Best Way to Cut Kids’ Belly Fat: Diet + Exercise

A new Australian study has found that combining healthy eating with regular physical activity is the most effective way to reduce belly fat in children.

The research, released Saturday, analyzed data from 34 clinical trials involving over 8,100 children aged 5 to 18. It revealed that programs integrating both diet and exercise were significantly more successful in targeting central obesity than either method alone.

Central obesity—fat stored around the abdomen and internal organs—is considered more dangerous than general obesity due to its strong links to heart disease, diabetes, and other long-term health conditions, said researchers from Charles Sturt University and Western Sydney University.

According to the study, published in JAMA Network Open, isolated strategies such as diet-only, exercise-only, supplements, or medications had little impact on waist circumference.

The most effective interventions followed a Mediterranean-style or low-fat diet, combined with up to 150 minutes of physical activity per week, over a span of six to nine months.

Experts say the findings underscore the urgent need for comprehensive public health strategies, as childhood obesity continues to rise globally—impacting an estimated 94 million girls and 65 million boys in 2022 alone.

The researchers are calling for coordinated action from governments, schools, and health organizations, emphasizing that their findings support international goals to eliminate malnutrition and reduce early deaths from noncommunicable diseases by 2030.