Why Does Fat Accumulate Around My Belly?

For many years, an expanding waistline was thought of as a normal part of the aging process. While aging plays a role in the accumulation of fat around your belly, it’s not the only factor.

At Celebrity Medi Spa in Allen, Texas, our medical experts understand that weight gain and changes in body fat don’t always have simple or obvious causes. We can help you find out why you’re gaining more fat in your belly, and we can also help you reverse it.

About your belly fat

Your body has two types of fat: subcutaneous fat and visceral fat.

Subcutaneous fat

Subcutaneous fat is the layer of fat under your skin; the pinchable fat. Most of the fat in your body is subcutaneous fat.

Subcutaneous fat insulates your body, helping to maintain your body temperature and protect internal organs.

Visceral fat

Visceral fat is a type of fat found in the abdominal cavity, wrapped around your internal organs. You can’t see visceral fat like you can subcutaneous fat, but it does make the belly stick out. If you have an apple-shaped body, you likely have a bulging belly from visceral fat. 

Though visceral fat makes up less than 10% of your total body fat, it’s more harmful to your health than subcutaneous fat. Visceral fat produces chemicals and hormones that negatively affect your health, increasing your risk of chronic health problems like diabetes and heart disease. 

Belly fat is a combination of subcutaneous and visceral fat. But when your waistline expands, it’s likely you're gaining more visceral fat, putting you at risk of potential health problems.

What causes belly fat

Your body accumulates fat when you eat more calories than you burn. Where your body stores the extra fat largely depends on genetics.

However, there’s a strong link between age-related hormonal changes and an increase in waist size. 

Women may notice an expanding waistline during menopause, even without changes in overall body weight, because declining estrogen levels affects where the body stores the fat. 

Declining testosterone levels in men decreases muscle mass and increases body fat. This extra body fat in men tends to end up in the belly.

There’s also an association between excess alcohol consumption and increasing belly fat. Though the connection between alcohol and belly fat is still under investigation, researchers theorize it’s the excess calories from the alcohol that cause the accumulation of fat. 

Losing the belly fat

You can’t change your age or your genes, but you can lose belly fat. In fact, it’s easier to lose abdominal fat than fat around the hips or thighs. 

Our medical experts can help you lose belly fat and improve your health with our comprehensive weight-loss program. Our program includes:

• Hormone therapy
• Diet counseling
• Lifestyle coaching
• Dietary supplements
• Weight-loss medication

We customize your weight-loss plan based on the factors that affect your weight, and that’s why we offer hormone therapy.

There are many possible causes for belly fat, but you can take steps to stop your growing waistline and reverse course. 

We can help you understand why your body is storing more fat around your belly and help you lose it. Schedule a consultation with one of our specialists by contacting our office at 469-294-2243 today.