Is belly fat caused by too much stress hormone inside fat cells?

Original Title

Is There Visceral Adipose Tissue (VAT) Intracellular Hypercortisolism in Human Obesity?

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Summary

Scientists looked at whether fat around the belly makes more of the stress hormone cortisol than other fat, and if that causes obesity.

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Surprising Findings

Despite decades of research, no evidence exists that obese people have higher overall cortisol levels in their blood.

Everyone assumes stress hormones cause belly fat, but the body’s total cortisol isn’t elevated—making the link far weaker than believed.

Practical Takeaways

Don’t buy cortisol-blocking supplements claiming to melt belly fat—this review suggests they’re unlikely to work.

low confidence

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