At work, every day, people come with medical checkups and ask: “Doctor, I just had an ultrasound and found out I have fatty liver, what should I do? What should I do? Will this disease spread to my family members? Will I be able to use lipid-regulating drugs? I heard that if fatty liver is serious, it can become cirrhosis? I was told that I should eat less if I have a fatty liver, is this true? . Most patients, once they find out that they have a fatty liver, they become very nervous about their liver.
Fatty Liver FAQ
If the fat metabolism of the liver is impaired due to various reasons, causing an increase in the synthesis and decrease in the decomposition of fat in liver cells, resulting in the accumulation of too much fat in the liver, if the accumulation exceeds 5% of the weight of the liver, or if the infiltration of liver parenchyma exceeds 50% histologically, it is called fatty liver.
According to the causes of fatty liver, it can be divided into obese fatty liver, alcoholic fatty liver, nutritional disorder fatty liver, drug fatty liver, acute fatty liver in pregnancy, diabetic fatty liver, etc. According to the histopathological changes of liver, fatty liver is divided into three periods: stage I for simple fatty liver without inflammatory response of liver tissue, stage II for steatohepatitis with inflammation and fibrosis of liver tissue, and stage III for fatty cirrhosis of liver.
When we find out that we have fatty liver, the first thing we need to do is to figure out the cause of the disease and treat it symptomatically after the cause is clear.
Question 1: Are fatty liver and hepatitis the same thing?
Some people who find out they have fatty liver think they have hepatitis and rush to isolate themselves from their families. It can be clearly said that fatty liver is never hepatitis. Fatty liver is simply a fatty liver caused by excessive fat content in the liver and a large number of fat cells filling up the liver cells. Once the excess fat accumulated in the liver is eliminated, most of the liver functions can be restored to normal and there are no after-effects.
Fatty liver and viral hepatitis are somewhat similar in that they both diminish the normal metabolic function of the liver to varying degrees, causing liver dysfunction. However, they are fundamentally different and belong to two different liver diseases. In addition, hepatitis is contagious, but fatty liver is caused by the accumulation of fat in the liver, not by infection with the hepatitis virus, and is not contagious in any way.
Question 2: Can fatty liver be treated as long as it is a lipid-regulating drug?
Not all lipid-regulating drugs are suitable for every fatty liver patient. The bile acid binding resins and niacin in lipid regulating drugs should not be used casually. Patients with fatty liver must have regular medical checkups at the hospital and use medications as required by their doctors. The treatment of fatty liver is a comprehensive treatment, of which the most important is non-pharmacological treatment such as controlling diet, increasing exercise and changing bad life behaviors. And drug treatment is only an auxiliary measure, a short-term intensive behavior.
In daily life, we should pay attention to diet, especially the consumption of fruit should be “moderate”. Fruits contain sugar, especially those rich in monosaccharides and disaccharides, which can lead to elevated blood glucose and blood lipids if consumed in excess over a long period of time. Sweet foods are not suitable for people with fatty liver, and it is recommended that people with fatty liver eat fruit between meals to reduce the amount of regular meals eaten.
Question 3: Does fatty liver lead to cirrhosis?
Not all patients with fatty liver end up with cirrhosis. Although theoretically speaking, regardless of the cause of fatty liver, the swollen “obese” liver cells squeeze each other, compressing the blood vessels and causing ischemia and hypoxia in the liver tissue, causing degeneration and necrosis of liver cells over time, leading to the further development of chronic fibrosis, which is commonly referred to as cirrhosis.
Statistical research shows that if the non-alcoholic fatty liver caused by overnutrition, diabetes, hyperlipidemia and obesity, etc., as long as through reasonable treatment and adjustment of daily diet structure or scientific weight loss measures, with the correction of overnutrition and weight loss, so that the accumulation of fat in the liver gradually reduce or even gradually disappear. This will not only reduce the probability of fibrosis but also make the fatty liver disappear and recover better.
If liver damage has been caused by long-term use of liver-damaging drugs, patients with fatty liver caused by malnutrition and chronic alcoholism, especially those with fatty liver caused by combined chronic hepatitis, the healing process is relatively poor. Only by adhering to systematic treatment will they not tend to deteriorate.
Question 4: Can “starvation therapy” cure fatty liver?
Some people who have fatty liver are desperate to lose weight, and even take “starvation therapy”, together with heavy exercise, so that the weight drops suddenly in a short period of time, this practice is very undesirable. Although rapid weight loss can make the fat in the liver subside, it can cause metabolic disorders in the body, aggravate inflammation and fibrosis in the liver, and even induce steatohepatitis and liver failure. Only “progressive weight loss” can improve the fatty deposits and inflammation of the liver.
Although fatty liver is an affluent disease, poor nutrition can also lead to fatty liver. Many women who love beauty dieting, picky eating and partial eating can lay the root of malnutrition, which will gradually lead to fatty liver. Therefore, correcting bad eating habits and eating properly is the key to changing malnutrition and preventing fatty liver.
Question 5: If there are no symptoms, no treatment is needed?
Some patients think that they can eat and drink and have no symptoms, so they take the treatment of fatty liver lightly, and as a result, a small disease becomes a big disease. We all know that fatty liver can have no conscious symptoms, but once diagnosed, it should be actively treated, which not only can effectively prevent further development of fatty liver, but also facilitate its complete recovery.
Tips from nutritionists to get rid of fatty liver
How to exercise for fatty liver? Walk for half an hour every day
For white-collar workers who are usually busy, how should they exercise to effectively reduce fat and treat fatty liver?
1, by public transport white-collar workers can catch the bus and subway in the road to take a brisk walk, maintain more than half an hour a day. Streak walking than walking intensity, slow and leisurely walking can not play the slightest role.
2, white-collar workers with private cars can also choose to walk after dinner, it is best to also adhere to half an hour. Each person’s physical condition is different, suitable for the movement is also different. Like hypertension, heart disease patients should not walk.
3, the weekend can choose outdoor sports, patients can best ensure that about 4 hours of exercise time per week. Aerobic exercise is more suitable for fatty liver patients, such as cycling, up and down stairs, climbing, playing badminton, shuttlecock, etc. This kind of exercise, exercise with aerobic catabolism, can inhibit triglyceride synthesis and promote lipolysis.
It is important to note that fatty liver exercise therapy is a gradual process. It is completely unscientific to try to lower lipids through one or two high-intensity exercises a week to cope with fatty liver. It is recommended that the amount of exercise should be slowly increased from small to large, 3 to 5 times a week, 15 to 60 minutes each time.
How to eat with fatty liver? Eighty percent full at each meal
Spring Festival gorging is likely to aggravate fatty liver, healthy diet is more urgent after the festival. So, what, how much and how should fatty liver patients eat?
Patients with fatty liver should preferably eat only 80% of each meal. The composition of daily diet can be referred to the following suggestions: vegetables and fruits account for 1/2; staple foods are moderately reduced, accounting for 1/8; meat and vegetables follow the principle of less red meat and more white meat, also 1/8; the remaining 1/8 is plant protein food, such as peanuts, nuts, soy products, etc.
Some patients once found fatty liver, but immediately take “vegetarian policy”, resolutely away from meat. In fact, there is no need to be so nervous, fatty liver patients are not completely unable to eat meat. A long-term vegetarian diet can also lead to nutritional deficiency fatty liver. The daily intake of 80-100 grams of high quality protein will help to remove fat from the liver.