Food Talk: Is waist size more important than weight?
QUESTION: I have heard waist size is more important than weight for health. Is that true?
ANSWER: There is some truth to this statement. Weight will always be important, but up to a point waist size may be a better indicator of your health risk.
Recently a study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine that supported this theory. It was a 10 year study finding that excess weight around the abdomen nearly doubled a person’s risk of death from diseases such as heart disease, stroke and some types of cancer. This is consistent with other research showing belly fat is much more dangerous than fat anywhere else on our body. With a fat tummy you also will find increased incidence of high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes.
Why is this true? One theory is the problem with belly fat is that it is visceral. This means it is a deeper fat and much more dangerous than fat that sets just beneath the skin, such as the type on your thighs and buttocks.
Belly fat breaks down into fatty acids that move into the liver and muscles and start a reaction increasing LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels. They also cause insulin to be less effective in controlling blood sugars. These fatty acids release compounds known to increase inflammation resulting in damaged artery walls and increased risk of heart disease.
Both men and women struggle with abdominal fat. It is more of a problem for women after menopause because of a decrease in estrogen.
The magic number for women seems to be 35. The female waist should not be greater than 35 inches. The waist of a male should not be more than 40 inches. Our health risk begins to increase with numbers greater than these numbers.
Another waist measurement proving to be a good indicator of health risk is the waist to hip ratio. This is calculated by dividing your waist measurement at its smallest point by the circumference of your hips at their widest point. A healthy score for women ranges from 0.70 to 0.88. A healthy score for a man is 0.90 to 0.95.
The good news is we can fight it off with good nutrition and exercise. Foods with a high glycemic index seem to reduce abdominal fat storage. Trans fats have proven to be a real problem and increase the size of our waist. Low-fat dairy foods that are rich in calcium appear to help burn belly fat. Walnuts and broccoli may help lower the damaging activity of visceral abdominal fat. Add exercise to this nutrition recommendation and decrease your risk of major health hazards.
For more information about any nutrition issues, please call Registered Dietitian Ellen Lofits at (479) 549-2425.