Diet To Lose Belly Fat

Excess Belly fat increases the risk of serious disease. According to the Mayo Clinic, the risk includes stroke, heart disease, diabetes, cancer and sleep apnea. Learn which foods pack on the stomach fat, and should be avoided at all costs, and those foods that help get rid of stomach fat and should be an integral part of your diet.

Breakfast Cereals

The food companies aggressively market breakfast cereals as healthy and nutritious. Brightly packaged, lined up on supermarket and grocery store shelves, they are certainly enticing. A glance at the list of ingredients will horrify you: Sugar, molasses, honey, glucose syrup and dextrose. Glucose and molasses are simple sugars, dextrose merely another name for sugar, and the cheap honey in these cereals has the same impact on your body as a simple sugar. It is no wonder these cereals taste so good, and alas, also pack on the belly fat.

Simple Carbohydrates 

Eliminate or reduce simple carbohydrates in your diet. This includes all flour products such as crackers, tacos, bagels, muffins, bagels, cookies, cakes, doughnuts,  pasta, noodles and bread. Avoid chocolate, sweets, pretzels, white rice and French fries. These foods are rapidly absorbed, provide quick energy, and an insulin spike which drives the excess sugars to the fat stores on your stomach. 

Complex Carbohydrates

Restrict complex carbohydrates like oats, whole grain rice, sweet potatoes, potatoes and yams to one or two meals a day. These provide sustained energy without an insulin spike that adds fat to your stomach. Replace the complex carbs with a variety of green leaf vegetables. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, green beans, carrots, bell peppers, cucumbers and tomatoes will add volume to your dishes without the extra calories The added fibre helps your body expel waste products and toxins that may lead to water retention and a bloated belly. 

  

Wheat Products

Contrary to conventional nutritional wisdom, wheat is not a healthy food. The type of wheat we eat today is far removed from the wheat our ancestors ate thousands of years ago, let alone what our grandparents ate 50 to100 years ago Today's wheat is heavily hybridized for commercial reasons; to increase crop yields and improve baking properties and taste. According to American cardiologist, Dr William Davis, the change in the biochemical structure of wheat has lead to an upsurge of various health issues such as celiac disease, gluten insensitivity and other auto-immune problems. Dr Davies says wheat products also spike blood sugar levels, causing insulin to drive the excess energy into your fat stores, including belly fat.

 

Protein

Eat protein with every meal. Focus on sources like lean cuts of meat, fish and poultry and free range organic whole eggs, beans and lentils. Whole Eggs are nutrient dense,contain a variety of vitamins and minerals and omega-3 fatty acids. Nutrient dense foods help you control your appetite so you consume fewer calories. Protein helps you maintain lean muscle tissue. Lean muscle tissue elevates your metabolism. A high metabolism helps your body burn belly fat more efficiently.

Fats

Use healthy fats in your cooking. These include virgin olive oil, organic butter and organic virgin coconut oil.  Organic coconut oil contains medium chain triglycerides or MCTs that are not stored as fat but used as energy by the body. A study at the Division of Healthcare Science Research Laboratory Kanagawa Japan, found that subjects given MCTs over a 12 week period lost more fat deposits compared to those given a blend of rapeseed and soybean oils.

Other Foods

Reduce your alcohol intake and avoid all sodas. Avoid potato chips, so-called fat-free or low-fat products, and processed foods particularly those containing HFCs -- high fructose corn sugars. A 2004 study reported in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition notes the increased use of HFCs in the U.S. mirrors the rise in obesity. The unique way in which the body metabolizes HFCs contributes to increased fat storage and belly fat.



References
1. Mayo Clinic: Belly Fat in Men. Why Weight Loss Matters
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/belly-fat/MC00054

2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: How to Use Fruits and Vegetables to Help Manage Your Weight.
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/fruits_vegetables.html

3. Asian Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition: Effect of Dietary Medium- and Long-Chain Triacylglycerols (MLCT) on Accumulation of Body Fat in Healthy Humans.
http://apjcn.nhri.org.tw/server/APJCN/volume12/vol12.2/fullArticles/Kasai151.pdf

4. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition: Consumption of High-Fructose Corn Syrup in Beverages May Play a Role in the Epidemic of Obesity.
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/79/4/537.full

5. Truth about Abs: Are Whole Eggs or Egg Whites Better for You?
http://www.truthaboutabs.com/whole-eggs-or-egg-whites.html

6. Truth About Abs: Is Whole Wheat Damaging Your Body?
http://www.truthaboutabs.com/whole-wheat-unhealthy.html