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Fat stored in the belly may contribute to heart disease.

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What Do You Know About Belly Fat?

Test your knowledge of why it's dangerous and how to lose it

Elizabeth Agnvall,

AARP

En español

Published May 10, 2021

10 Questions

9bf51cfb-bdcf-4e25-9c02-41bc081ba04c

What Do You Know About Belly Fat?

[ {
  "question" : "Fat is fat - there's only one type.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "There are two types of fat in the body, subcutaneous — the kind you can see and pinch — and visceral or belly fat, which surrounds the abdominal organs.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Where your body stores fat matters.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Fat stored in the hips and thighs seems to actually protect against heart disease, while fat stored in the belly contributes to heart disease.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Subcutaneous fat — the type you can see and pinch — is more dangerous than the hidden visceral fat that surrounds the abdominal organs.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Visceral fat is the most dangerous type of fat.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Visceral fat is considered an organ of the body, like the pancreas.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Visceral fat secretes hormones and other substances — and its secretions are harmful. Visceral fat is much more likely to cause insulin resistance than other types of fat and can cause inflammation that's linked to heart disease.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "After menopause, women's risk of heart attack rises to that of men at least in part because that's when they start to store more fat in their bellies.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Once women have the post-menopause \"muffin top,\" their visceral fat increases and so does their risk of heart attack.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "BMI, Body Mass Index, is a more important measure of your health risks than your waist size.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Although BMI, a measure of body fat based on height and weight, has long been considered a key health indicator, experts now say that waist size may be as important — or even more important — for predicting risk of diabetes, heart disease and early death.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "A healthy waist size is 37 inches for women and 44 inches or less for men.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Risk of heart disease and diabetes rises with a waist size that is greater than 35 inches for women or greater than 40 inches for men.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "A low-carb diet can be a good choice for reducing belly fat.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "A Johns Hopkins University study found that men and women who followed a low-carb diet lost 10 pounds more than those on a low-fat diet. The low-carb group also lost more belly fat than the low-fat group.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Stomach crunches are the best exercise for banishing belly fat.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Spot reduction doesn't work for getting rid of belly fat. A combination of weight loss and exercise works best.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "To correctly measure waist size, wrap a tape measure around the smallest part of your waist.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "To correctly measure your waist, stand and place a tap measure around your middle, just above your hipbone. Relax, don't hold your breath. This is usually the largest part of your waist.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
} ]

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What Do You Know About Belly Fat?

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Elizabeth Agnvall is the health and healthy living editor at aarp.org. She has worked as editor of Staying Sharp, AARP’s brain health platform and as a health editor at the AARP Bulletin. She also wrote for the Washington Post health section.