in many foods, including fast food and baked goods like muffins and crackers.

American Heart Association recommends that people replace trans fats with healthy whole-grain foods, monounsaturated fats, and polyunsaturated fats.

Reading food labels can help a person determine whether their food contains trans fats.

2. Too much alcohol

Consuming excess alcohol can cause a variety of health problems, including liver disease and inflammation.

A 2015 report on alcohol consumption and obesity found that drinking excess alcohol causes males to gain weight around their bellies, though study results in females are inconsistent.

3. Lack of exercise

If a person consumes more calories than they burn off, they will put on weight.

An inactive lifestyle makes it hard for a person to get rid of excess fat, particularly around the abdomen.

4. Stress

A steroid hormone known as cortisol helps the body control and deal with stress . When a person is in a dangerous or high-pressure situation, their body releases cortisol, and this can impact their metabolism.

People often reach for food for comfort when they feel stressed. Cortisol causes those excess calories to remain around the belly and other areas of the body for later use.

5. Genetics

There is some evidence that a person’s genes can play a part in whether they become obese. Scientists think genes can influence behavior, metabolism, and the risk of developing obesity-related diseases Trusted Source Environmental factors and behavior also play a role in the likelihood of people becoming obese.

6. Poor sleep

A 2013 study Trusted Source links weight gain to short sleep duration, which could lead to an excess of belly fat. However, causality cannot be inferred from this study.

Short duration of sleep is linked to an increase in food intake, which may play a part in the development of abdominal fat.

Not getting enough good sleep also may, potentially, lead to unhealthy eating behaviors, such as emotional eating.

7. Smoking

Researchers may not consider smoking to be a direct cause of fat belly, but they do believe it to be a risk factor.

A 2012 study published in the journal PloS one Trusted Source showed that, although obesity was the same between smokers and nonsmokers, smokers had more belly and visceral fat than nonsmokers.

8. Muscle Mass

Muscle weighs more than fat. Also, the more muscle you have, the more calories you will burn at rest. Unfortunately, most of us tend to lose muscle mass as we age, meaning we burn fewer calories at rest. Losing muscle mass and gaining more fat is typical as we grow older.

Lower belly weight gain is common occurrence amongst aging women. While much of this can be due to genetics, it can also be due to decreasing levels of oxygen that begin to affect weight gain.

9. Cortisol

The stress hormone, cortisol and too much of it, can lead to weight gain. Stress eating is an example. This overconsumption results in excess fat, which is often stored in the abdominal region.

10. Sedentary lifestyle

A little bit of exercise and physical activity goes along into a healthier well-being. Unfortunately, we tend not to realise it or make time for it due to several reasons. You need to burn calories and engaging in exercise, for example, is a good way to burn more and lose weight. Additionally, it also helps in preventing the storage of excess fat.

11. Hormones

Hormones and hormonal changes can also affect belly fat accumulation. Leptin, a hormone that prompts feelings of fullness, is positively correlated to how much fat the body stores.

Early studies about leptin suggested that as body fat and leptin levels increased, the amount of leptin absorbed through the blood-brain barrier would decrease due to resistance. Thus, the signals regulating body weight would be reduced.

However, in the 25 years leptin and obesity have been studied, it is still not fully understood how they two are interrelated.

12. Medication

Abdominal weight gain is usually caused by medication. The root of weight gain may be the use of antidepressants and antipsychotics.

Diabetes and cardiovascular disease are diseases that can lead to prescription drugs being taken. When compared to the placebo, some diabetes medications such as insulin, sulfonylurea, and thiazolidinediones were found to cause weight gain. Certain calcium channel blockers, which are used to treat hypertension, have been shown to cause an increase in weight.

Why Are You Gaining Belly Fat?

In addition to the aging process, lifestyle habits are the usual culprit to having a bigger stomach than you would prefer.

These lifestyle habits include:

Consuming Sugary Foods and Beverages Causing Big Stomach Most of us take in more sugar than we realize each day. Foods high in sugar like cookies and candies are easy to eat in excess. Then there are the sugar-laden drinks like sweet teas and flavored coffees. Before you know it, a single serving can bring you over the amount of sugar you should be consuming daily, leading to an excess of fat in and around your stomach. Experts believe many more people are wearing excess belly fat due to the sugar intake from the foods we eat. It’s common to find added in sugar in a wide variety of foods and drinks.

Processed foods today are loaded with high-fructose corn syrup and sugar, both of which contain elevated amounts of fructose. Natural sugar by comparison has 50% fructose. As you can guess by the name, high-fructose corn syrup contains more of the substance at a whopping 55%.

Not only can both sugar and high-fructose corn syrup lead to more belly fat, but it is easy to go overboard, especially when it comes to beverages.

Case in point, you may think you are drinking healthily by reaching for the fruit juice, but beware. Fruit juice is a sugary beverage if there ever was one. A single serving of apple juice and cola each contains around 24 grams of sugar. Grape juice has 32 grams of sugar. While these juices may contain some vitamins and minerals, the fructose packed into these drinks can drive insulin resistance, which promotes higher levels of belly fat.

The Article is Curated from healthline.com

People Also Searched

What causes fat belly?

Causes include poor diet, lack of exercise, and short or low-quality sleep. A healthy diet and active lifestyle can help people lose excess belly fat and lower the risk of problems associated with it. Noom helps you adopt healthy habits so you can lose weight and keep it off.

Can a person lose belly fat?

Abdominal fat, or belly fat, is linked to an increased risk of certain diseases. Most people can reduce their abdominal fat through taking on key lifestyle changes, such as eating a healthy diet packed with lean protein, vegetables and fruit, and legumes, and exercising regularly.

What exercise burns the most belly fat?

Crunches: The most effective exercise to burn stomach fat is crunches. Crunches rank top when we talk of fat-burning exercises. You can start by lying down flat with your knees bent and your feet on the ground.

How long does it take to lose stomach fat?

Losing stubborn belly fat is often one of the hardest and last areas to see improvement for many dieters. Losing fat belly and getting a flat stomach is done through achieving a caloric deficit by eating less, exercising more, and doing that for at least 6-12 weeks.

Does lemon water burn fat?

Lemon water can promote fullness, support hydration, boost metabolism and increase weight loss. However, lemon water is no better than regular water when it comes to losing fat.

Does bananas burn belly fat?

Bananas: Though high in calories, bananas are a great flat belly fruit. Bananas are rich in healthy fibers that help curb appetite and make the body burn fat. The indigestible fibers that are present in bananas, or a resistant starch, block the carbohydrates from being absorbed by the body.

Can Lemon burn belly fat?

Lemon juice doesn’t burn belly fat, although it can play a role in helping you reduce your calorie intake. Lemon juice is an easy, low-calorie way to flavor water or put zing in a fresh salad. However, lemon juice for fat belly burning is a myth, so don’t expect it to single-handedly work wonders on your waistline.

Does planking burn belly fat?

The primary purpose of the plank is to burn belly fat, and hence if you lower your stomach while holding the plank position, you won’t get the desired results. Therefore, keep the stomach in the air and make sure your shoulders, back, and butt are in the same line.

Why am I not losing weight on my belly?

Unhealthy eating is the biggest driver of fat belly. Too many starchy carbohydrates and bad fats are a recipe for that midsection to expand. Instead, get plenty of veggies, choose lean proteins, and stay away from fats from red meats. Choose healthier fats in things like fish, nuts, and avocados.

What time should you stop eating to lose belly fat?

“Some people find it helpful to have a cutoff time for eating, especially at night,” says Dr. Creel. “Some people will stop eating after 6 or 7 p.m., because they know nighttime is when they overconsume and engage in mindless eating.”

Why is it hard to lose lower belly fat?

Fat cells in the stomach area have a higher amount of alpha receptors, which makes them more stubborn to get rid of. This is why when you start a fat loss program, you see results in the face, arms and chest before you lose the belly fat. Another reason may be the foods you’re eating.

Can drinking hot water burn belly fat?

Sufficient water intake helps in flushing out toxins from the body and gives a boost to the metabolism. And drinking a glass or two of warm water in the morning can help you in losing weight and belly fat.

What is best for breakfast to lose weight?

To lose weight, eat fewer calories than you burn throughout the day. The best things to eat for breakfast include oatmeal, eggs, lean bacon or turkey, whole-grain toast, peanut butter, smoothies, and yogurt with muesli.

Does apple cider vinegar burn belly fat?

According to this study, adding 1 or 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar to your diet can help you lose weight. It can also reduce your body fat percentage, make you lose belly fat and decrease your blood triglycerides.

Does warm water burn fat?

Drinking hot water boosts your metabolism and helps you lose weight in a healthy manner. Basically, hot water helps break down the fat molecules in your diet faster, which leads to weight loss.

Is apple cider vinegar good for weight loss?

Apple cider vinegar isn’t likely to be effective for weight loss. Proponents of apple cider vinegar claim that it has numerous health benefits and that drinking a small amount or taking a supplement before meals helps curb appetite and burn fat. However, there’s little scientific support for these claims.

What foods cause the most belly fat?

A diet high in added sugars, especially from sugar-sweetened beverages, may increase belly fat. Most often, stick with water, unsweetened coffee/tea, and eating a diet rich in whole, minimally processed foods.

When should I drink hot water to lose weight?

“Warm water gives best results when consumed at the beginning of the day on an empty stomach. Drinking warm water after every meal emulsifies fats which also aids digestion. So, start your day and end your meals with a cup of hot water to stay in shape forever,” said Ms Chopra.

Are bananas fattening?

The total calorie content in 100 g of bananas is around 110 calories. Bananas as such are not fattening. They may rather make you feel full for longer because of their fiber content. Their sweet taste and creamy texture may also help reduce cravings for unhealthy desserts, such as pastries and doughnuts.

Does green tea help burn fat?

And drinking green tea may even help you lose weight. The caffeine and catechins it contains have been shown to boost your metabolism and increase fat burning (9, 10 ). Overall, studies indicate that consuming green tea can help you burn an additional 75–100 calories per day ( 11 ).