Case study: A fatty liver and a fatty pancreas
I am seeing an increasing number of patients at my clinic with a fatty pancreas and would like to describe one case study to you.
Shae was a 45 year old lady who came to see me for a number of reasons, but a desire to lose weight was at the top of her list. She was a type 2 diabetic, diagnosed only eight months ago. She brought along her most recent blood test results and also her sonogram (ultrasound) report of her liver and pancreas.
Shae has a fatty liver, and this is almost expected in type 2 diabetics, so I was not surprised to see it. Interestingly Shae also has a fatty pancreas. This does occur in diabetics and people with syndrome X, but it is less common.
Fatty pancreas is not something you hear about often but it is a warning sign of future health problems.
Shae is at risk of developing a severe form of type 2 diabetes that requires the use of insulin injections. She is also at risk of developing pancreatic cancer at some stage in the future. Pancreatic cancer is becoming increasingly common, and it is a notoriously difficult cancer to treat. Diabetics are at higher risk of this cancer.
Fatty liver disease is incredibly common; approximately one in five overweight individuals have one. What you may not realise is that people with a fatty liver are also likely to develop excess fatty deposits in their arteries, around their heart, within the kidneys, or inside the pancreas. Fatty accumulation inside any organ can cause oxidative damage and organ dysfunction.
Shae is a police officer. Five years ago she suffered a back injury that left her with permanent damage, leaving her unable to exercise. Her injury meant that she was stuck at her desk doing paperwork all day; thus she engaged in very little movement.
She was not very overweight; she only needed to lose approximately 20 pounds. However, all her weight sits around her abdominal area and she has high levels of visceral fat (meaning fat within her abdominal cavity, as opposed to subcutaneous fat which lies just under the skin). I explained to Shae that in order for her to lose weight, we would have to improve the health of her liver and pancreas, as well as improve her blood sugar control.
My recommendations for my patient
- I put Shae on the eating plan in my book, "I can't lose weight and I don't know why". I explained the importance of reducing her carbohydrate intake and eating protein at each meal. Fortunately Shae didn’t eat toast or breakfast cereal in the mornings, which are typically extremely high in carbohydrate and not conducive to weight loss. Working as a police officer meant working nights and odd hours; therefore Shae regularly ate leftover soup or an omelette at 8am in the morning. I went through the meal ideas and recipes in my book, helping her to choose low carbohydrate lunch and dinner options.
- Shae admitted to eating very large meals. She knew that she ate too much and too quickly, but she didn’t feel able to reduce her portion sizes because she regularly felt very hungry. This is common in type 2 diabetics who have elevated blood insulin levels. Insulin promotes appetite. I asked her to take one Glicemic Balance capsule with each meal. This is a combination of herbs and nutrients that helps to reduce insulin levels and balance blood sugar, making it much easier to stick to a healthy eating plan.
- I asked Shae to take Livatone Plus to help make her liver more efficient at burning fat. This, along with the diet changes should help her lose fat from her internal organs, where it is most needed. Diabetics are more prone to developing a fatty liver, and also just a sluggish poorly functioning liver. This can make weight loss more difficult and also reduce energy levels.
- I asked Shae to look into attending a local yoga class or pilates class. Her back injury meant that she was not able to run, yet there were still many exercises she could safely perform. Yoga and pilates don’t burn as many calories as high intensity exercise, yet they greatly improve strength and muscle tone. Doing some kind of regular exercise also helps improve self esteem and motivation to stick with a healthy eating plan.
- Shae experienced terrible cravings for sweets around 4pm each afternoon. Some days she avoided temptation, but more often than not she grabbed several cookies from the kitchen at work. I suggested she make a protein powder smoothie at that time instead. Whey protein is an excellent source of first class protein that helps to keep you feeling full and satisfied.
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It appears you have high levels of visceral adipose tissue (internal fat). This can happen in insulin resistant people who appear very slim (eg. cyclists). We recommend a very low carbohydrate diet, Bactoclear capsules (to reduce bad gut bugs that can cause liver inflammation) and berberine (to reduce insulin resistance).
Eat less carbohydrate – including sugar, grains and other starchy foods, because the liver converts any excess carbohydrate into fat. Don't drink too much alcohol.
Eat more vegetables, protein and healthy fats.
Drink raw vegetable juices 250 to 300mls 2 to 3 times a week. Dr Cabot’s book ‘Raw Juices can save your life’ has recipes for many different health conditions. Try the ‘Liver Cleanse’ or ‘Liver Tonic’ juices in the book.
We are delighted to let you know that Dr Cabot has recently released her 15 Day Cleanse - Two weeks to begin your journey toward improved overall health and function, utilising both supplements and a tasty, easy to prepare dietary regimen. Please go to www.drcabotcleanse.com to place an order.
After completing the Cleanse, we recommend you remain on this style of eating and you can then begin the Maintenance plan that is available at the same website.
To boost liver health and your vitality, Dr Cabot prescribes
Livatone Plus – 1 to 2 capsules twice daily, to improve liver function.
N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC 600mg) – 1 to 2 capsules twice daily well away from food, if any upset occurs take at the beginning of your meals. This supplement works well with Livatone Plus to get your liver better faster. This supplement is the precursor nutrient of glutathione; the body’s strongest anti-oxidant.
MSM + Vitamin C – ½ to 1 teaspoon twice daily in vegetable juice or water to reduce oxidation, inflammation and boost liver health.
Digestive Enzymes (Super) – 1 capsule at the beginning of each meal. This supplements supplies enzymes and digestive aids to assist effective digestion while you contentiously reverse your pancreatic congestion.
You may purchase these supplements and Dr Cabot’s books athttps://shop.liverdoctor.com/
Kind regards,
Jessah Robinson
Nutritionist for Liverdoctor.com
Please suggest me some ideas to loose 20 pound of weight and proper diet to heal my pancreas problem.
I had my ultrasound for whole abdomine and there was a report of
Impression: fatty pancreas
And when I asked the doctor about it he told me that it's not a major problem u just have to avoid fatty food and do regular exercise you will be fine..
Is it cure??
Please help me out ma'am
I am a student and teacher too...
We recommend you follow the anti-inflammatory diet in Dr Cabot's book 'I Can't Lose Weight and I Don't Know Why'.
We recommend you eliminate or reduce gluten, sugar, dairy, processed food and takeout meals.
We recommend you take
Glicemic Balance 1 cap with each meal to reduce insulin and blood sugar and reduce cravings for fatty foods.
Livatone Plus 2 caps twice daily to make the liver more efficient at burning fat and to protect liver cells.
These can be purchased here:https://shop.liverdoctor.com/
It is also very important to make sure you are getting regular exercise.
Let us know how you get on.
Kind Regards,
Jessah Robinson
Nutrition Consultant for Liverdoctor.com
Fatty Pancreas follows closely behind Fatty Liver as the next terrible step towards Type 2 Diabetes. With enough fat in their pancreas, a patient will even stop making their own insulin, and require insulin injections.
Thanks for talking about this very important topic!
We recommend you eliminate all grains, sugar, processed food and takeout meals from your diet.
There is some dietary information in this article:https://www.liverdoctor.com/what-should-you-eat-if-you-have-fatty-liver/
For further information you can read Dr Cabot's books: 'Healing Autoimmune Disease' and 'Fatty Liver: You Can Reverse It'.
Dr Cabot recommends you take
Livatone Plus 2 caps twice daily to improve liver function.
N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC) 2 caps twice daily at least 2 hours away from food, if any upset occurs please take with meals. NAC is the precursor to glutathione; the body's most potent antioxidant. This supplement works well with Livatone Plus to get the liver better faster.
Vitamin D3 5000 IU one cap daily to help vitiligo as vitamin D benefits the immune system in such a way that can cause renewal of skin pigmentation.
Berberine 1 cap twice daily is very beneficial for type 2 diabetics as it lowers blood sugar and insulin levels.
These supplements can be purchased here:https://shop.liverdoctor.com/
Let us know how you get on.
Kind Regards,
Jessah Robinson
Nutritional Consultant for Liverdoctor.com
Thank you,
Karla
Berberine would be very beneficial for you – for the diabetes and the inflammation in your body:https://www.liverdoctor.com/berberine/ A low carbohydrate diet is also important. There is an eating plan that would help you in our diabetes book:http://shop.liverdoctor.com/diabetes-type-2-you-can-reverse-it-naturally.html
Kind Regards,
Jessah Robinson
Sales & Nutrition Consultant
I am Amit from India. I have developed liver fibrosis and fatty infiltration of pancreas.I was a moderate alcohol drinker for almost 15 years and also have diabetes type 2 for last 5 years. Please advise I am in desperate need of help.
Your fatty pancreas may have developed from fatty liver and your cirrhotic liver may have developed from a fatty liver.
As you are a diabetic, Dr Cabot recommends you obtain her book ‘Diabetes Type 2 – You Can Reverse It Naturally’ and follow the diet very strictly; it may also reverse the fatty infiltrations in your pancreas and halt further damage to your liver.
Dr Cabot also recommends you begin taking
Glicemic Balance – 2 capsules at the beginning of each meal.
Livatone Plus – 2 capsules twice daily, to improve liver function.
N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC 600mg) – 2 capsules twice daily well away from food, if any upset occurs take at the beginning of your meals. As you will see from the attached pamphlet this supplement works well with Livatone Plus to get your liver better faster. This supplement hastens liver healing. This supplement is the precursor nutrient of glutathione; the body’s strongest anti-oxidant.
Vitamin E – 1 capsule twice daily, to soften scar tissue.
If you have no bleeding issues arising from your cirrhosis Dr Cabot recommends
Serrapeptase – begin with 1 capsule daily for 3 days, increase to 1 capsule twice daily for 4 days and if it well tolerated you may increase the dose to 2 capsules twice daily and always to be taken on an empty stomach.
If bleeding is an issue please start taking MSM + Vitamin C – ½ to 1 teaspoon twice daily in vegetable juice or water to reduce oxidation, inflammation and boost liver health. This is taken to promote tissue rebuilding and strengthening. When any damaged tissue is well healed, you may begin the Serrapeptase.
You can purchase these supplements and book athttp://shop.liverdoctor.com/supplements.html
Kind Regards,
Jessah Robinson
Sales & Nutrition Consultant
Removing fat from within the liver and pancreas can help to reverse type 2 diabetes. A low carbohydrate eating plan is necessary. There is one in our diabetes book:http://shop.liverdoctor.com/diabetes-type-2-you-can-reverse-it-naturally.html
Often people that get lipomas have a fatty liver. The information here should help you:https://www.liverdoctor.com/liver/fatty-liver/
It would be good to have a scan of your pancreas, to see why your blood sugar fluctuates so much.
Kind Regards,
Jessah Robinson
Sales & Nutrition Consultant
I was diagnosed with NAFL 8 years ago, and found out through family that we have Hyperlipidema, so I started to see a Cardiologist who some of my family members see. Well, he gave me more meds and said I need to lose weight. Well, that was easier said than done. A couple years went by and I visited the hospital a few more times with pancreatitis and sphincter of oddi dysfunction and still no help. I've seen every Doctor I could find and was passed on from one to another. I was having a few issues and one of my test came back inconclusive; so I was sent to a Oncologist and sent to a Gastrologist who specialty was the pancreas. Well he reluctantly saw me and ran the test my Oncologist request. He found on top of my fatty Liver I have a fatty pancreas. I'm 55, 5'7" and weigh 185, I run 3 miles everyday and couldn't lose an ounce and in pain. After reviewing my results we discussed a plan and he put me on a Low FodMap diet. Since I've been on it I've lost 15lbs, and I am 90% pain free. There are things on the FodMap list that I can't eat, and if I avoid them I'm great. I've lived with my pain for 30yrs and I'm just now finding relief. It's not an easy transition, but it's well worth it. I'm now doing 7miles a day and loving the way I feel and look.
You need to avoid sugar and grains.
You should also take:
Livatone Plus - 2 caps twice daily to boost liver function while protecting from damage.
NAC - 2 caps twice daily away from food.
Collagen food - 1/2 tsp daily.
You need to start raw juicing. Especially celery, mint, parsley, carrot, lime, lemon and ginger.
You should purchase Dr Cabot's book 'Fatty Liver: You can reverse it'.
It's also important you exercise regularly.
Kind Regards,
Jessah