I have an uncle who, well, let's say he has a substantial girth. He's a big man and has been most of his life. And that's the way my aunt likes him. After several decades of marriage, she's still crazy about him and wouldn't change a thing. She describes him as "comfy."
The last thing I'd want to do is take away any of my aunt's comfort. But the fact is that my uncle would be healthier if he removed some of that comfy padding around his waist. In the e-Alert "Extra Baggage" (5/18/05) I told you about a study that found middle-aged men with excessive abdominal fat to be one and a half times more likely to have a stroke compared to subjects of the same age who were trim in the middle. For my uncle and others like him, here's another incentive for trimming the waist. When researchers at Johns Hopkins University collected medical and body measurement data for more than 27,000 men over a 13-year period they found that subjects with the largest waist size (40-62 inches) were 12 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes compared to men with the smallest waist size (29-34 inches). Waist size was also found to be a more accurate predictor of type 2 diabetes than using body mass index (BMI), which gives a ratio of weight to height. Excessive abdominal fat has also been shown to raise the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease. So, how can my uncle drop some of that comfy area around his waistline? He can read the "Extra Baggage" e-Alert on our web site (hsibaltimore.com) where he'll find information about the way protein intake and exercise may help guys like him pull their belt size in a couple of notches. To Your Good Health, Jenny Thompson
Health Sciences Institute
Sources:
"Waist Size Linked to Diabetes Risk in Adult Men" Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health press release, 3/17/05, eurekalert.org
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