Beer belly now means small brain

Extra body fat around the waist may be linked to brain shrinkage.

Many men – including singer Rick Astley, music mogul Simon Cowell, and ex-cricketer Phil Tufnell – are prone to letting it all hang out.

Experts calculated obesity by measuring body mass index and waist-to-hip ratio in study participants.

The findings, published online by the journal Neurology, show those with higher ratios of both measures had the lowest brain volume.

Study author Professor Mark Hamer, from Loughborough University, said: “Existing research has linked brain shrinkage to memory decline and a higher risk of dementia, but research on whether extra body fat is protective or detrimental to brain size has been inconclusive. Our research looked at a large group of people and found obesity, specifically around the middle, may be linked with brain shrinkage.”

BMI is a weight-to-height ratio and a score above 30 is considered obese.

The study looked at 9,652 people with an average age of 55.

Prof Hamer added: “While our study found obesity, especially around the middle, was associated with lower grey matter brain volumes, it’s unclear if abnormalities in brain structure lead to obesity or if obesity leads to these changes in the brain.

“We also found links between obesity and shrinkage in specific regions of the brain.

“This will need further research but it may be possible that some day regularly measuring BMI and waist-to-hip ratio may help determine brain health.”