Even if you’ve never had a spare tire before, the hormonal and metabolic changes of middle age can cause thickening in the midsection.
No diet can guarantee weight loss in a specific area, but some foods can reduce the risk of developing belly fat or dangerous visceral fat. One of these foods is kimchi made from fermented cabbage.
A major new study shows that eating up to three servings of kimchi a day may reduce your risk of developing belly fat. Researchers from Chung Ang University in South Korea found that men who ate kimchi several times a day were less likely to be overweight or have belly fat, the riskiest type of fat often linked to diabetes.
So how can kimchi help reduce our risk of developing a belly?
Kimchi contains probiotics, which are known to increase the good bacteria in our gut, and there is a growing consensus that these may also play a role in weight control.
The Korean study is not the first to find a positive correlation between the presence of probiotics and weight control.
There is a growing consensus that probiotics from the Lactobacillus family, the best food sources of which are live yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, kefir, kombucha and tempeh, may aid weight loss, including the loss of belly fat.
If the thought of kimchi for breakfast is a step too far, eating more yoghurt can be a good starting point, but just choose a good-quality Greek yoghurt with no additives other than milk and live cultures. You can eat it with berries and granola for breakfast, replace mayonnaise in egg or tuna sandwich fillings, or make this healthy potato salad for something a little different:
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Boil 500g of mini potatoes with their skins on until they soften (about 10 minutes), then drain and place in cold water.
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Mix 4 tablespoons of plain Greek yoghurt, 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard, a squeeze of lemon juice, 2 thinly sliced spring onions and season with salt and pepper.
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Drain the potatoes, cut them in half and place them in a bowl.
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Add the yogurt mixture and toss well to coat completely.
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If you have chives, you can chop some before serving.
* Quoted from the recipe Supercharge Your Diet: Ten Easy Ways to Get Everything from Your Food by Sam Rice
But fermented foods aren’t the only nutritional strategy to help prevent the dreaded middle-age spread. Here are five more ways to help you get rid of belly fat.
Numerous studies have linked sugar consumption to obesity, specifically an increase in belly fat. Solve this problem by radically cutting your free sugar intake. Free in this context means sugar added to foods rather than occurring naturally; The main culprits are sugary drinks, breakfast cereals, cakes, biscuits and most processed foods. This doesn’t mean you can’t eat any sugar.
The sugar in whole fruit is good because it comes packed with fiber and other nutrients that slow digestion and prevent excess blood sugar, which is ultimately stored as fat.
Try this healthy piece of fruit for pudding; You’ll never miss those free candies.
Here’s how to do this:
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Preheat the oven to 180C. For the topping, melt 50 g of coconut oil in a small saucepan over low heat.
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Remove from the stove and add 75 g of oats, 30 g of flaked almonds, 30 g of sunflower seeds, 70 g of whole wheat flour, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 4 finely chopped dates with the seeds removed.
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Place 500g frozen mixed berries in a single layer in a shallow baking dish and cover with oatmeal sauce
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Bake for 25 minutes until the fruit is sticky and bubbly and the topping is nice and crisp.
An independent study published in the peer-reviewed journal BioMed Central found that quality protein intake was inversely associated with belly fat. Quality protein means foods that contain the nine essential amino acids (EAAs) that our bodies need to stay healthy.
The best sources are whole eggs, fish, legumes, nuts, lean high-quality meat and dairy products. It’s easy to increase your intake of animal-based protein sources, but there are some plant foods that are particularly good because they contain all nine EAAs, such as soy, quinoa, buckwheat, chia seeds and hemp seeds.
Try this delicious chia porridge for breakfast:
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Put 250ml milk, 3 tablespoons of chia seeds, ½ teaspoon of cinnamon and ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract in a small saucepan and boil.
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Reduce the heat and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until the mixture reaches the consistency of porridge.
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Topped with sliced banana
The benefits of fiber in the diet are well documented: better gut health, better appetite and blood sugar regulation, and lower cholesterol levels, to name just a few.
Current NHS guidelines recommend 30g of fiber a day, but the average adult in the UK eats just 19g.
You can increase your fiber intake by switching to whole grain versions of bread, pasta and rice. Other quick tips include peeling potatoes, eating nuts (note serving size is only 30g as they are caloric) and nut butters, eating lots of beans and lentils and yes, good old beans (whole grain). Toast is important – and don’t forget the fridge staple, hummus. Pair with whole grain crackers for a delicious fiber-rich snack.
A cup of green tea every day is a simple way to help protect against belly fat. In a 2022 randomized controlled trial, overweight participants given a daily dose of green tea for 12 weeks saw a significant reduction in visceral fat. Scientists believe that the antioxidant catechins contained in tea lead to weight loss by increasing fat metabolism.
If you’re not a tea drinker, another way to reap these benefits is to use matcha (the Japanese version of green tea with the highest concentration of catechins) to make this “super green” porridge:
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Put 50g of oats, 2 teaspoons of honey, a pinch of salt and 250ml of water in a pan and cook over low heat for 5 minutes until it starts to thicken.
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Dissolve 1 teaspoon of matcha powder in some boiling water and mix well. Add it to the porridge along with a small, mashed banana.
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Serve with a few blueberries sprinkled on top.
Numerous studies have found omega-3 fatty acids to have a positive effect on brain health, but recent research has discovered that it may also help target visceral fat. The reason is not fully understood, but there is some evidence that consuming more omega-3-rich foods, such as oily fish, increases our metabolic rate. Another theory is that a diet rich in omega-3 helps regulate hunger and appetite. In any case, if you want to get rid of the spare tire, it’s a good idea to increase the amount of omega-3s in your diet.
An easy way to eat fattier fish is to eat an old can of sardines. Here’s how to make a delicious sardine toast dish:
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Mash a can of sardines in olive oil (drain out most of the oil first), ½ small red onion, finely chopped, a small handful of chopped flat parsley leaves, 6 black olives, pitted and finely chopped, with ½ cup juice. lemon and a pinch of tabasco or hot sauce
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Mix well and serve on whole grain bread.
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