# Is coffee/caffeine good or bad for belly fat loss? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 20, 2016, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602 "2016-03-20T00:09:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/21 "2016-03-20T04:14:10Z")
BTW the diet is not about “colon cleansing” though it does promote probiotics. ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/22 "2016-03-20T04:31:49Z")
> [@ddsun](#): > > **JC** Those look like standard photo ops, not client endorsements. Just bear in mind that the fact those people are posted on his Flickr page doesn’t mean they have any relationship at all. Ok though he is respected by celebrities and TV shows. > [@](#): > > If you want to try this program to lose weight, please remember what others on this thread have said: > > -You can’t target body fat in one area of your body with a diet. There are 2 different types of body fat - subcutaneous and visceral (organ/belly fat). I think they are different in terms of the hormones involved, etc. Also it is different in terms of risk for diabetes and heart disease. I think diet can lead to more belly fat than other belly fat: (a big belly, otherwise quite thin) [![](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a8XumVj6Yto/TxCoz2G-f2I/AAAAAAAAAZA/c9GccH2YAqk/s1600/Jeremy-Clarkson-Belly.jpg) ](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a8XumVj6Yto/TxCoz2G-f2I/AAAAAAAAAZA/c9GccH2YAqk/s1600/Jeremy-Clarkson-Belly.jpg) Here the belly fat isn’t so pronounced and they’d have a very different diet. [http://d1udmfvw0p7cd2.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/sp-sumo-a-20151122.jpg](http://d1udmfvw0p7cd2.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/sp-sumo-a-20151122.jpg) His belly fat “cure” diet is quite new so I wouldn’t expect it to involve established “facts”. > [@](#): > > -The key to weight loss is using more calories than you take in. Ideally, you should do this in a healthy manner (there a very unhealthy ways to do this). You may want to ask your doctor what program they recommend for weight loss or even if they would look at this one for you. Yes that is the key to weight loss but that includes muscle loss. For specific types of weight loss it becomes more complicated than that. > [@](#): > > -Weight loss is generally not easy. It involves commitment and effort. If something makes it sound effortless, it’s probably more of a sales job and less of a reality. In other words, they want your money, so they’re saying what you want to hear. Actually I haven’t bought any of this guy’s books myself. Anyway after day 2 I was having a lot of temptations (like pizza and chips). > [@](#): > > Again, talk to your doctor. I have before. I wanted a referral to a dietician but he could’t make it government-funded due to me being less than 80 kg. ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/23 "2016-03-20T04:46:13Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > “Trapped waste matter”?? Lol. No. BTW when I was starting the diet I had a lot of large poos throughout the days even though I wasn’t eating that much. At least twice is was very dark so perhaps that was from “false belly fat”. ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/24 "2016-03-20T05:52:11Z")
Sage Rat and ddsun: I started a “great debates” thread here about “You can’t target the fat loss area” [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=19194348](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=19194348) ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/25 "2016-03-20T05:57:14Z")
> [@JohnClay](#): > > BTW when I was starting the diet I had a lot of large poos throughout the days even though I wasn’t eating that much. At least twice is was very dark so perhaps that was from “false belly fat”. :eek::eek: ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/26 "2016-03-20T14:15:33Z")
> [@JohnClay](#): > > Ok though he is respected by celebrities and TV shows. I don’t know why the former should impress you at all…and how the hell can a “TV show” respect _anything_? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/27 "2016-03-20T16:21:55Z")
“Celebrities and TV shows” have also indorsed psychic hotlines, Satanic ritual abuse theories, Holocaust denial and chemtrails. > [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > As I understand it, one can’t target specific body fat to lose (excepting liposuction). As such, caffeine cannot. What about sit-ups or crunches? I mean, he wouldn’t _lose_ the fat, but he’d at least tone up the area, wouldn’t he? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/28 "2016-03-20T16:46:09Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > What about sit-ups or crunches? I mean, he wouldn’t _lose_ the fat, but he’d at least tone up the area, wouldn’t he? Which will build up the muscles (there’s really no such thing as toning) and make his stomach look bigger assuming the same layer of fat is on top of it. ---
**Author:** ![spamforbrains](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@spamforbrains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spamforbrains)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/29 "2016-03-20T20:27:26Z")
> [@](#): > > The key to losing weight is to burn more calories than you take in. Eat less (while still getting all the nutrients you need) and exercise more. Everything else is just cognitive dissonance preventing you from doing what it really takes. In general I agree with you. However, the metabolic syndrome theory of belly fat proposes that an underlying metabolic disorder, involving insulin resistance and inflammation, is causing fat to pile up in the belly area. Resolving the metabolic problem should therefore cause the fat to move off the belly. Perhaps to the butt or neck, but at least the belly will be smaller. One very effective way to reduce insulin resistance is to fast periodically. ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/30 "2016-03-20T21:40:54Z")
> [@spamforbrains](#): > > In general I agree with you. However, the metabolic syndrome theory of belly fat proposes that an underlying metabolic disorder, involving insulin resistance and inflammation, is causing fat to pile up in the belly area. Resolving the metabolic problem should therefore cause the fat to move off the belly. Perhaps to the butt or neck, but at least the belly will be smaller. > One very effective way to reduce insulin resistance is to fast periodically. Good someone seems to agree with me about belly fat. I’ve also heard that it involves insulin. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/31 "2016-03-20T22:12:37Z")
> [@JohnClay](#): > > Good someone seems to agree with me about belly fat. I’ve also heard that it involves insulin. Heard what, and from where? ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/32 "2016-03-21T00:14:57Z")
> [@spamforbrains](#): > > In general I agree with you. However, the metabolic syndrome theory of belly fat proposes that an underlying metabolic disorder, involving insulin resistance and inflammation, is causing fat to pile up in the belly area. Resolving the metabolic problem should therefore cause the fat to move off the belly. Perhaps to the butt or neck, but at least the belly will be smaller. > One very effective way to reduce insulin resistance is to fast periodically. I suspect that theory has less going for it than the first law of thermodynamics. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/33 "2016-03-21T00:15:37Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Heard what, and from where? Celebrities and TV shows. Haven’t you been paying attention? ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/34 "2016-03-21T01:20:05Z")
This thread was meant to be about coffee/caffeine only but people have been debating belly fat loss in general. I tried making a thread for the debate but now that has been closed since people wouldn’t reply in the other thread instead of this one. ---
**Author:** ![spamforbrains](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@spamforbrains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spamforbrains)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/35 "2016-03-21T01:21:55Z")
> [@](#): > > suspect that theory has less going for it than the first law of thermodynamics. You’ve never heard of metabolic syndrome? What rock do you live under? A key symptom of metabolic syndrome is accumulating fat around the waistline. It’s closely linked to insulin resistance. > **[Metabolic syndrome: Increased risk of cardiovascular disease,...](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/metabolic-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20351916)** > > Having three or more specific risk factors, such as high blood pressure or abdominal fat, boosts your risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/36 "2016-03-21T01:43:08Z")
**JC** some cites on the efficacy of “spot reduction” (loss of fat in a targeted location)" [Yale](http://www.yalescientific.org/2011/04/targeted-fat-loss-myth-or-reality/) [CNN, with cites to research](http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/17/health/upwave-target-fat/) [Men’s Health - uses “moobs” in a sentence. _snerk_](http://www.menshealth.co.uk/lose-weight/burn-fat/can-i-target-my-fat-loss) ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/37 "2016-03-21T02:00:48Z")
ddsun: Finally you’ve joined in the debate unfortunately not in the proper debate thread. I think I have said enough on this subject according to some of the mods. ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/38 "2016-03-21T10:55:12Z")
I think it is quite clear that coffee/caffeine does NOT lead to a bigger belly… [http://watchfit.com/exercise/celebrities-who-lost-weight-for-movies-part-6/](http://watchfit.com/exercise/celebrities-who-lost-weight-for-movies-part-6/) To get to a weight of 121 lbs (54 kg) for “The Machinist” Christian Bale “subsisted on coffee, water and an apple a day for four months”. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/39 "2016-03-21T11:45:32Z")
> [@JohnClay](#): > > I think it is quite clear that coffee/caffeine does NOT lead to a bigger belly… > > [http://watchfit.com/exercise/celebrities-who-lost-weight-for-movies-part-6/](http://watchfit.com/exercise/celebrities-who-lost-weight-for-movies-part-6/) > > To get to a weight of 121 lbs (54 kg) for “The Machinist” Christian Bale “subsisted on coffee, water and an apple a day for four months”. One more time: _Celeb press releases are not scientific studies._ ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602/40 "2016-03-21T11:49:25Z")
> [@JohnClay](#): > > I think it is quite clear that coffee/caffeine does NOT lead to a bigger belly… > > [http://watchfit.com/exercise/celebrities-who-lost-weight-for-movies-part-6/](http://watchfit.com/exercise/celebrities-who-lost-weight-for-movies-part-6/) > > To get to a weight of 121 lbs (54 kg) for “The Machinist” Christian Bale “subsisted on coffee, water and an apple a day for four months”. You know, if you spent half the amount of time you spend searching for self-affirming internet “news” blurbs by going for a walk instead you would lose that belly fat in three months. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-coffee-caffeine-good-or-bad-for-belly-fat-loss/749602.md?page=3)