Maree came to see me for help with a fatty liver, excess weight and chronic exhaustion from long term infection with Epstein Barr virus.  She brought along an ultrasound scan of her liver and the accompanying report, which stated there were fatty changes in her liver, consistent with mild to moderate fatty liver. Thirty five pounds overweight and carrying the majority of her excess weight over her abdomen, Maree had been trying unsuccessfully to lose weight for the last eight years.  She noticed some mild discomfort over the right upper part of her abdomen after rich meals or after consuming alcohol. Maree contracted Epstein Barr virus 7 months ago, and although she was over the worst symptoms, she still felt incredibly exhausted and after dinner each evening all she wanted to do was sit on the sofa, watch a bit of television and then go to bed.  However, no matter how much she slept, she still didn’t feel refreshed and energetic the next day. Maree didn’t receive much help from her doctor.  She told her not to worry about the fatty liver and encouraged her to lose weight, and then her liver would fix itself.  The problem was Maree found weight loss almost impossible; she had to almost starve herself just to lose 5 pounds.  It just wasn’t worth the tremendous effort, and going on a diet always made her even more exhausted. My Recommendations The first thing I did was put Maree on my Selenomune Designer Energy capsules.  This formula is rich in selenium and other minerals that support energy production in the body.  I refer to selenium as a viral birth control pill because it has the ability to inhibit the replication and spread of viruses in the body.  People who are selenium deficient are more prone to picking up viral infections, and they remain sick for longer because their body has a much harder time killing the virus. I also gave Maree my liver tonic called Livatone Plus.  It provides the nutrients her liver needed in order to burn fat more efficiently.  This would speed up the reversal of her fatty liver.  Livatone Plus contains the herb St Mary’s Thistle, which has the ability to restore compromised, inflamed liver cells. Once the health of her liver improves, she will be able to burn fat more efficiently from everywhere on her body, and finally lose weight. I also gave Maree an NAC supplement. NAC stands for n-acetyl cysteine and it is used by the liver for glutathione production. Glutathione is a powerful antioxidant and it reduces excessive inflammation in the body. When it came to her diet, Maree had been eating a lot of bread, crackers and pasta.  She said she needed to eat a lot of those foods because they are quick and easy to prepare and they give her some energy.  It’s true that they are fast to prepare, but these foods are all digested into sugar and the liver uses the sugar to create fat.  Fat is then stored inside the liver and other parts of the body.  Sugar and carbohydrate rich foods do provide you with a quick burst of energy when you really need it, but as soon as your blood sugar drops again, you’ll be tired, sleepy and craving sugar again. I asked Maree to follow the eating plan in my book Fatty Liver: You Can Reverse It.  It is lower in carbohydrate and higher in protein and healthy fats, and will help her to lose weight and clear the fatty liver.  I allowed Maree to have small amounts of rice in the first month, because she didn’t feel like she could cut all grains from her diet initially. I have been seeing Maree for 3 months and so far she has lost 22 pounds.  She is feeling far more energetic and now has refreshing sleep.  I will order another ultrasound scan of her liver in 3 months time to check on her liver’s progress.  Fatty liver usually takes between 6 months and 2 years to clear, so we may have to wait a little longer. The above statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease.