Unfortunately, the location of our fat counts. Researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research found that the bigger the belly in midlife, the more difficult it is to avoid dementia and Alzheimer’s later on. And you don’t even need to overeat much to have problems because, if you’re naturally apple shaped, with most fat around your waist, excess weight is more dangerous to your health than if you’re naturally pear shaped. The researchers found, in fact, that people who were in the upper 20 percent of belly size had a 2.72 times greater risk of dementia, compared to people in the bottom 20 percent.
(Speaking as a naturally apple shaped lady, I can add that apple shaped people also have a difficult time finding jeans that fit. They all pooch out at the hips for those apparently lucky and hippy pear-shaped people.)
Belly fat also increases the risk of diabetes, heart trouble, and stroke.
We all know we should keep down our weight. But, sadly, keeping down weight is even more important for apple-shaped people than it is for pear-shaped people.
Let me add that, if you’re looking for healthy ways to take off weight and keep it off, do visit my 1000 Best Sites For Families And Seniors. Click on Diets, Nutrition in the lefthand column to find some of the best information on the Web.