Peckkale

Fatty Liver

What is it?
Fatty liver is also known as NASH, which stands for Non- Alcoholic
Steatorrhoeic Hepatosis or Non-Alcoholic-Fatty-Liver-Disease (NAFLD) but don’t be put off by these big terms – they just mean that your liver is being invaded with fat! Fatty liver or NASH, is very common in overweight persons, over the age of 30.

It contains an excessive amount of fat and the normal healthy liver tissue is partly replaced with areas of unhealthy fats. In such a liver, the liver cells and the spaces in the liver are filled with fat so the liver becomes slightly enlarged and heavier. The liver has a yellow greasy appearance. There may be discomfort over the liver, which is situated in the right upper abdominal area. There may be gallstones composed of cholesterol and bile salts. It is often possible to see the excess fat in the liver in an ultrasound scan of the liver. There may also be elevation of the liver enzymes.


Liver dysfunction is very common and an increasing problem.

The healthy liver is much redder in color and has a uniform texture. If we cut the liver up into tiny slices and magnify it many millions of times you will see that it is full of spaces that are red-pink color because they are full of blood. The rows of liver cells form the walls of the spaces. As the blood flows through these spaces the liver cells remove the toxins, dead cells, micro-organisms and fat from the blood stream. Thus we call the liver the filter and cleanser of the blood stream. If the liver spaces and liver cells are full of fat, then the liver is not able to filter and cleanse the blood stream efficiently and the blood stream will become overloaded with toxins and fat. It is best to work on reversing this problem as if left unchecked poor liver function can lead to further problems such as autoimmune conditions and Diabetes type 2

How do you know if you have a fatty liver?
• You will probably be overweight, especially in the abdominal area
• You will find it very hard to lose weight
• You may have elevated cholesterol and triglycerides in your blood
• You may have Syndrome X
• You may have diabetes type 2
• You will be very tired
• You may have problems with your immune system

The consequences of a fatty liver
The healthy liver regulates fat metabolism and is the major fat-burning organ in the body. Indeed the healthy liver not only burns fat, it can pump excessive fat out of your body through the bile into the gut. Thus, if your liver is healthy you will not have much difficulty in controlling your weight. Conversely a liver which is fatty is doing the opposite of what it should be doing. A fatty liver is storing fat when it should be burning fat and removing excess fat from your body. Indeed a fatty liver becomes a warehouse for fat and if it is allowed to progress for many years, the liver may finally become just a “bag of fat” with dire consequences for your health and longevity.

How common is fatty liver?
In the USA the incidence of fatty liver is 15 to 20% of the general population and is much higher than this in obese individuals. Fatty liver is the most common cause of abnormal liver function tests in the USA. It can also occur in children.

Can you reverse a fatty liver?
Yes indeed you can and you will find inspiration in the testimonial from Dr Eanelli. Click here for his inspiring testimonial. Conventional or orthodox medicine has no specific therapy or drug treatment to reverse a fatty liver. Indeed many drugs such as cholesterol lowering drugs can exert toxic effects on the liver cells.

The article in the Journal Medicine Today encouraged a gradual reduction in weight which has been shown to improve liver function and reverse liver damage. However the authors warn against very rapid weight loss from fad diets or radical surgery which may have a negative impact upon the progression of liver injury. The good news is that gradual weight reduction , with as little as a 5 to 10% loss of initial body weight over 6 months is recommended. In general the treatments discussed in the Medicine Today article were somewhat uninspiring and I am pleased to tell you that in reality there is much that can be done to reverse the condition of fatty liver.

So, fatty liver can be reversed but this can take some time - years in some cases. If you are overweight & find it very difficult to lose the excess weight it is important to look at all the factors relevant to your present weight & state of health.

Apart from diet and nutritional deficiencies, the most important factors are –

• Insulin resistance or Syndrome X

• Fatty Liver Syndrome
The liver contains an excessive amount of fat and the normal healthy liver tissue is partly replaced with areas of unhealthy fats.

• Toxicity
You may have a build-up of fat-soluble toxins (such as insecticides & pesticides), drug metabolites or waste products of metabolism in your fatty tissues and liver. This slows down the metabolism of the fatty parts of your body & also over-burdens your liver. This means that the liver burns fat less efficiently. Gentle and regular detoxification is very helpful when
trying to lose weight. Drinking plenty of water, raw vegetable juices and Livatone formulas will help the detoxification process.

How long does it take to see results?
The liver has become a fat storage organ rather than a fat burning organ - so this situation must be reversed before actual weight loss can occur. Obviously this will depend on the extent of the fatty liver as to how long this will take. Also be prepared for the fact that you will more than likely hit a 'plateau' - where weight loss will stop or slow right down - this may go on for weeks or a month or two - Don't be discouraged at this time - the fat loss is occurring - but is going from within your liver so you may not see any visible fat loss from the body - stick with it! It is at this time that people will tend to give up thinking that that's it - they won't lose anymore - not true! - you must be diligent and patient - the symptoms you are experiencing have taken years to develop and cannot be reversed by a couple of weeks of "dieting" Yo Yo dieting is not advisable as the weight lost will return plus more and the
metabolism will slow.

My Doctors said there is nothing that can be done?
Many Doctors still do not make the link between the traditional western diet and fatty liver. Many simply brush over the condition, telling patients there is nothing that can be done and that it will simply be ‘monitored’. Meanwhile the condition gets worse and worse as the functional liver tissue slowly gets replaced by fat over the years. If left unchecked, a severe inflamed fatty liver can lead to scarring of the liver tissue (cirrhosis).

Is the Doctor correct? Can nothing be done? The answer is a resounding ‘NO!”
Thankfully the liver is one of the most resilient organs in the body. It is capable of much self healing if given a chance.

My "enzymes" are raised what does this mean?
The elevated liver enzyme results indicate that there is inflammation and damage to the liver cells and their membranes. Liver enzymes are normally contained within the liver cells, and only when the cells are damaged and/or inflamed, do the enzymes leak into the blood stream. This can occur due to a fatty liver, alcohol excess, some medications such as long term antibiotics, and pain killers, oral synthetic Hormone Replacement, viral infections of the liver such as hepatitis C & B, auto-immune hepatitis, hemachromatosis, primary biliary cirrhosis, exposure to toxic chemicals such as insecticides & pesticides & organic solvents & incorrect diet.

Luckily the liver cells are very resilient and with proper diet and supplements they will repair and the enzyme levels will slowly come down over time in the case of simple fatty liver. This may take some months. It is also not uncommon for the enzyme levels to fluctuate up and down before they decrease.