Does coffee make you store fat around your midsection?

Someone told me today that they read that coffee makes you hold fat cells around your midsection.  I have never heard this before and am wondering if anyone else has ever heard of this.  I drink about three - four cups a day and have done so for many years.  Black no cream no sugar.  I do tend to store fat in my midsection and it is the last place I lose it.  I am 5' 3.5" and even when I was 112 lbs I still had extra fat in my midsection but looked emaciated everywhere else.  I wonder if there is any connection.

update..

I found the link between caffeine and cortisol levels in this article.  Since coffee has caffeine, it must raise cortisol levels.  (Even decaf has some caffeine)  I don't think science backs up the ideas that Dr Perricone advocates.  I will continue to drink coffee within reason, and not worry about this one.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/ariz onaliving/articles/0329qaweil0405.html

My personal opinion on why it does affect loss:

- affects hydration level
- fluxation in blood sugar - (stable blood sugar = easier loss)
- one more chemical your liver has to process
- can be the milk sugar thing (agreed on that it does make a difference to even just drop fake or real sugar and milk and go black)
- carb craving - could be estimating portions wrong because of hunger
- may not sleep as well (sleep can affect weightloss and bad sleep could mean more stress)

I didnt read the whole cortisol thing. I just like to try it out to see how it worked for us. I think everyone should at least try it.

I just emailed a local media doc who's really good at interpreting studies and clarifying things.

meanwhile, though, i do think it's worth a try.  i've been a daily coffee drinker for...i dunno...23 or 24 years, i guess.  i think it's worthwhile to give it up for a few weeks and find out how my body responds.  i think i will miss the ritual more than the actually coffee, but we'll see...yikes!!

i have several days' worth of coffee in the cupboard, and i can't bear to let it go stale, but when it's gone, i'm going coffee-free for...let's say four weeks.  i will keep you all posted!!

PG - take a before and after shot of your face.
Makeup and no makeup. You dont have to share it. Just do it for yourself. You will freak out how much better the under eye area looks.

Im excited for you. Btw- keep the advil on hand.

I'd never be able to give up coffee!  I guess I'll have to put up with its cons, because its pros are far more numerous!

i'm not thinking that this will be in any way permanent.  i think i'd like to be like chop_chop and just periodically cycle it out of my life for awhile.  so i'm going to go four weeks without, and if i notice a big change (and why wouldn't i?), i'm going to start taking a break.  i only drink coffee at home in the morning, so i'm thinking that after every second pound of beans i can take a couple of weeks off - something like that.

REZ!

So does cutting coffee work or not?


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http://www.buildingbodies.ca/Nutrition/cortis ol.shtml

Is cortisol related to abdominal obesity?

Yes. There is a link between high cortisol levels and storage of body fat, particularly “visceral” abdominal body fat (also known as intra-abdominal fat). Visceral fat is stored deeper in the abdominal cavity and around the internal organs, whereas “regular” fat is stored below the skin (known as subcutaneous fat). Visceral fat is particularly unhealthy because it is a risk factor for heart disease and diabetes.

Does Cortisol Make you fat?

No, cortisol is not “the thing” that makes you fat. In fact, one of the effects of cortisol is to increase the breakdown of stored adipose tissue into glycerol and fatty acids where it can enter the bloodstream and then be used as energy. High levels of cortisol are merely one contributing factor to storage of abdominal fat, not the primary cause. An excess of calories from too much food and not enough exercise is what makes you fat.

I just read an article about this. I also have read this in other articles and websites. I have a lot of belly fat from drinking alot of coffee with lost of sugar.

Sugar is another culprit.

You have got to be joking.  I think that's bs.