If he’s slim everywhere else, a belly isn’t a big deal

5 myths about his beer belly

His big belly could mean big health trouble. Find out the truth about what it could mean

By Diane Peters

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Myth 1: If he’s slim everywhere else, a belly isn’t a big deal

Unless he’s very tall or large-boned, if your partner wears pants with a waist size over 40 inches, he’s got as much as double the risk for heart disease as a man his age with a smaller waist; even overweight guys who carry the bulk on their hips will have better overall health. “Fat around the midsection is doing many things to your health,” says Dr. Alykhan Nanji, director of C-era, a heart disease diagnostic clinic in Calgary. This type of fat has been tied to high blood pressure, high cholesterol and insulin resistance. These problems together are called metabolic syndrome, which affects one in five adults and can lead to diabetes and heart disease.