How to Reverse Liver Damage Quickly, Say Experts      — Eat This Not That

Liver damage can be serious — but besides medical supervision, there are ways to help your liver heal. “Non-alcoholic fatty liver [NASH] is the leading cause of liver disease in the United States and is estimated to affect up to a quarter of adults worldwide,” says Irun Bhan, MD. “It is defined by excess fat that accumulates in the liver and usually occurs in people with obesity, high blood sugar (diabetes), abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride levels, or high blood pressure. These disorders often come together and as a group are called the metabolic syndrome.” Here’s how you can quickly reverse liver damage, experts say. Read on and don’t miss this one to protect your health and the health of others Sure signs you already had COVID.

Studies show that even a small amount of weight loss can significantly affect liver health. “For people who are overweight or obese, the best treatment for NASH is weight loss,” says dr bhan. “A landmark study showed that losing 10% of body weight can reduce liver fat, eliminate inflammation and potentially improve scarring.”6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Regular exercise is a great way to improve liver health. “As a transplant hepatologist and exercise researcher, I am often asked by my chronic liver disease patients whether or not they should exercise. My answer is always a resounding ‘YES!’ and sometimes accompanied by a small fist bump that you may or may not notice,” says Jonathan Stine, MD MSc, FACP. “Exercise, or really any physical activity, has many known benefits for the liver.”

“We recommend that patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease drink three cups of coffee daily, eat four tablespoons of olive oil daily, and follow a Mediterranean-style diet that emphasizes plant-based foods and healthy fats.” says Annie Guinane, RD, LDN, CNSC. “Adjusting to a Mediterranean diet is difficult for patients as we are surrounded by convenience foods and junk foods on a daily basis. This diet is focused asking questions. Then, with a nutritionist, they can set realistic and achievable goals, rather than something that is causing them to fail.”

Research shows that intermittent fasting may have a positive effect on liver health. “We know that fasting can be an effective intervention to treat disease and improve liver health. But we don’t know how fasting reprograms liver proteins, which serve a variety of essential metabolic functions.” says Mark Larance, PhD, a Cancer Institute of NSW Future Research Fellow at the Charles Perkins Center and the School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Sydney. “For the first time we have shown that HNF4-(alpha) is inhibited during intermittent fasting. This has downstream consequences, such as B. reducing the amount of blood proteins in inflammation or impairing bile synthesis. This helps explain some of the facts known so far about intermittent fasting.”

Reducing sugar intake can make a difference in how quickly the liver heals. “Many people who eat a standard American diet develop extensive hepatic fibrosis, or scarring of their liver, which can affect its ability to function and sometimes lead to cancer,” says Donald Jump, a professor at the OSU College of Public Health and Human Sciences. “There’s a lot of interest in finding ways for the liver to recover from this damage, but this research suggests that low-fat, low-cholesterol diets, even if they help with weight loss, aren’t enough,” Jump said. “For more significant liver recovery, sugar intake needs to be reduced, probably along with other improvements in diet and exercise.”

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