Here's why belly fat is more common as we age, and 3 ways to prevent it
More people are focused on staying healthy and fit as they grow older — but it's true that it can become more challenging with age.
New research has revealed that cellular changes during the aging process can cause belly fat — and that's exacerbated by stress and sleep issues that contribute to weight gain.
"People often lose muscle and gain body fat as they age — even when their body weight remains the same," study author Qiong (Annabel) Wang, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Molecular & Cellular Endocrinology at City of Hope, said in a press release.
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Published in the journal Science, the preclinical research involved experiments on mice that were later confirmed with human cells.
Researchers focused on a group of stem cells called adipocyte progenitor cells (APCs) within the fatty tissue responsible for age-related weight gain.
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When they transplanted these cells from mice of various ages into another group of younger mice, they noticed the creation of large numbers of fat cells within the younger mice.
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However, when they transplanted a batch of cells from young mice into old mice, they did not see the same effect.
The results confirmed that older stem cells are more likely to lead to new fat cells, regardless of the age of the host receiving them, the press release noted.
"While most adult stem cells' capacity to grow wanes with age, the opposite holds true with APCs — aging unlocks these cells' power to evolve and spread," said Adolfo Garcia-Ocana, chair of the Department of Molecular & Cellular Endocrinology at City of Hope, in the press release.
Aging also changes these APCs into yet another group of cells called committed preadipocytes, age-specific (CP-As), which actively churn out new fat cells.
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Humans have a "signaling pathway" — a chemical reaction that controls how the body makes cells — called the leukemia inhibitory factor receptor (LIFR), experts said.
"Our research indicates that LIFR plays a crucial role in triggering CP-As to create new fat cells and expand belly fat in older mice," Wang said in the same release.
Despite the effects of aging, there are steps people can take to prevent expanding waistlines, according to Dr. Sajad Zalzala, co-founder and chief medical officer of AgelessRx in Detroit, Michigan.
"As we age, our ability to maintain lean muscle mass decreases, which contributes to metabolic slowdown and increased fat storage, particularly around the abdomen," Zalzala, who was not involved in the City of Hope study, told Fox News Digital.
He recommends starting the day with 20 to 30 grams of protein, which can be found in foods like Greek yogurt, protein shakes and eggs.
Eating protein at the beginning of the day keeps you full longer, stabilizes blood sugar and encourages muscle maintenance, according to the doctor.
"Chronically high cortisol levels, which can be driven by poor sleep or stress, promote fat storage, especially around the waist," Zalzala noted.
People should aim for seven to nine hours of quality sleep per night, according to experts.
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Zalzala also recommends stress-reduction strategies like walking, mindfulness and breathwork, calling them "powerful tools for fat regulation and metabolic health."
"The study reminds us that aging adipose tissue behaves differently — it's more inflammatory and prone to dysfunction," said Zalzala.
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"Minimizing added sugars and highly processed carbs (white bread, pastries, sugary drinks) reduces insulin resistance and fat accumulation, particularly visceral fat that sits deep in the belly."Original article source: Here's why belly fat is more common as we age, and 3 ways to prevent it
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'Truly magical': The 17-year cicada is ready to rock
Woo! Science is a column of science news and newsmakers in Worcester and the region. Got a science news idea? Email Margaret Smith at msmith@ With their bright red eyes and dapper, red-veined wings, the males are truly putting on the ritz, but is it enough to dress to impress? Maybe as Cass Elliot once sang, "Words of love, soft and tender, won't win a girl's heart anymore." Nevertheless, they'll be ready to sing loud, sing proud, and even if humans hear a reedy, frantic cacophony, remember: there's lots of different love languages. We can only be talking about one spectacular insect, and one event: the periodic, 17-year emergence of cicadas. And we as humans are dazzled, delighted, but sometimes confused and maybe a little worried, as we so often are when lots and lots of insects show up all at once. The so-called periodical cicada is emerging now on parts of Cape Cod and the southeastern part of the state, said Tawny Simisky, entomologist with UMass Extension's Landscape, Nursery and Urban Forestry Program. Simisky specializes in insects that may damage trees and shrubs, but not to fear as we shall see, cicadas that depend on trees also give back. "There is a lot of anticipation about the periodical cicadas in Massachusetts," said Simisky. Dubbed "Brood XIV, " or "Brood 14," by means of record-keeping parlance, Simisky said, "These are all cicadas in a given geographic area, expected to emerge at the same time." The female cicada lays her eggs in the stems or twigs of trees, by means of an ovipositor, a sharp organ that can slice a hole in which the female can lay her eggs. And so, for 17 years, the young cicadas move from larval to nymph or adolescent phase, before emerging, ready to shed their juvenile skin, and carefully inflating their newfound, grownup wings. Simisky said, "We have folks reporting them coming up from beneath the ground in Eastern Sandwich, Mass., on May 17." This is when so-called exit holes appear in the ground, small and perfectly dime-sized. Where can you find them? "Some areas on Cape Cod, in Barnstable County, and possibly a much smaller area of Plymouth County," Simisky said. "This past Friday, prior to the long weekend, I went out there, and brought my entire family." Simisky returned with photos, including those of newly-emerged cicadas. If it seems like a curious career, spending most of your existence in the juvenile phase, emerging only for a short time in the hopes of finding a mate and passing on that cicada DNA, it puzzles scientists, too, but from a species survival standpoint, they say it makes sense. "We have hundreds of species of cicadas, but only nine species that do this periodicity thing," said Sebastián Vélez, entomologist and biology professor at Worcester State University. "It's all natural selection. There is something called 'stragglers.'" Some may emerge after 12 years, some at 14, some after 13 years, and in the case of the current emergence, 17 years. This may increase the odds of more cicadas surviving long enough to reproduce, and even if many get eaten by birds and other predators. Over time, there will simply be too many for hunters to eat so many of them that it jeopardizes the next generation. Another hypothesis, said Vélez, is that a lengthy period of living beneath the earth is a sensible adaptation from a time when glaciers are believed to have covered much of the region. "Neither of these two ideas are fool proof, and no one has been able to test it," said Vélez. In a time when invasive species have caused great damage to our forests, it's natural to have concerns about an insect that depends on trees. "The only harm they do is lay their eggs in the roots of trees. That weakens the tree. When the first molt comes out of the ground, they have a little straw that punctures a plant ... they tap into that, like a little straw. But, they don't harm crops. They won't kill your trees," said Vélez. And, they're not interested in your vegetable garden. "The nymphs of the periodical cicadas feet on tree roots, but there is no evidence that they negatively impact trees," Jennifer Forman Orth, environmental biologist of the state Department of Agricultural Resources. Orth said there is some evidence that in the long run, the cicadas may benefit trees, due to the nutrient cycling, as well as the shell left behind in the process of reaching the adult stage. And, after the cicada dies, it will enrich the soil, Orth said. Simisky agrees. "Actually, it makes the canopy of trees healthier over time. You can cover immature trees with bird nettings, with openings less than half an inch, and that will keep the adult cicadas from laying eggs in those small trees." Simisky said, "Adults laying eggs on mature, established trees, actually act like a pruning for them," Simisky added, "One side effect of having adult periodical cicadas above ground and in folks' yards, is trees like oak, apple, ash, birch, is the females will be laying their eggs in the small branches of these trees. It will cause some leaves to turn dry or brown. That is a natural process." The sound of the cicada is like a theme song of summer: that long, reedy hum on a hot, drowsy day. But how do they do that? They don't have vocal cords. And when the male sings, how does the female hear? Firstly, that sound is mostly associated with the so-called "dog day" cicadas, the ones that emerge every year, perhaps not as spectacular in appearance as their periodic relatives, but still making their presence known. "The cicadas that folks all across Massachusetts might be more familiar with are the annual 'dog day' cicadas," Simisky said. With dark brown, black or green features, and black eyes, "Their timing is a little bit different," with appearances in July or August. The male periodic cicadas tend to cluster in a group, and all try really, super hard to attract females by way of really loud sounds. Simisky said, "I can see how some people might be intimidated. Their singing can be loud. The cicada in eastern Massachusetts is one of the quieter cicadas. But when all the males are singing, they are quite loud." How do they do that, anyway? Simisky said, "They have organs on their bodies, called tymbals, on the first segment of their abdomen." Contracting these membranes produces the sound. If you've ever told someone, "You're as cute as a bug's ear," maybe it's time to say, "cute as a bug's typana." What? They're membranous organs that both males and females have, found on the underside of their abdomens, and which register sound. So, I'm that person at a party who, when the subject of insects come up, says without reserve, "All bugs are insects, but not all insects are bugs." Bug is the informal name of everyone in the order, hemiptera, "half wing," basically, the bug club, to which cicadas have membership. By the way, they are edible, but perhaps that's best for a different party. This is maybe a good time to clear the air, as it were: we humans have a peculiar relationship to insects. Unless it's a butterfly, a ladybug (which is really a beetle), or a cute little cricket, something in our primordial brain wants to know: will these things bite, sting or eat me? And if they're plant eaters, are they going to lay waste to our crops? "We do have a natural insect against insects, spiders and snakes, and that makes sense," said Vélez. Because some insects do bite or sting, or carry pathogens, and some insects can devastate crops, and striking a balance is difficult. Simisky said from time to time, someone on social media postulates that those red eyes surely signify a demon in flight. But if anything, the cicada is a vulnerable creature in many ways. Climate change may bring temperature fluctuations that can confuse creatures, cicadas included. Orth said if a building is constructed over a site where cicada nymphs are lying, they may not be able to make that vertical tunnel to the surface, and instead have travel horizontally until they can find an opening. The cicada asks nothing from us, except to live out its life cycle without interference. "Maybe it's unique to me as an entomologist," said Simisky. "I enjoy seeing this insect. It's truly magical that they are only above ground every 17 years. It gives you a sense of the resilience of life on Planet Earth." Every cicada counts. If you find periodic cicadas in your neck of the woods, so to speak, you can reach out to the Department of Agricultural Resources' Brood XIV Project on iNaturalist. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Woo! Science: Why cicadas will not go quietly
