Blueberries May Help Banish Belly Fat

You’ve probably heard me rant and rave about blueberries. I eat them about six out of seven days a week, I gave them a “star” in my book “The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth“, and I’ve spoken at length about their high antioxidant content, their low sugar content, and their ability to boost memory.

Well, get ready for some hot news: Blueberries may also help banish belly fat.

A new study by researcher E. Mitchell Seymour, MS, of the University of Michigan shows that rats that ate a diet high in blueberries lost abdominal fat- the kind linked to increased waist size and increased risk for diabetes and heart disease. This happened even when the rats ate a high-fat diet. As an extra added bonus, the blueberry eating rats also had improved glucose control (meaning their blood sugar was more stable).

The researchers suggest that blueberries- with their high antioxidant content- may somehow alter the way the body stores and processes sugar, great news for those at risk for both heart disease and diabetes. “Our findings in regard to blueberries show the naturally occurring chemicals they contain, such as anthocyanins, show promise in mitigating these health conditions,” said researcher Steven Bolling, MD, of the University of Michigan,

In the current study- presented at Experimental Biology 2009- rats were bred to become obese were fed either a low-fat diet or a high-carb diet, both of which were enriched with whole blueberry powder (about 2% of their total caloric intake).

After three months the rats fed the blueberries had improved glucose control and improved insulin sensitivity. Better glucose control and improved insulin sensitivity are both strongly related to lowering the risk for diabetes.

I find blueberries one of the easiest foods to incorporate into your diet. In season or not, you can always get them frozen, and I like to eat them right out of the freezer (mixed with frozen cherries). I put some FACE 2% yogurt on them, sprinkle with some slivered almonds, flaked unsweetened coconut and some probiotic powder and have them as a nightly “dessert”. It’s the ultimate “anti-aging” treat!”

Related posts:

1. Green Tea for Fat Burning & Increased Insulin Sensitivity
2. Lose Belly Fat and Live Longer!
3. The importance of Vitamin D and Sunshine

Unfortunately for some people, they are so resistant to the effects of insulin (best regarded as a storage hormone) that if they eat any carbs at all they tend to end up being worn on the hips as unsightly love handles (a full analysis of why this happens can be found in this article on BioSignature Modulation and Insulin control). Help however is at hand due to some cutting edge supplements, one of which you will all no doubt be familiar with (omega 3s/fish oil), the others you will be less knowledgeable of (specialist products put out by Poliquin Performance – Fenuplex, and Insulinomics). These were some of the products I used to help get Wesley Doyle, the 40 year old fitness editor of Men’s Health magazine down from 20% to 10% body fat and be the oldest ever man on the cover of Men’s Health!

I’ve written up an in depth article on these three crucial supplements, entitled “The Best Supplements for Insulin Control“, on our main London personal training website.

Related posts:

1. Fit & Ripped at Forty – The Men’s Health Transformation
2. Omega 3 Supplementation for Fat loss, muscle building and good health!
3. Beta Alanine Supreme – supplements for the 21st century personal trainer

A interesting piece on the importance of losing belly fat by the always insightful Jonny Bowden. Take a note on the importance of modulating insulin for both cosmetic fat loss and overall health and longevity.

From Jonny Bowden on the risks of belly fat:

Belly fat is in the news again, big time.

First some background: A ton of stuff has been written about the difference between “apples” and “pears”, apples being folks who store their fat around the middle and “pears” being those who store it on the hips butt and thighs. Fact is, all fat is not created equal. The fat stored around the butt hips and thighs- also known as subcutaneous fat since it’s right below the skin- might drive you crazy and make it hard to put on your jeans, but it’s not nearly as dangerous as the other kind. The fat stored around the middle- also called VAT or visceral abdominal fat- is a metabolic nightmare. Stored deep inside the abdominal walls, it is metabolically active fat that directly increases the risk for all sorts of health problems from metabolic syndrome to diabetes.

OK, now on to the study.

Researchers looked at data from almost 360,000 Europeans who had been enrolled in a larger study called the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. They followed these folks for ten years, during which 14,723 of the participants died. What they found was that men and women with the largest waists had virtually twice the risk for premature death as those with the smallest ones.

According to Tobias Pischon, MD, MPH, the lead author of the study, the single most important finding in their study was that it the distribution of body fat affected the risk of premature death. Where you store your fat is even more important than what you weigh. And this was true even when weight is normal. “There aren’t many simple individual characteristics that can increase a person’s risk of premature death to this extent, independent of smoking and drinking” said Pischon.

For years we nutritionists have been using a “low-tech” shorthand for insulin resistance: a 40 inch (or greater) waist for men, a 35 inch (or greater) waist for women. Interestingly, that was exactly the number that correlated with a doubled risk for death when compared with smaller waists (less than 34 inches for men, less than 28 inches for women). Each 2 inch increase in waist circumference added about 17% increased risk for mortality in men and about 13% increased mortality in women.

Earlier this year I reported research showing that these numbers (40 inch waist for men, 35 for women) also indicated an increased risk for stroke.

Bottom line: reduce your belly fat. If you’re an apple, chances are you’re also insulin resistant, and would benefit from a diet low in carbohydrates. In my opinion, that’s the absolute best “nutritional intervention” to reduce the most dangerous kind of fat on the body (as well as the plain old garden variety “unsightly” kind).

Just remember that low-carb doesn’t mean unlimited calories. The absolute best way to go is lower calorie combined with controlled carb eating. For a good calorie goal take your target weight and multiply by 10. That’s a great starting point.

And remember also that you’ll not only be reducing your belly fat- you’ll also be reducing the risk of stroke, heart disease, diabetes, dementia, some cancers and… oh yes, just plain dying.

Seems to me those are pretty good reasons to start eating differently!

www.jonnybowden.com

Related posts:

1. Blueberries to Beat Belly Fat
2. The importance of Vitamin D and Sunshine
3. 101 Tips to lose fat and get lean (5): never skip a meal