Effects of tailgating on liver

Did you tailgate with (masked) friends to watch the Super Bowl outdoors? All kinds of innovative ways to share the day safely were tried this year and with viewer numbers hitting around 100 million, we’re betting more than 100 million bags of chips, corndogs, doughnuts and beers were consumed.

Seems even if your team won, it’s likely your food choices put you in the losing column. That’s the conclusion of the University of Missouri School of Medicine researchers who ran a group of overweight guys, ages 21 to 52, through tailgate testing to see the effect that a beer and fatty food fueled calorie bomb (more than 5,000 calories over six hours) would have on their liver. Turns out, those who drank less but ate more carbs saw their liver fat increase measurably, signaling damaging inflammation.

Aha! Processed carbs make a three-point conversion again — increasing your triglyceride and glucose levels while damaging your liver. Repeat that too many times and you’ll join the everincreasing number of Americans who are obese — and the latest numbers are startling.

New data from the American Obesity Association predicts that half of Americans will have obesity by 2025. This is as much of a health crisis as the pandemic! And we need warp-speed solutions. No one can revamp his or her approach to food and exercise alone. It takes solid advice and enthusiastic supporters to keep you on track. So tune in to OzTube at doctoroz.com for advice on upgrading your nutrition and more. (Psst! Chef Aaron Sanchez dishes it up for you.)

Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. To live your healthiest, tune into “The Dr. Oz Show” or visit www.sharecare. com.