There is a specific medicine for fatty liver! 5% lighter password

[Key Points Guide]: After eating a piece of chicken steak, you can feel whether the oil is drained away enough in your mouth; if you eat too much greasy food, your body will also feel the accumulation of fat and cellulite. However, the liver is a silent organ, and gaining weight is not noticeable at a glance. Many people only accidentally discover during a health check that their liver is surrounded by fat and its vitality is being lost bit by bit. How to reverse fatty liver? Why not put down the wine glass in your hand and quickly make a plan to lose fat. Even a small weight loss of 5% can bring huge health benefits.

Why is there fatty liver? Overnutrition and excessive drinking are the most common

Are you also suffering from fatty liver? Although there is no census data on fatty liver disease in China, Luo Qingchi, director of the gastroenterology and hepatobiliary department of St. Martin's Hospital, said that based on a number of clinical research reports, it can be found that the proportion of adults with fatty liver disease caused by overnutrition is about 20% to 40%, and about 70% of alcoholics will develop fatty liver disease.

In terms of gender, the proportion of men and women with fatty liver is 30% and 15% respectively, which is a difference of 1 times. The reason may be the protective effect of female hormones. However, once women enter menopause, their female hormone secretion decreases and their chances of developing fatty liver are similar to those of men of the same age.

"Why does fatty liver occur?" This is the question that almost every patient who finds out that they have fatty liver has! In fact, there are many reasons for the formation of fatty liver, including obesity, abnormal fat metabolism, viral infection, drug effects, small intestine surgical resection, rapid weight loss, malnutrition, diabetes, hyperlipidemia and pregnancy in women. Among them, obesity, alcoholism, diabetes and hyperlipidemia are the most notorious, ranking the top three.

Modern people have an uncontrolled diet and overnutrition, which increases the metabolic burden on the liver and easily leads to fatty liver.

The tiny liver weighs 1.3 kilograms and is responsible for metabolism and detoxification

The liver of an adult weighs about 1.3 kilograms, which is a small proportion of the whole body, but it is the main organ for metabolism and detoxification. The liver contains a large amount of enzymes required for the metabolism of three major nutrients, namely carbohydrates, lipids and proteins. It can store substances produced by metabolism and, when necessary, transport the substances to various organs through blood circulation to maintain normal physiological functions.

In addition, the liver also helps in the production of bile, which is concentrated in the gallbladder and injected into the duodenum to assist the small intestine in digesting and absorbing fat, and can help excrete unnecessary bilirubin and cholesterol from the body.

Overnutrition! The liver is also surrounded by fat!

However, modern people generally have overnutrition and prefer high-fat foods, which increases the metabolic burden on the liver. Unable to bear the load will cause fat accumulation. If the weight of fat is greater than 5% of the weight of the liver, it can be defined as "fatty liver." Dr. Luo Qingchi said that the greatest relationship between fatty liver is obesity. According to clinical estimates, about 20% of people with a BMI (body mass index) of more than 25 have fatty liver; the proportion of fatty liver in people with a BMI of more than 25 is as high as half.

The fatter a person is, the higher the risk of developing fatty liver. Similarly, looking at the BMI value, if the BMI between 18.5 and 25 is considered the normal range, then for mildly obese people with a BMI between 25 and 30, the risk of fatty liver will increase by 1 times; for moderately obese people with a BMI between 30 and 35, the risk of fatty liver will increase by 2.7 times; as for severely obese people with a BMI between 35 and 40, the risk of fatty liver will increase by 4 times.

Obesity increases the risk of fatty liver, and losing weight is the best way, but losing weight too quickly will increase the burden on the liver and lead to the formation of fatty liver.

If the triglycerides and cholesterol in the blood are too high, it will also increase the risk of fatty liver. If the triglyceride level exceeds 200 mg per 100 ml of blood, the risk of developing fatty liver is three times higher than that of normal people.

◎Lose weight by 5%, and fatty liver will stay away from me.

◎Don’t lose weight too quickly! If you lose weight too quickly, your liver will not be able to handle it.

Losing weight is the best specific medicine to deal with overnutrition type fatty liver. Studies have found that if obese people lose 5% weight, liver inflammation can be significantly improved! There was once a male freshman in college who weighed 170 kg when he went to the hospital for treatment. His liver inflammation index was as high as 200 units (the average person's level is below 40 units). However, after adjusting his lifestyle and diet, he lost 5 kg in half a year. Although he lost less than 5% of his body weight, his liver inflammation index quickly dropped to more than 80 units, and his fatty liver improved significantly.

It should be noted that fatty liver is a tough opponent, and the faster you lose weight, the better. Losing weight too quickly or being malnourished will affect the normal metabolic function of the liver and may aggravate fatty liver.

Dr. Luo Qingchi reminds us that if we lose weight too quickly, liver cells will not have time to excrete the synthesized triglycerides from the liver in the form of lipoproteins, causing the triglyceride concentration in the body to rise. This vicious cycle will cause fat cells to gradually become obese, leading to more severe fatty liver and more likely to cause liver inflammation and fibrosis. Generally speaking, the recommended weight loss rate is to lose no more than 0.5 kg to 1.6 kg per week.

Each 200cc glass of red wine has an alcohol content of about 24 grams. Boys can only drink 1.5 glasses a day, while girls can only drink 1 glass.

Be greedy for the drink! Alcohol calories and NADH are too harmful to the liver

Although alcoholism ranks second among the causes of fatty liver in the population, its lethality is more powerful than obesity-related fatty liver. Many people like to drink to cheer themselves up and cannot be happy without alcohol, but alcohol has two major disadvantages: high calories and damage to the liver. In terms of calories, every gram of alcohol produces 7 calories. The higher the alcohol concentration, the more calories. If you drink a glass of whiskey with an alcohol concentration of 41%, it is equivalent to drinking 41 grams of alcohol and 287 calories, which is equivalent to the calories in a bowl of rice (about 200 grams). In the long run, it is difficult not to gain weight.

Compared with calories, the impact of alcohol on the liver is more terrible. Patients with alcoholic fatty liver are prone to hepatitis or cirrhosis. Epidemiological statistics also found that in the United States, alcoholism is the most important cause of chronic liver disease, with the incidence of alcoholic liver disease in men being three times that of women.

The liver is the body's primary organ responsible for detoxifying and eliminating alcohol. After alcohol is consumed by the human body, it will be absorbed by the small intestine, enter the portal blood and reach the liver, where it will be metabolized, oxidizing the alcohol into acetaldehyde, and then oxidizing the acetaldehyde into acetic acid, gradually turning it into a structure and substance that is harmless to the body and easily excreted from the body. However, acetaldehyde is highly active and can itself cause damage to liver cells.

Lai Bohong, a nutritionist at St. Martin's Hospital, said that the key to the formation of alcoholic fatty liver lies in the NADH (reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) produced during the oxidation of acetaldehyde into acetic acid. When the NADH level in the body increases, it will cause changes in the liver's redox function, causing disorders in the metabolism of fatty acids in the liver. On the one hand, it promotes the synthesis of fatty acids, but on the other hand, it cannot excrete fatty acids normally, causing fat droplets to accumulate in liver cells and causing fatty liver.

◎Daily alcohol limit: 36 grams for men and 24 grams for women.

Dr. Luo Qingchi reminds us that if men consume more than 36 grams of alcohol per day and women drink more than 24 grams of alcohol per day, fatty liver will usually develop within half a month to three months, depending on the speed of their individual body metabolism and the amount of alcohol consumed in excess. If the habit of excessive drinking continues, it may deteriorate into alcoholic cirrhosis within 4 to 5 years. Compared with obese people, where only 10% of the patients will develop cirrhosis, the degree of liver damage caused by alcohol is even more alarming.

Is drinking absolutely not allowed in life? Not really, the important thing is to consider the portion and avoid overdosage. Nutritionist Lai Bo-hong said that if the upper limit of daily alcohol intake is calculated as 36 grams for men and 24 grams for women, boys can only drink a maximum of 62cc of sorghum liquor per day with an alcohol content of 58%, and girls about 41cc. If converted to 200cc per cup, this is equivalent to 0.31 and 0.21 cups respectively.

As for red wine with an alcohol content of 12%, boys can only drink 1.5 glasses a day, and girls can only have 1 glass. As for beer with a lower alcohol content of about 3.5%, boys should not drink more than 5.14 cups a day, while girls are limited to 3.43 cups.

◎The most effective way to get rid of alcoholic fatty liver is to quit drinking! The hangover solution was thrown away!

The best and easiest way to eliminate alcoholic fatty liver is to "quit drinking"! But if you accidentally drink too much, is it okay to take some hangover solution or liver-protecting food? Doctors point out that most of the hangover products or folk remedies circulating in the market can only relieve the uncomfortable symptoms of hangover, but cannot truly improve the liver's ability to metabolize alcohol. Time is the only tool to completely metabolize alcohol. As for traditional Chinese medicine or health foods such as Coptis chinensis, clam essence and vitamin B, they do not help reduce the damage caused by alcohol to the liver.

In particular, doctors are most afraid that people will take Chinese medicine indiscriminately. Dr. Lai Qingchi shared that he once treated a male student who was about to enter the second year of junior high school. The boy was 160 cm tall and weighed 55 kg, with a normal body shape, but he had fatty liver and his liver inflammation index soared to 200 units. After carefully inquiring about his medical history, it was discovered that the boy had been taking a traditional Chinese medicine bone-strengthening prescription for half a year without seeking medical treatment. After finding out the problem, the boy stopped using the bone-changing formula for about 2 weeks. The liver inflammation index quickly dropped to 50 units and the fatty liver was improved.

Dr. Luo Qingchi reminds the public to undergo regular abdominal ultrasound examinations to help detect fatty liver early. (Photo courtesy of St. Martin's Hospital)

Reverse fatty liver disease! Start with regular ultrasound scans to detect signs of disease

If the liver is healthy, life is colorful; if the liver is bad, life is black and white. Unfortunately, the liver is a silent organ. Even if people suffer from fatty liver, most of them are "unaware" of it. Only a few people will feel tired, fullness in the right upper abdomen, or pain or liver enlargement when fatty liver becomes serious. Blood tests may show a slight increase in the liver inflammation index.

Although non-alcoholic fatty liver disease rarely causes liver inflammation, recent studies have pointed out that careful observation of liver pathological sections of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease can still reveal liver cell necrosis, inflammation, and fibrosis. Long-term neglect can also lead to cirrhosis. The only difference between alcoholic fatty liver disease and cirrhosis is the length of time!

Regardless of whether or not you have a drinking habit, doctors recommend that people have regular health checks and abdominal ultrasound examinations, the latter of which has an accuracy rate of up to 97% in diagnosing fatty liver. Once you are diagnosed with fatty liver, but do not have hepatitis B or C, and do not abuse alcohol or take medicine indiscriminately, you can reduce the risk of developing hepatitis, cirrhosis and liver cancer by exercising more, eating less starchy and high-fat foods, and tracking your condition regularly.

If you suffer from diabetes or hyperlipidemia, it is recommended that you follow your doctor's advice and take anti-glycemic and lipid-lowering drugs to improve or prevent fatty liver. It is estimated that half of all diabetics have fatty liver disease, and one of the root causes may be excessive insulin. The development of fatty liver in patients with hyperlipidemia is closely related to the high concentrations of cholesterol and triglycerides.