2024-03-27 07:55:56
Smoking makes you slim – that was previously the common opinion. Researchers from Denmark now claim the opposite.
It is well known that smoking is bad for your health. But how exactly does frequent nicotine consumption affect our figure? As a recent study from the University of Copenhagen shows, people who smoke a lot of cigarettes are much more likely to develop unhealthy belly fat than non-smokers.
New Study: Smoking May Increase the Amount of Belly Fat
The researchers analyzed genetic data from more than a million people to investigate whether smokers tend to have a different body fat distribution than non-smokers. They also examined whether factors other than smoking could play a role.
The result: In particular, the proportion of visceral abdominal fat was increased in smokers. This is considered particularly treacherous because it accumulates deep in the abdominal cavity around the organs and is not visible from the outside. People who appear slim on the outside can still have dangerous levels of this fat.
Why is visceral belly fat so dangerous?
It triggers permanent inflammatory reactions in the body, which in turn can promote numerous diseases such as stroke, heart disease, diabetes and even dementia.
Belly fat increases with every year of smoking
According to the scientists, both starting smoking and lifelong smoking lead to more belly fat. “Smokers’ belly fat increases throughout their lives, as measurements of the waist-to-hip ratio show,” says study leader Dr. German D. Carrasquilla.
And further: “The influence of smoking on abdominal fat appears to exist independently of other factors such as socioeconomic status, alcohol consumption or ADHD (…).” The study was recently published in the American drug and addiction research journal Addiction.