A new study by Wake Forest University shows a clear link between chronic stress and excess belly fat. Researchers studied the role of social stress in the development of heart disease by collecting data on female cynomolgus monkeys. The monkeys were fed a high-fat, high-cholesterol diet and placed in a natural housing situation where subordinate and dominant personalities surfaced.

Observations of the monkeys showed that subordinate monkeys were less likely to be included in group activities and were often the targets of aggression. In addition, while all the monkeys gained weight, the socially stressed monkeys gained more abdominal fat than the others.

Lead researcher Carol A. Shively, professor of pathology at Wake Forest, comments on the implications for humans: "We are in the midst of an obesity epidemic. ... Much of the excess fat in many people who are overweight is located in the abdomen, and that fat behaves differently than fat in other locations. If theres too much, it can have far more harmful effects on health than fat located in other areas."

(Source: www.healthnews.com)

Labels: fat, stress

Posted By: Aspen Education Group