Dr Zoe Williams discusses visceral fat on This Morning
Being overweight is linked to a number of potentially dangerous health conditions.
Therefore, many people work hard to try to prevent their weight or body mass index (BMI) from becoming too high.
But storing weight in a particular area is known to be even more risky than just being a few pounds overweight.
Visceral fat is the name for fat stored deep within the belly. A certain amount of it is necessary to protect and insulate organs in the abdomen.
However, having too much can put you at risk for a number of health issues.
READ MORE Your waist size can determine your risk of heart disease
Lowering your calorie intake and increasing the amount of exercise you do is one way to reduce the amount of visceral fat you have.
However, there is a certain drink that could act as a booster for these weight loss efforts.
A study, published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism in 2018, looked into the effects of drinking matcha green tea.
Traditionally grown and consumed in east Asia, the hot beverage has become more popular in the UK in recent years.
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It is a type of green tea that comes as a powder to mix with hot water, rather than as leaves or in a tea bag.
As part of the research participants consumed matcha tea the day before and two hours before a 30 minute walk.
It was concluded that this aided weight loss.
The study said: “Matcha green tea drinking can enhance exercise-induced fat oxidation in females.”
It was thought this could be due to certain compounds and stimulants found in the drink.
“Intake of the catechin epigallocatechin gallate and caffeine has been shown to enhance exercise-induced fat oxidation,” it said.
“Matcha green tea powder contains catechins and caffeine and is consumed as a drink.”
The drink was also recommended by one expert. Personal trainer at Bio-Synergy, Nathan Honess, advised it could help lower overall body fat.
Speaking to The Mirror, he said: “To help reduce visceral fat, there’s a few easy changes you can make to your diet and one involves boiling the kettle.
“Instead of your normal cuppa try switching to matcha green tea – a study found that the key nutrient – catechin – helped reduce the visceral fat in its participants, as well as overall body fat.
“If matcha is not for you, try a cup of green or peppermint tea to aid digestion and your metabolism.”
It is not possible to know exactly how much visceral fat you have without imaging tests, however, your waist circumference is an indicator of whether you have too much.
For women 35 inches or more can signal too much visceral fat and for men it’s 40 inches or more.
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