WAYS YOU CAN EAT YOURSELF HEALTHIER

OBESITY is one of the key drivers in the rise of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). ‘Losing 10 per cent of body weight improves the liver function and, in some cases, losing this amount can reverse the scarring of the liver that is caused by the condition,’ says Vanessa Hebditch, of the British Liver Trust.

Excess fat acts as a toxin to liver cells, causing inflammation that can progress to a build-up of scar tissue, and even cancer, if no steps are taken in time to reverse this.

As well as losing weight, here are five diet-related ways you can help prevent, or reverse, a fatty liver . . .

GOOD FAT, NOT LOW-FAT

A MEDITERRANEAN diet rich in healthy, unsaturated fats can improve a fatty liver, according to a study published earlier this month in the Journal of Hepatology.

Obese people who ate plenty of olive oil, walnuts, oily fish, vegetables and pulses, but little red meat, had a significantly greater reduction in their liver fat than those eating a low-fat diet. It’s thought that a Mediterranean diet reduces cholesterol and inflammation, which play a role in liver disease.

DRINK COFFEE

A 2010 STUDY at the University of Catania in Italy linked drinking several cups of coffee a day with a reduced risk of a fatty liver.

Caffeine may play a protective role, but a 2014 review in the Journal of Gastroenterology suggested that other components — perhaps polyphenols or chlorogenic acid also found in coffee beans — may deliver the bigger benefit.

TAKE PROBIOTICS

UNHEALTHY gut bacteria can cause inflammation in the liver that may hasten the progression of fatty liver disease.

A 2018 study in the Journal of Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases, in which 58 people with fatty liver disease were given a probiotic — a supplement containing ‘good’ bacteria — or a placebo, found that the probiotic group had reduced levels of inflammation.

The theory is the ‘good’ bacteria helped to improve blood sugar and insulin levels.

DITCH SUGARY DRINKS

GOING low-sugar for eight weeks helped overweight children with fatty liver disease reduce their liver fat by 31 per cent, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The researchers said that cutting out fructose (fruit sugar) probably had a big effect — this sugar must be processed by the liver and can stimulate fat tissue production.

‘Because fizzy drinks are one of the biggest sources of sugar in the diet, the simple step of limiting them can reduce the risk of getting this life-threatening disease,’ says Vanessa Hebditch.

Recent studies have also suggested that over-consumption of fructose — found in sugary drinks including fruit juices and smoothies — may affect liver enzymes and contribute to NAFLD.

A study published in 2015 in the journal Hepatobiliary Surgery and Nutrition suggested fructose is a major stimulant that converts excess carbohydrates into fat which is stored in the liver.

SLOW-RELEASE CARBS

A DIET in which fast-releasing refined carbohydrates, such as white flour, are replaced with slower-releasing ones, such as wholegrains and pulses, helped reduce patients’ NAFLD score (an indication of how developed the disease is) in a 2017 study in the Journal of Metabolism, Health and Aging.

Slower-releasing carbs mean blood sugar levels are lower and less fat is stored in the liver.