If there was one easy exercise, pill or food to get rid of the belly fat and the love handles, that would probably be a bigger achievement of this century than anything else. The internet and newspapers would not be sprawling with assurances of ways to achieve this if there was a proven, tested and definite solution. The market capitalises on the fact that people are desperate to get rid of it with the least possible effort. Many people consider it a part of ageing and probably prosperity. But if one thinks carefully, there are a section of adults who naturally do not have that belly fat and there is a growing tendency of young children to develop belly fat (which is not the belly fat of kwashiorkor!). So, it is not just ageing which leads to it. As much as people are desperate to get rid of it, we as doctors also want people to get rid of it because the belly fat (especially the visceral fat i.e. the fat between the organs in the abdomen) is now well known to have harmful effects on health. So, it is just not a cosmetic problem but a medical problem!
Going back to the section of people who do not have that excess belly fat – you probably tried asking them what particular exercise did they do and tried it in vain! Or have you tried that magical potion they drank religiously, but not seen the expected results? There is a lot more to this excess fat than just a particular variety of crunch, pilates or a herb. It is a combination of a lot of factors which ultimately caused the fat deposition there. Excess food intake, wrong quality of food, physical inactivity, stress, body’s internal physiology, incorrect sleeping habits are some of the common factors which need to be holistically approached when dealing with excess fat.
Tips on each of the factors to follow soon.