It’s official: ‘cortisol belly’ is the new ‘cortisol face’. The phrase – used to describe water and fat that accumulates around the mid-section from stress – has gone viral on TikTok, but experts warn that, like its trending counterpart, there’s much more to it than is shared online.
Scroll the app and you’ll find hundreds of thousands of videos of the topic, including people sharing ‘before and after’ style videos of their journey from bloated to flat stomach and ‘experts’ offering solutions to rid your cortisol belly for good.
While we know that stress is bad for our health, we have questions about the cortisol belly trend. Namely, is cortisol belly real, or is it just weight loss-pushing and insecurity-driving in disguise? And how do you tell cortisol belly apart from other types of bloating?
To dig into what you need to know about the trend, we turned to Dr Gaurav Agarwal, a GP at the Nuffield Health Tunbridge Wells Hospital and Hannah Alderson, nutritionist and hormone expert. Surprisingly, they say this is a trend with some truth behind it.
READ MORE: 4 Expert-Backed Tips For Stress Relief, Energy And Balance
Why Does Cortisol Belly Happen?
“Cortisol is a hormone produced by the adrenal glands. It is essential in helping our body respond to stress (physical, mental, social, or emotional), deal with perceived threats (the fight-or-flight response), maintain our sleep-wake cycle, strengthen memory, and maintain muscle tone,” explains Dr Agarwal.
Alderson says cortisol is best thought of as ‘the fog horn hormone’: it will shout loudly and expose problems. “Chronic longer-term elevations of cortisol can drive disease, endocrine disorders, obesity and the notorious belly fat. Your body is hardwired to survive, and as a protective mechanism, it will store fat if it feels under threat,” she explains. “Cortisol and high stress also increases insulin resistance, which will often present itself with fat storage around the midsection.”
This isn’t just an aesthetic issue. Excess fat storage around the midsection is linked to a higher risk of serious health problems like heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers, regardless of weight. However, that’s true of visceral fat – the type that is found deep in the body, around your organs – more than subcutaneous fat, which is under the skin. You can have health issues with or without cortisol belly.
How Do I know If I Have Cortisol Belly?
Most daily stress won’t result in extremely high cortisol that stores around your midsection. Instead, “recent studies have shown an association between uncontrollable stress and abdominal fat distribution,” notes Alderson.
“More research is needed to explore this connection, but where there is more stress, there can be more abdominal fat, and where there is more abdominal fat, you may produce more cortisol.” In short: it’s a two-way street.
Dr Agarwal adds: “Each of our bodies responds differently to hormone levels and their fluctuations; a small rise in cortisol can manifest significantly in some, while a large rise may hardly be noticeable in others.”
“More important than the absolute hormone level is how long it stays elevated. An extremely high (medically elevated) level will cause similar but more pronounced changes and may be due to medical conditions such as Cushing’s syndrome, where an adrenal or pituitary gland lesion could be the cause.”
Be cautious not to label your stomach fat as ‘wrong’. Remember, women in particular need to and naturally do store more fat around your midsection to protect our reproductive organs. The ‘pouch’ many have at the bottom of their stomachs is there to support your womb and ovaries and is required by the body.
READ MORE: Painful Periods? PCOS? Meet The Hormone-Balancing Supps
How To Get Rid Of Cortisol Belly
1. Go slow
If you are experiencing excess stress and seeing that come into play around your belly, don’t dive into a diet. “Restricting food and over-exercising to counteract this can backfire, raising cortisol levels further,” says Alderson.
2. Focus on calming activities
Instead of focusing on the belly, focus on the stress. “The best place to start is to remind the body that it is safe. Box breathing is great and simple, and you can do it anywhere. A 20-minute walk outside after eating will not only support blood glucose regulation after your meal, but the calming effect of nature and the exposure of the full spectrum of light can be wonderful at reminding the body how to function optimally and relax.”
READ MORE: The Proven Health Benefits Of Getting Outdoors
3. Connect
“Increasing human connection, being kind and hanging out with the people you love can harness the positive power of your love and bonding hormone oxytocin. Think of this dynamite of a hormone like cortisol’s kryptonite,” says Alderson.
4. Gentle movement
Slow and steady movement is the best place to start when it comes to cortisol management. If you currently do a lot of high-intensity work (which, yes, is a stress on the body), pull back and opt for walking, yoga and Pilates. These are also great places for beginners to start.
5. Eat and drink well
“Excessive alcohol consumption can play a role in cortisol belly,” notes Dr Agarwal. Try to limit drinking and opt for whole foods while managing your health and stress.
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