New health warning for women with 'tummy fat'

A new study has revealed that women who experience an expanding waistline during middle age are at a higher risk of developing dementia. Scientists have found that excessive belly fat in middle-aged women can be a red flag for cognitive decline.

The research, published in the journal Menopause, suggests that a woman's waist size could provide vital clues about her risk of mental decline as she gets older. Medics point out that weight gain, particularly around the midriff, is common during the perimenopause and post-menopause stages.

Such weight increases, coupled with the drop in oestrogen levels typical after menopause, are associated with reduced insulin sensitivity and heightened inflammatory processes. The latest study indicates that "central adiposity" - the medical term for excessive belly fat - is also a risk factor for cognitive decline.

Health professionals highlight that visceral adipose tissue - the fat stored around various organs including the stomach, intestines, and liver - carries more health risks than overall body fat. These include diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and Alzheimer's disease.

The rise in inflammatory markers due to visceral fat and falling oestrogen levels during menopause appears to be a key factor in these disease processes. This has prompted researchers to suggest that measurements of central body fat - such as the waist-to-hip ratio - could act as "early and easily recognisable" indicators of risk for both metabolic and cognitive problems, as oestrogen receptors in the brain are concentrated in areas responsible for executive function and memory, reports Bristol Live.

Earlier clinical trials examining the link between hormone therapy and cognition produced inconsistent findings, depending on participants' ages. This prompted researchers in the latest study to explore further the connection between central body fat, cognitive function, and hormone therapy use in women who had recently entered menopause.

The study included more than 700 women aged between 42 and 58 who were less than 36 months past natural menopause. Participants were split into three groups - those given oral conjugated equine oestrogen, those given transdermal estradiol, and those given a placebo.

Central body fat was assessed using waist-to-hip ratio measurements. The researchers found that women with a higher baseline waist-to-hip ratio showed worse performance across all cognitive measures, with only changes in visual attention and executive function observed over the four-year study period.

Dr Taryn James, a study co-author from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, stated: "Central adiposity was not found to moderate hormone therapy when compared with placebo cognitive domain-specific outcomes."

The researchers, based on their findings, recommend that the cognitive health effects should be examined in early postmenopausal women, even those with low cardiovascular risk statuses. Dr Monica Christmas, associate medical director for The Menopause Society, has welcomed these findings.

She said: "Addressing modifiable risk factors early and often is critical to maintaining optimal health and independence as women age. The metabolic and cognitive changes that commonly occur during and after the menopause transition often catch women off guard and are more difficult to address after the diagnosis has been made."

Furthermore, Dr Christmas added: "Instituting preventive lifestyle strategies before the menopause transition will result in longitudinal health gains and reduced morbidity and mortality."