Big belly, double chin, thick neck… these are images coming into your mind when people talk about obesity.

Besides an apple-shaped appearance, people can also find out whether they are obese through their Body Mass Index, which is obtained by an equation: weight/height squared. Those whose BMIs are over 30 kg/㎡ are considered overweight.

The problem is, why do people with normal BMI still have a big belly? Although they are able to wear smaller-sized clothes, why is belly fat still forcing them to give up tight clothes?

Different from subcutaneous fat, which is directly under the skin, visceral fat is found around organs in the abdominal cavity, including the liver, pancreas and kidneys.

It is necessary to have some visceral fat to protect your organs, but too much visceral fat is anything but healthy. Excessive visceral fat can lead to heart disease, hyperlipidemia and other cardiovascular diseases.

A visible impact is too much visceral fat contributes to thickening subcutaneous fat, which makes your belly more pronounced.

Therefore, if you want to get rid of a big belly, the first step is to burn visceral fat, through discipline and dedication, instead of weight-loss pills.