Dr Zoe Williams discusses visceral fat on This Morning
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Visceral fat lies dangerously close to vital organs in the liver, such as the liver and intestines. It belongs to an infamous club of conditions – which includes high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes – that raises your risk of heart disease. Finding ways to reduce a build-up of belly fat is therefore of paramount importance.
Fortunately, you can get at the hard-to-reach belly fat by making healthy dietary tweaks.
A lesser-known solution that has delivered promising results is supplementing with Ob-X.
Ob-X is a mixture of three herbal extracts – white mulberry, lemon balm and wormwood.
To investigate whether Ob-X supplementation can reduce fast-growing abdominal fat, researchers recruited 80 abdominally obese subjects.
The subjects participated in a 12-week randomised, double-blind, placebo- controlled human study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Ob-X.
The Ob-X group showed a noticeable reduction in visceral fat of 20.5 percent after the 12-week treatment as compared to baseline (the start of the study) measured by computed tomography.
A computed tomography, or CT, scan uses X-rays and a computer to create detailed images of the inside of the body.
The change in visceral fat in the Ob-X group was “statistically significant” as compared to the placebo group and 1.9 times higher than in the placebo group, the researchers wrote.
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In conclusion, the researchers wrote that Ob-X has “the potential to improve obesity-related metabolic syndrome by reducing dangerous visceral fat”.
General dietary approaches to reduce visceral fat
To maximise the benefits of taking Ob-X, you should incorporate it into an overall healthy lifestyle.
As a general rule, if you want to reduce your belly fat, you’ll need to burn more calories (energy) than you consume, and eat the right kinds of food.
One effective way to reduce the amount of calories you consume is to increase your intake of protein.
Bupa explains: “Protein can be a helpful way to lose weight because it makes you feel fuller than carbs and fat do.”
So, as the health body explains, if you include a lean source of protein, such as skinless white chicken, in your meals you may find that you’re not as hungry, and so eat less.
Good sources include chicken breast, tuna, mackerel, salmon, eggs, milk, red lentils, chickpeas, brown bread, nuts and soya.
You should complement healthy eating with regular physical exercise.
Exercise can get at visceral belly fat, even if you don’t lose weight, explains Harvard Health.
“Engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity most days, such as brisk walking or bicycling at a casual pace,” advises the health body.
It adds: “Also create opportunities to add motion to routine tasks.”
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