(CNN) It's more bad news for America's growing waistline: Excess belly fat is associated with a higher risk of early death from any cause, regardless of how much overall body fat you have, a new study finds. In women, each 10-centimeter increase in belly fat raised the risk of death from any cause by 8%. For men, each 10-centimeter increase in girth raised the risk of by 12%. according to the study The better news: Larger hips and thighs are associated with a lower risk of early death,according to the study published by the The BMJ on Wednesday . "Our results suggest that measures of central adiposity (fat) could be used as a supplementary approach, in combination with body mass index, to determine the risk of premature death," the authors said.

Source: CNN September 23, 2020 22:30 UTC