June 26, 2011
According to research from the University of Alabama, a modest reduction in the consumption of carbohydrate foods may promote loss of deep belly fat - even if there is little or no change in weight.
"These changes could help reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, stroke and coronary artery disease," says the study’s principal author Barbara Gower, noting that excess visceral, or intra-abdominal, fat raises the risk of these diseases. Study subjects received either a standard lower-fat diet or a diet with a modest reduction in carbohydrates but slightly higher in fat than the standard diet. The carb-restricted diet consisted of 43% calories from carbohydrates and 39% calories from fat, whereas the standard diet contained 55% of calories from carbohydrates and 27% from fat. Protein made up the other 18% of each diet. Subjects who consumed the moderately carb-restricted diet ended up with 11% less deep abdominal fat than those who ate the standard diet.