What is Fatty Liver Disease?
Fatty liver disease is medically known as hepatic steatosis. It develops because of fat deposits building up in the liver. A minute amount of fat in the liver is natural and not problematic. However, it can transform into fatty liver disease when there is excessive fat build up in the liver. This can cause inflammation and scarring. This scarring can be fatal as it can cause liver failure in severe cases.
Types
There are two types of fatty liver disease. The first is AFLD or Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. This develops in people who consume excessive amounts of alcohol. AFLD is of two types – simple AFLD and Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (ASH).
The other type of fatty liver disease is NAFLD or Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. There are three types of NAFLD – simple NAFLD, Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) and Acute Fatty Liver of Pregnancy (AFLP).
Causes
The causes of fatty liver disease can be due to several reasons that cause a build-up of fat in the liver. This can be either because the body produces excessive amounts of fat or because the fat is not metabolised efficiently by the body. Here are the causes of fatty liver disease:
- Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol
- Obesity
- High levels of fat in the blood, especially triglycerides
- Insulin resistance
- Malnutrition/ Rapid weight loss
- High blood sugar
- Infections like Hepatitis C
- Pregnancy, in very rare cases
- Side effects from some medications
- In some cases, certain genes may increase the risk of developing fatty liver disease.
Symptoms
Symptoms of fatty liver disease are not always very easily noticeable. Some of the early signs for fatty liver disease may be pain or discomfort experienced on the right side of the abdomen. The result of fat build-up in the liver is inflammation and scarring. This scarring of the liver is known as liver fibrosis. When liver fibrosis reaches a severe stage, it is called cirrhosis.
The symptoms of fatty liver disease and cirrhosis include the following:
- Weight loss
- Yellowing of the skin and eyes
- Fatigue
- Nosebleeds
- Itchy skin
- Pain in the abdomen
- Loss of appetite
- Weakness
- Noticeable clusters of blood vessels under the skin
- Swelling of legs
- Swelling of the abdomen
Fatty Liver Diet Plan
The essential part of the treatment of fatty liver disease is a change in lifestyle and diet. The fatty liver diet contains mostly plant-based foods. The best diet for fatty liver disease is a diet that is full of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes; the fatty liver diet must avoid trans fats, alcohol and saturated fats. A sample fatty liver Indian diet chart can look like this:
- Breakfast: 1 bowl of oats with 4 walnuts.
- Mid-morning: 1 fruit of choice such as apple, pineapple, orange, pear.
- Lunch: 2 rotis, half cup rice, 1 cup sprouts, 1 cup salad, 1 bowl vegetables curry.
- Mid-afternoon: 1 glass of buttermilk.
- Eveningsnack: For non-vegetarians – egg white omelette.
For vegetarians – Paneer salad with vegetables tossed in olive oil
1 cup of mild coffee. - Dinner: 1 cup of vegetable soup of choice, 1 jowar/ragi/multigrain atta roti, 1 bowl vegetable curry, 1 cup yoghurt.
Also Read – What Is Fatty Liver – How and Why Does One Get Diagnosed With Fatty Liver
Foods to Avoid
There are certain foods to avoid with fatty liver disease. The list of fatty liver foods to avoid include the following:
- Alcohol must be avoided at all costs
- Refined carbohydrates such as white bread, sweets, white rice and refined grain products should be avoided
- Saturated fats should be limited in amount. Foods that contain saturated fats include red meat and most other animal products.
- Trans fats should be avoided altogether. These are found in almost all processed snack items.
Agilus Diagnostics, a subsidiary of Fortis Healthcare Limited
