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Nutritional Concern for a Fatty Liver

Fatty liver disease is caused by excessive amounts of fat accumulating in the liver. This can lead to serious complications, including inflammation that leads to liver disease. That's why nutritional support is crucial in maintaining liver health and preventing further damage.

  1. Fatty Liver Symptoms

    • A fatty liver generally is not associated with any symptoms. Patients usually discover the condition during testing for other illnesses, but as the disease worsens they may experience abdominal pain, weight loss, fatigue, confusion and weakness.

    Fatty Liver Risk Factors

    • Risk factors for fatty liver disease include high triglycerides, diabetes, obesity, malnutrition, rapid weight loss and alcohol abuse.

    General Nutritional Guidelines

    • Adopting a healthy diet is crucial to prevent and treat a fatty liver. Safely losing weight (no more than 1 to 2 pounds weekly), controlling diabetes, lowering triglycerides, avoiding alcohol and increasing physical activity will help prevent or reverse liver damage.

    What to Include

    • There is no special liver diet that will provide a cure-all for this malady. But according to liverdisease.com, an optimal diet may include 20 to 30 percent of lean protein, 60 to 70 percent complex carbohydrates, 10 to 20 percent polyunsaturated fat and eight to 12 8-oz. glasses of water daily. It's also important to focus on eating fresh (and preferably organic) vegetables and fruits.

    What to Avoid

    • Avoid drinking alcohol and taking large quantities of supplements such as vitamins A and B3 and iron. Individuals should also reduce or eliminate processed foods and limit consumption of caffeinated beverages to three cups or less.

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