“I have studied cellulite and fat accumulation for more than two decades now and I can say that only your body decides where food calories will end up, according to your genes and hormone environment. So any sugary, fatty or calorie-rich food in general will increase fat accumulation on the thighs and buttocks in most women and stomach and waist in most men. However, there is one group of chemicals - xenoestrogens - derived from food packaging (BPA, microplastics, resins etc) which, by increasing estrogenic load, can divert the accumulation of more calories in the cellulite fat (hypodermal adipose tissue) and deep fat (subcutaneous adipose tissue) depots of your thighs and bum. Foods that cause inflammation (sugar, trans fats, even excess calories) can also increase cellulite (inflammation is an integral component of cellulite).”
Food and cellulite: that complicated relationship
Cellulite, thigh fat and diet | In summary
Foods that cause cellulite
The worst foods for cellulite: fried food, sugar, excess fat, excess carbs, food with BPA in it
Cellulite: foods to avoid
We always have a choice: indulgence vs beautiful thighs
Foods that cause cellulite: frequently asked questions (FAQs)
What foods cause thigh fat? What causes cellulite on the legs?
What causes cellulite?
Does sugar cause cellulite?
Does milk / dairy / cheese cause cellulite?
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Cellulite, thigh fat and diet | In summary
Cellulite and thigh fat are linked to specific dietary habits and food choices. The worst offenders include foods high in sugar, fat (even healthy fats, when consumed excessively), carbohydrates, and fried or hydrogenated oils. Also problematic are foods stored or cooked in materials that leach harmful chemicals, such as BPA, microplastics, and PFAS, which act as endocrine disruptors and contribute to fat accumulation on thighs and buttocks.
Insufficient intake of protein, fibre, omega-3 fatty acids, polyphenols and carotenoids further exacerbates cellulite. Sugar, in particular, causes inflammation, glycation, and fat buildup – all key contributors to cellulite. Fried and hydrogenated fats are also harmful, as they promote free radical damage and increase food’s fat content. Overconsumption of carbs and fats leads to calorie excess, promoting deep skin fat storage, a major component of cellulite.
Examples of cellulite-promoting foods include doughnuts, muffins, granola, cookies, chocolate, greasy pizza, fried chicken with fries, fizzy drinks, and overly processed or tinned foods, especially those in BPA-lined packaging.
In contrast, a diet rich in protein, vegetables, berries and healthy fats, alongside minimal indulgence in unhealthy foods, supports firmer thighs and cellulite reduction. Ultimately, consistent food choices determine outcomes.
Foods that cause cellulite
These are very common questions at our clinic:
What foods cause cellulite?
Which foods shall I avoid and which ones shall I eat for firm legs and to prevent/reduce cellulite?
Do carbs cause cellulite?
And even specific questions, such as:
Does honey cause cellulite?
Does corn cause cellulite?
Do dairy foods (milk, cheese, yoghurt, cream) cause cellulite?
The worst foods for cellulite: fried food, sugar, excess fat, excess carbs, food with BPA in it
If I had to put it in a few bullet points I would say:
anything with sugar in it
anything with fried/hydrogenated oils in it
any food stored in BPA-leaching containers
any food cooked in contact with plastic (e.g. sous vide, aluminium foil, cling film, plastic container etc) or cooking utensils/machines with a PFAS/forever chemical lining (e.g pan, pot, air-fryer, grill etc)
too many carbs (even good carbs)
too much fat (even good fats)
…cause cellulite.
Plus, having:
Too little protein
Too little fibre
Too few omega-3 fatty acids
Too few polyphenols/carotenoids in your diet
…don't help either.
And there is good justification for the above list:
Sugar is one of the top three causes of cellulite these days and a major reason for the increase in cellulite in the last few decades. Sugar is responsible for glycation, inflammation and fat accumulation, i.e. three distinct hallmarks of cellulite.
Fried oils/fat, as well as unnatural hydrogenated/trans fats, are also responsible for inflammation, glycation and free radical damage, three major causes of cellulite. Frying peroxidises fats and oils in food; hydrogenation alters the chemical structure of oils/fats. Both frying and hydrogenation leads to inflammation and cellular damage. Not to mention that frying increases the fat content of food.
Too many carbs and too much fat (i.e. too many calories), also lead to fat accumulation. As excess hypodermal (deep skin) fat accumulation is the most important aspect of cellulite, you can understand that carbs do cause cellulite, if eaten in excess - even healthy carbs. And of course fat causes cellulite, if eaten in excess - even healthy fat.
BPA, BPS, microplastics and PFAS / forever chemicals act as endocrine disruptors/xenoestrogens, upsetting endocrine balance in both men and women and acting as badly conformed estrogen. This results in cellulite and more female-type fat accumulation on thighs and bum - not to mention the cancers and endocrine-related conditions they cause
On the other hand, the three remaining food components - i.e. protein, fibre and micronutrients - actually do help reduce cellulite.
So fruits (especially berries), veg and herbs, as well as high protein foods, help reduce cellulite.
Cellulite: foods to avoid
So if I had to give some typical examples of what foods cause cellulite - on legs or anywhere else on the body - those would be:
Doughnuts - the ultimate cellulite-causing food: they are fried (quite often in hydrogenated oil or oil cooked 20 times over) and they contain sugar, fat and starch (carbs), plus chemicals used in the frying process, as colorants, stabilisers etc. There is literally nothing good about a donut, nutritionally.
Muffins should not be far off, as they also contain carbs, fat and sugar - but at least they are not fried. The same applies to snacks like:
granola (fat, sugar and carbs)
cookies, pastries and cakes (fat, sugar and carbs; and unless you make them yourself, packed with hydrogenated cr*p too)
chocolate (fat, sugar and carbs), including 70%+ dark chocolate, which is still fat, sugar and carbs - plus a bit of cocoa antioxidants)
pies, pasties (packed with fat refined carbs and unless you make them yourself, packed with hydrogenated cr*p too)
Fried chicken with fries (fried, fat, sugar, starch) - as opposed to grilled chicken with salad and roast potatoes
Cola and other soda/fizzy drinks (pure sugar/sweeteners and water) - as opposed to sparkling water. Not the mention the BPA in the can lining or the microplastics in the plastic bottle…
Excess bread, pasta (too many carbs) - as opposed to some bread/pasta with loads of salad/vegetables and protein
Thick, greasy pizza, heavy on cheese and salami (carbs and fat) - with the much lighter, Italian-style pizza with vegetables or seafood being a better option
Greasy cheeseburgers with soda (fat, sugar, carbs) - with lighter, home-made, low-fat meat burgers being a much better option
BPA-packaged food, such as ANY tinned drink (beer, soda, “energy” drinks, horrible wine in a box or abominable wines in a can), olive oil in a tin, and ANY canned food (tomato sauce, tuna, baked beans etc). Fresh is best - or at least prefer a glass jar/bottle variety.
We always have a choice: indulgence vs beautiful thighs'
You get the drift: anything that has too many carbs or too much fat or too much sugar or is fried/hydrogenated or cooked/stored in PFAS/plastic or all of the above, is great as a cellulite-causing food.
I know I sound like a spoilsport, but reality is reality and we always have a choice:
Either indulge frequently in unhealthy foods that will clog our arteries, increase the risk of cancer, make us fat and give us cellulite
Or focus on healthy foods (salmon, salad and black rice, anyone?) with the minor occasional indulgence once a week
Foods that cause cellulite: frequently asked questions (FAQs)
We hope everything now is clear regarding cellulite-causing foods.
Below are some straight, quick answers to the most common questions related to this subject, to clarify finer points and add more detail.
What foods cause thigh fat? What causes cellulite on the legs?
That’s a very common question and the answer is twofold:
The same things that cause cellulite or fat anywhere in the body also cause thigh fat
But most importantly, cellulite and fat accumulation on the thighs and butt specifically - as opposed to other parts of the body - is driven by genetics and female hormones too
This means that, if as a woman you want to avoid thigh fat or cellulite you must be really careful with avoiding the above foods, alcohol, smoking/vaping and, with doctor’s permission, hormonal contraception (patches, injections, pill etc).
What causes cellulite?
The main causes of cellulite are excess calorie intake, lack of exercise/sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy nutrition (sugar, fried food, saturated fats, trans fats etc), microplastics/nanonplastics in the foods and drinks, alcohol, smoking and the birth control pill - in addition to genetics, of course.
Does sugar cause cellulite?
As mentioned above, sugar is one of the most important causes of cellulite - probably the most important one, as it causes glycation, inflammation and fat accumulation, all three being important aspects of cellulite.
Does milk / dairy / cheese cause cellulite?
Excess cheese intake can increase calorie load and contribute to cellulite.
Milk and yoghurt can cause food intolerance to some people (constipation, bloating, inflammation, diarrhoea etc) and consequently contribute to cellulite - to some extent.
But in general dairy is not a prime cause of cellulite - excess carbs in general, excess fats in general, sugar, fried food, microplastics and trans fats are more important causes.
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