Be vigilant! Beer belly can cause many diseases

Beer seems to be a fun drink specially brewed for revelry. On festivals such as National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival, friends and family get together to drink, and beer is of course indispensable. However, if your mouth is happy, your body may not feel better. The doctor warned that beer tastes good, but binge drinking is harmful to your body. For the sake of health, it is better to say no to binge drinking of beer.

Causes of the formation of "beer belly"

At present, there are several international opinions on the causes of "beer belly". Some people say that "beer belly" stems from overnutrition, while others say that it is caused by unbalanced nutrition. The latest research by the German Federal Society for Nutritional Medicine shows that the "beer belly" is related to men's genetics. Just as women's obesity starts at the buttocks, most of men's fat is stored in the abdomen.

Of course, every man's genes are different, and the possibility of causing a "beer belly" is also different. Generally speaking, teenagers have "beer bellies", often because of overnutrition; for middle-aged people, sleep quality is the main reason. As men get older, the stages of deep sleep decrease. Due to poor sleep quality, hormone secretion will decrease accordingly. The lack of hormones increases body fat and accumulates in the abdomen, and the older you get, the more obvious the impact.

In addition, many middle-aged people sit at work for long periods of time and lack exercise, which can easily lead to accumulation of abdominal fat. When work pressure is high, many people will overeat, leading to indigestion, which can also easily lead to excessive weight. Some people think that "being broad-minded and fat" is a sign of being carefree. Most men quickly gain weight after getting married.

The average man has about 30 billion fat cells in his body, and these cells gain weight as he ages. As a result, almost every man gains weight after the age of 30, and his genes, hormones and slowed metabolism all begin to affect his abdomen.

Is "beer belly" related to "drinking beer"?

Traditional wisdom holds that drinking too much beer will cause a person to develop a large "beer belly", but new research shows that how much beer you drink actually has nothing to do with your waist circumference.

European researchers have found that beer drinkers are no more likely to develop beer bellies and even obesity than non-beer drinkers. Although beer is not a diet drink, it is not the reason why drinkers are overweight. The researchers found that adjusting for factors such as exercise and education, people who drank beer regularly did not have a wider waistline and no heavier weight than those who did not drink or drank rarely.

However, among men who like to drink, non-smokers are more likely to gain weight than smokers. Recently, researchers from the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic conducted a random sample survey on the drinking habits and obesity status of nearly 2000 Czechs and found that "beer belly" had little to do with how much beer they drank.

In fact, a cup of beer has only 150 calories and only 0.3 grams of fat. Moreover, beer contains snake seed and other substances, which can also reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Therefore, drinking a glass of beer a day is no problem.

What diseases can "beer belly" cause

A report recently released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that the United States spends approximately US$75 billion each year on treating obesity-related diseases, which exceeds the amount used to treat diseases caused by smoking and alcohol abuse. If the incidence of systemic obesity is higher after middle age, abdominal obesity (commonly known as the "beer belly") increases with age. Abdominal obesity has attracted the attention of the World Health Organization, because many countries have entered an aging society. If abdominal obesity is not paid attention to,"beer belly" is likely to become one of the most dangerous killers affecting health.

Abdominal obesity is one of the main factors that accelerate aging. It has been proved that more than 15 diseases that lead to death are directly related to abdominal obesity, including coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, cerebral embolism, breast cancer, liver and kidney failure, etc. Previous studies have shown that men with "beer bellies" are 8 times more likely to develop high blood pressure than normal men; the probability of developing coronary heart disease is 5 times more likely than ordinary people; the probability of developing diabetes is 7 times more likely than ordinary people; and diseases such as cerebral hemorrhage and cerebral infarction are also common among men with "beer bellies".

Why is abdominal obesity so harmful? A study at Washington University in St. Louis found that people with obese hips have different cholesterol in their bodies than people with obese abdomen. People with fat hips and small waistlines have high levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which is believed to be beneficial and can prevent and treat heart disease. People with large bellies and small hips have low cholesterol levels and are more likely to develop heart disease.

The main reason for this condition is that abdominal fat is different in nature from fat in other parts of the body. Abdominal fat molecules easily enter the blood in the form of free fatty acids and enter the liver directly with the blood. When there are too many free fatty acid molecules in the liver, they are converted into low-density lipoproteins and flow with the blood to the heart, lungs and arteries. Some of these low-density lipoproteins are converted into harmful cholesterol, inducing cardiovascular disease.

What are the measures to eliminate the "beer belly"

To eliminate the "beer belly", we need to work together in many aspects, such as eating 70% full at ordinary times; exercising at least 30 minutes a day; taking a warm bath before going to bed to improve sleep. Japanese medical experts have developed a set of exercises that can be done anytime, anywhere, which has a good effect on eliminating "beer belly":

First, hold your elbows with your hands and stand your legs side by side; second, take less elevators and walk upstairs; third, whatever you can do standing, it is best to do standing, such as waiting for someone, making phone calls, reading newspapers, wearing shoes and socks, etc. Stand on your toes slightly to keep your body in a relatively tense state. Experts also suggest that to lose fat on the belly, it is best to strengthen abdominal exercise in the case of strengthening whole body exercise.

Also, have three meals a day: Breakfast and lunch should not be ignored. If you skip lunch, you are likely to come home hungry and have a big meal at the dinner table. Eat less snacks: Only carry low-fat, low-energy snacks or snacks, such as fruits, vegetables, biscuits, popcorn, etc. Keep a bottle of water on your desk: Drink water often throughout the day. When you want something sweet, drink a glass of water, and the desire for sweet food will disappear. Drinking a glass of water before lunch can reduce your appetite. Don't let stress prompt you to eat more: When you are under stress, don't pick up food, but go for a walk. Physical activity is more conducive to relieving mental stress than eating. Don't eat out: Restaurant food often contains more energy and fat than home-cooked food. Keep an eye out for restaurants near your workplace that serve low-fat meals. Avoid fast food chains where there are few low-fat options to choose from. Don't eat alone: Eat with colleagues and friends. Focus on your partner's conversation, not on the food. Avoid buffets: Buffets often lead to heavy eating. Pay attention to the amount of alcohol: Alcohol contains high energy. It can prevent the consumption of body fat and reduce willpower (Internship Editor: Yi Meihua)