Fatty liver is an extremely common condition that is thought to affect one in five individuals.  This is probably a conservative estimate and a true figure is likely one in three.  Fatty liver disease can be diagnosed via an ultrasound scan of the liver.  A blood test usually shows elevated liver enzymes.  Basically having a fatty liver means too much fat has accumulated inside your liver and this compromises the ability of the liver to function.

Fatty liver is a common diagnosis that many individuals and their doctors take too lightly.  Having a fatty liver is an indicator of a much larger problem with metabolism.  The liver has become a fat storing organ instead of a fat burning organ.  Your liver is supposed to regulate fat metabolism properly and will "burn" excess body fat and remove it from your body via the bile.  Clearly this is not happening in individuals with a fatty liver, and they usually find it extremely difficult to lose weight.

I have seen thousands of patients with a fatty liver and I’ve discovered 8 vital strategies for reversing this condition.

1. Follow a low carbohydrate diet

A correct diet for fatty liver excludes sugar, refined and/or bleached flour and foods containing these things. Avoid all foods with added sugar. If you are overweight and find it very difficult to lose weight, it is more effective to exclude ALL grains and be on a “no grain diet”.

Carbohydrates to avoid –

These include table sugar, foods with added sugar or maltodextrin, fructose, polydextrose, high fructose corn syrup, honey, golden syrup, molasses, jams, preserves made with sugar, candies, sweet desserts, chocolate and ice-cream, muffins, donuts, pizza, pretzels, chips, pastry, cakes and biscuits. The best types of chocolate for those with a fatty liver are stevia-sweetened chocolate.

2. Increase the amount of raw plant food in your diet

Raw vegetables and fruits are the most powerful liver healing foods. These raw foods help to cleanse and repair the liver filter, so that it can trap and remove more fat and toxins from the blood stream. Eat an abundance of vegetables (cooked and raw salads) and fresh fruits. Eat a large salad every day, or much better still twice a day, and use a nice dressing made with cold pressed oils and apple cider vinegar and lemon juice. Some people only eat salads during summer, as this is the way they have been educated. Forget this habit, as your liver needs raw food every day!

3. Eat first class protein with every meal or if you have sudden hunger

Good sources of protein include –

  • Free range, pastured eggs
  • All seafood fresh or canned (avoid smoked or deep-fried seafood)
  • Free range poultry
  • Lean fresh red meat
  • Whey protein powder, especially Synd-X Protein powder designed for fatty liver people

Good protein can also be provided from a combination of legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas) and raw nuts and seeds; you need to combine the legume with the seed and nut at the same meal, as this will provide first class protein which contains all the essential amino acids. If you just eat a bean, or a nut, by itself, you are not getting the first class protein you need to control your hunger and blood sugar levels. This is why it is not uncommon for strict vegans to struggle with their weight and suffer with unstable blood sugar levels and sugar cravings.

There is an easy to follow lower carbohydrate, higher protein eating plan in my book Fatty Liver: You Can Reverse It.

4. Avoid the unhealthy fats

These include all deep fried foods, grain fed meat, processed and preserved meats, partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, trans-fatty acids found in margarines and cheap cooking oils. Avoid hydrogenated oils found in processed foods and snacks (read the labels on foods to see if they contain hydrogenated vegetable oils).

Avoid cream and cream cheese as they are too rich for those with a fatty liver and will aggravate gall stones.

You do NOT need to follow a low fat diet and indeed you need to eat the healthy fats found in seafood, cold pressed vegetable and seed oils, free range organic eggs, raw nuts and seeds.

5. Drink raw vegetable juices regularly

A fatty liver is an inflamed liver and raw vegetable juices are a powerful natural anti-inflammatory remedy.  If you have a fatty liver, your liver cells desperately need the vitamins, minerals and antioxidant pigments in fresh raw vegetables.  Juices are therapeutic because they provide an added boost of nutrients, on top of the vegetables I’d like you to eat in salads for lunch and dinner.  There are specific juices for the liver in my book Raw Juices Can Save Your Life.

6. A regular exercise program

A regular exercise program is important as it speeds up the metabolism and reduces insulin levels. Why not join a gym or buy yourself an exercise machine that allows you to do weight resistance exercises? Walking, swimming and recreational sports can be incorporated into your lifestyle.

Please take the time to do these things with the understanding that your health is more important than meeting deadlines at work or at home. Once you improve your liver function you will find that you have a lot more energy and that your mental state and moods are much better. Thus you will have extra energy to achieve the things that you previously struggled to get through.

7. Take a liver tonic every day

Take a liver tonic every day and use a tonic that combines the clinically proven dose of the herb Milk Thistle combined N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC), activated B group vitamins, selenium, antioxidants and sulphur rich amino acids. Livatone Plus contains all these things in one capsule; this enables you to avoid having to take multiple tablets of the individual ingredients. Livatone Plus will promote repair of damaged liver cells, and facilitate the fat burning and detoxification functions of the liver; they can also speed up weight loss.

8. Overcome unstable blood sugar levels

If you have unstable blood sugar levels (a common symptom of fatty liver) you may need extra supplements to control your carbohydrate cravings and prevent the symptoms of low blood sugar. When the level of sugar (glucose) in the blood drops to abnormally low levels, some very unpleasant and disabling symptoms may occur.

The symptoms of low blood sugar may include –

  • Strong cravings for sugar and foods high in carbohydrates
  • Dizziness and feeling light-headed
  • Sweating and racing pulse
  • Fatigue
  • Foggy vision
  • Moodiness
  • Mental confusion

The condition of abnormally low blood sugar levels is called hypoglycaemia and this can be tested for with a 2 hour Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT). Hypoglycaemia often alternates with high levels of sugar in the blood, so that the levels of blood sugar resemble a roller coaster; this is common in Syndrome X (known as the metabolic syndrome) and/or in the early stages of diabetes.
Natural supplements can be taken to improve the function of insulin and stabilize blood sugar levels; these reduce the symptoms of hypoglycaemia. The most effective one is known as Glicemic Balance capsules.

I also recommend that you do not over eat and control your portions. Intermittent fasting is also of great benefit and not hard to do - for example just miss breakfast, or even miss breakfast and lunch; instead drink water and herbal teas. If you get hungry while fasting, you can chew on some raw coconut pieces as they are very healthy to eat and quell hunger, or you can make a quick shake with Synd-X Protein powder and coconut cream and water - this will take away hunger and contains no carbohydrates.

The above statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease.