BELLY FAT LINKED TO OSTEOPOROSIS

In 2011, Miriam Bredella, MD, assistant professor of radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, presented a paper on belly fat and its link to osteoporosis at a meeting of the Radiological Society of North America. Dr. Bredella had led the study of 50 premenopausal obese women. She reported that obese women with more fat around their waist were more likely to have low bone-mineral density than obese women with less fat around their middle. This is important because low bone-mineral density is a risk factor for osteoporosis.

Some earlier studies had suggested that carrying more body fat might actually protect against osteoporosis. But we now know that not all fat is the same. Some women carry excessive subcutaneous fat which is fat just below the surface of the skin. These women showed normal bone structure. But the women who had the deep belly fat, those women with the apple-type figure, were more likely to be at risk for lower bone-mineral density.

With lower bone-mineral density comes the risk for susceptibility to bone fracture especially of the back and hip. The National Osteoporosis Foundation reports that about 10 million Americans have osteoporosis and another 18 million have osteopenia or moderately low bone mass. Since bone fractures can cause mild to severe pain, losing that belly fat can be a way of preventing the problems caused by the increase risk of fractures. Hypnotherapy can be a valuable tool in building a bone-healthy lifestyle by exercising more, quitting smoking, avoiding excess alcohol and certainly losing belly fat.