Three tried and true tactics that really will shrink your belly

By Rosie Schwartz


It
doesn't take a special diet or painful ab exercises. These super-basic
approaches really will keep belly fat in check, Rosie Schwartz says
Do
you have to hold your breath in order to do up your pants? Judging by
the growing numbers of Canadians who are overweight, if you're
struggling with girth control, you're not alone. Everywhere you look
these days, there's some magical solution to help you melt away the
pounds. Yet new research is showing that some of the oldest health
advice, much of which mothers have been promoting for decades, may offer
some of the smartest tactics for easier weight control.
But
first, consider that all excess fat on your body is not created equal.
While a big bottom or thunder thighs may not be to your liking and may
leave you with creaky knees, they are not as risky to your health as
having a belly. Sound waist management strategies can help to lower the
likelihood of developing a host of ills including heart disease, stroke,
diabetes and some cancers, just to name a few.
Here's some of the latest evidence supporting age-old wisdom that may help to shrink your waistline.


Don't be a breakfast skipper
You've
likely heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day - and
you've probably heard it dozens and dozens of times at that. Yet you
may still think that by saving calories by not consuming any food first
thing in the day will help you keep your weight in check. Think again.
Many studies show that skipping breakfast goes hand-in-hand with weight
gain. And looking at where that fat gets deposited provides even more
information as to the potential health costs.
A recent study
following more than 2,100 Australians from childhood over a 20-year
period offered a glimpse of the consequences of taking a pass on the
morning meal. The scientists investigated links between skipping
breakfast and waist measures along with the risk of various diseases. By
following the subjects starting in childhood right through to
adulthood, they could see the long term effects of not eating first
thing in the morning. It's interesting to note that they defined
breakfast as being between 6:00 and 9:00 a.m. The scientists would say
that having something to eat at 10:30 sitting at your desk would be
counted as having skipped breakfast - even if it seems like morning
fare.
The participants were classified into 4 groups: those who
ate breakfast as both children and adults, those who skipped breakfast
only in childhood, those who skipped breakfast only in adulthood and
those who skipped breakfast in both childhood and adulthood.
The
researchers found that those who skipped breakfast both in childhood and
as adults had higher waist measures and fasting insulin levels as well
as increased total and LDL-cholesterol readings compared to those who
ate their morning meal all through life. Elevated fasting levels of
insulin are often also found along with lower readings of the beneficial
HDL-cholesterol, and higher risk of developing diabetes and high blood
pressure over time.


Go for the whole grains (and consider skipping refined ones)
Previous
research has shown that going for whole grains may protect against
weight gain with some studies demonstrating that higher whole grain
intake is associated with a lesser likelihood of putting on abdominal
weight. A new study takes the science even further and puts into
question some current nutrition recommendations.
The research,
published in the November issue of the American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition, was conducted on participants of the Framingham Heart Study,
an ongoing scientific investigation. The study compared the intake of
whole and refined grains to waist circumference and abdominal fat on
nearly 3,000 subjects.
Not surprisingly, higher whole grain
intakes were linked to lower waist measures and abdominal readings while
refined grains were associated with bigger bellies. But there was an
interesting finding that showed up: In subjects who consumed both whole
and refined grains, those who had more than four servings of refined
grains had their benefits from having the whole grain options cancelled
out.
The scientists suggest that the current recommendations of
making at least half your grain choices whole should be changed to
replace your refined choices with whole grains.


Get enough sleep
If
you live life in the fast lane, you likely feel that there simply
aren't enough hours in the day to get everything done. And all too
often, the end result is that you don't get enough sleep - whether it's
burning the midnight oil or just because you're tossing and turning
thinking of all you have to do. In either case, missing out on sleep
could take a toll on your weight, especially around your middle.
In
a recent Swedish study of 400 women between the ages of 20 and 70,
scientists found that it wasn't just sleep duration that was linked to
higher waist measures. Stages of sleep also seemed to factor in. Those
women who had shorter stages of REM sleep - the deeper stage of sleep -
had higher waist circumferences. This effect was even more pronounced in
younger women.
Other research shows that too little sleep might
affect metabolic rates or calorie burning capacity along with hormones
that control appetite. And the accumulating evidence on the impact of a
lack of sleep on increasing weight covers all ages, from kids and teens
right through adulthood.