A nutritionist explains what you need to eat to prevent your belly from growing.

In order for the stomach to cease to be a problem area forever, you need to adjust your diet. This was stated by British journalist, doctor and author of books on nutrition Michael Mosley, Express.co.uk reports.

He noted that even the leanest people can suffer from belly fat. Moreover, the fat layer in this area is the most harmful to health, because this visceral fat surrounds the vital organs in the abdominal cavity – it is located inside, under the abdominal muscles and is difficult to burn using standard methods. According to the doctor, the danger of such fat is that it can provoke inflammation, as well as cardiovascular diseases, atherosclerosis and metabolic disorders.

Mosley insists that you can burn such fat if you give up sugar. The doctor claims that to maintain a flat stomach, you should exclude various desserts from your diet, as well as all foods that include fast carbohydrates. It calls for limiting consumption of any food or drink containing more than 5% sugar. “They can be consumed no more than twice a week,” the expert noted. The following were banned: chocolate, pastries, ice cream, chips and sweet soda, as well as white rice, white bread, pasta made from premium flour, packaged juices and even fruits – mangoes, bananas, grapes.

Mosley advises replacing fast carbohydrates with slow ones: it is better to eat brown rice instead of white, and quinoa or buckwheat instead of pasta. He called for leaning on foods such as fatty fish, vegetables, nuts, whole grain cereals, chicken, eggs, cheeses, yoghurts and olive oil.