How To Reverse Fatty Liver? 13 Top Lifestyle Changes To Make Today
According to a 2023 AIIMS (All India Institute Of Medical Science) study, over one-third (38 per cent) of Indians have fatty liver or nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
While some people have alcoholic fatty liver, where alcohol consumption is one of the leading contributors in addition to a poor lifestyle, nonalcoholic fatty liver is lifestyle driven.
Here’s something most people do not know.
Whether you have a nonalcoholic fatty liver or an alcoholic fatty liver, you need to follow the same lifestyle changes we delve into today beyond stopping your alcohol consumption.
Myth: There is no medication. Nothing can be done about my fatty liver!
Truth bomb: For the longest time, people have believed they cannot do anything with fatty liver because there is no medicine or pill. We are here to tell you that there is a lot you can do with your lifestyle to manage this better.
Understand this: If your own liver has created excess fat which is a problem, your liver can get rid of it too. Nothing is permanent. Of course, if you delay addressing it and are too late, then the case is different.
What are the stages of fatty liver?
Mild Fatty Liver > Grade 1 > Grade 2 > Grade 3 > Cirrhotic Liver > Liver Transplant
In our experience, even people with scarred livers when they make beautiful lifestyle changes – can stop or slow down the progression. Many people who may be in line for a liver transplant turn a new corner in their lifestyle when fear hits them.
“Hey, I am going to need a transplant. And if that happens, I will have to be on immunosuppressants for the rest of my life.”
And this is the point where they start making serious lifestyle changes and many never get to that transplant stage. Their body and liver learn to live and function with it.
Can you reverse a fatty liver?
It is 100% possible. Why do I say this? I have seen our own patients and thousands of others follow simple instructions, make the change, and move from a Grade 3 to 2 to 1. Or if they have a mild fatty liver, move to not having fatty liver anymore.
Listening to the signs of your body is a must. When you have a mild fatty liver, your body is giving you symptoms. Don’t be scared. But listen closely. Your body is trying to tell you, “Hey, I’m accumulating fat in the liver.” That doesn’t sound like a good thing, right? What can you do?
Let’s break down the lifestyle changes you can make starting today.
#1 Drop that body fat
Do you have a lot of body fat? It is time to start dropping it. Most people chase weight loss. Let us tell you – your goal is wrong. The goal is never weight loss because when you set your intention to wanting weight loss you attract people selling you weight loss.
Weight loss could be losing water weight. Many experts will put you on diuretics. If your protein isn’t right, you start to lose bone mass and muscle mass. Once you start losing muscle mass, you lose weight. But here’s what no one told you. You will put the weight back on as fast as you lost it because you have an untrained metabolism. You need muscle for metabolism.
Many individuals hop on extreme fad diets and trends and start to lose bone density. You may lose a little bit of weight at first. But you put it back on and are sicker than when you started.
Your goal has to be fat loss, not weight loss
What does this mean?
Ask yourself:
- How do I lose inches?
- How do my clothes start to look better?
- Are my clothes fitting better on me?
Here’s a little test I want you to do.
Check your weight six different times a day. And I can assure you, you will have different readings at every point in the day.
It is true. Your scale weight can fluctuate six times a day because of several reasons – not just what you eat but also the temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, and so on.
Am I saying don’t step onto the weighing scale? No. You can probably set the discipline of checking it once in 15 days or once a month. When you focus on burning fat, a good measure of it is inch loss. Your clothes will start to fit better.
People will look at you and say, “Hey, you’ve been doing something good with your body.” So, drop that body fat. Especially the excessive fat that you have in your abdominal and belly region. No, I don’t expect you to get to a size 0 or have a six-pack. But try to get rid of that stubborn fat.
You don’t just have to look fat to have a fatty liver.
You can even be skinny and have a fatty liver. What are these other aspects of your lifestyle you need to look into? Find out.
#2 Stop processed foods and pay attention to the quality of oils
Processed foods, ultra-processed, junk food, and commercially fried and deep-fried foods are one of the biggest culprits.
Let’s drop some more truth bombs, shall we?
Even sushi isn’t real sushi these days. Most of us are having sushi made the wrong way. Too much rice, too little protein. Chinese food has become Indian Chinese, which definitely tastes way better. Tempura – it has children and adults salivating at its mere sight. But remember this, just because you’re eating in a fancy Japanese restaurant doesn’t make the oil any different.
The same oil is being reused. Stand behind the live call counter of the best restaurant. Once they deep fry food, they do not change the oil as they should. The same oil is reused until the end of the shift and in some cases even the next day. to the end of the shift. Maybe the next day. We don’t know. All of these factors make outside foods so unhealthy.
Now I am not here to rain on your parade. I eat out too. But be practical. Go out on the weekend, have a meal or two out of three meals in a week outside. But if you have all of your meals out, and these contain junk and packaged foods you don’t need me to tell you how it is affecting your liver. And not just your liver, but your heart, kidney, hormonal health, and more.
Deep-fried foods in the wrong oils are poison to a fatty liver. Your liver has spent a tremendous time breaking this down. Your liver doesn’t even know how to handle most of it.
#3 Avoid high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Read your labels
Start reading your labels. High corn fructose syrup is toxic and poisonous to your liver. It affects every part of your liver, your triglyceride levels, and more. You will find them in your favorite packaged foods.
Make it quintessential for your kids to learn to read food labels. Check out my free masterclass and downloadable resources to do this here.
Food lobbies are getting smarter each day. Instead of writing high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), they may disguise it as glucose, fructose, fruit fructose, crystalline fructose, liquid glucose, maize syrup, corn syrup, and other variations. But essentially, all of these mean the same. Learn to read labels like you learn the rules of the road. Have a fatty liver and consume high fructose corn syrup? You are only making it worse. This rule goes for your aerated drinks, too.
#4 Start weight training
You don’t like lifting weights or going to the gym? That’s no excuse. Use your body weight. Don’t like using body weight? Switch to calisthenics, or use resistance bands, but start building muscle. I do not expect you to build bodybuilder muscles. Build lean muscle. The more muscle tone you have, the less body fat you have. The more muscle tone you create, the higher your metabolic rate and the easier it is to burn body fat, even while you are sitting. Fabulous recovery happens in your liver when you start incorporating these changes into your routine.
#5 Switch to smart cardio
Move away from the traditional lie that you have been fed for the longest time. Getting on the treadmill, cycle, and elliptical and thinking you will lose weight. You can do that. But your priority is to build muscle. Invest in smart cardio.
If you’re looking at burning body fat, you will not get it with cardio. You need to build muscle. Do cardio the smart way. Cardi is great for your heart and lung capacity and your VO2 max (the volume of oxygen your body uses while exercising as hard as you can). If you can, try interval cardio. A simple example would be: Walk – run – walk – sprint – walk – jog. You can add Tabata or CrossFit – whatever suits your body type. Be mindful of injuries or any body pains.
You cannot do seven days of cardio and expect to burn body fat. So, for three to four days – build muscle, and the balance stays with one rest day in a week – you can do cardio or interval swimming. What is interval swimming? Where you swim one lap fast and then swim back really slow or at a normal pace. Keep challenging your heart rate. Start training in zone 2 or mid-zone 3, if you can do that to burn fat.
#6 Sleep deep
All rejuvenation happens while you sleep. There is nothing more that needs to be said on this point. If you are chronically sleep deprived, you will have problems in every organ of your body, sooner or later.
#7 Manage your cocktail of conditions
If you have high blood pressure and diabetes, and you are not looking after this, know that you can and will develop not just fatty liver but even chronic kidney disease (CKD).
It is not okay to live with diabetes or high blood pressure. Millions of people around the globe are making lifestyle changes and working with their doctors to reverse Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Their doctors are weaning them off the medication safely or bringing it down to the minimum dose.
I meet many people who say, “Luke, I am fit and healthy, and I am taking my meds.” When they do, I often wonder, what meds? They say – high blood pressure and diabetes. What they fail to understand is that they are still sick. They need to focus on making lifestyle changes to get better so their doctor can work with them to reduce this dosage over time. That is the magic.
Every medicine has a side effect. The doctors are not wrong. Ethically they are supposed to treat you for the symptom. The side effect is not their problem but yours. Look after the side effects of the meds of the drug that you’re taking because that is where your secondary diseases pop up. As we mentioned, a combination of high blood pressure and diabetes will not only make you vulnerable to fatty liver but also CKD if left unmanaged.
#8 Check your estrogen levels
Women going through menopause or perimenopause experience a drop in estrogen. Those going through chemotherapy drugs like tamoxifen or certain medications that reduce estrogen also need to look out. What is the hype around estrogen and why do its levels matter?
Estrogen is an important hormone. It is not a bad thing. But excessive estrogen can be dangerous for you. At the same time also understand that low levels of estrogen can make you susceptible to fatty liver. Why? Because estrogen is very protective against fat in the liver. So if you are going through menopause and have a sudden drop in estrogen, speak to your doctors to manage this.
Many people wait for menopause to start making lifestyle changes or losing weight, and their transition becomes difficult. Don’t wait for age to take charge of your lifestyle. You should be working on managing it right now in your 20s, 30s, and 40s if you want to have a smoother menopause.
Similarly, if you are on any estrogen-lowering drugs like tamoxifen among others, speak to professionals to make the correct lifestyle and nutritional changes to maintain the right estrogen levels.
#9 The power of well-made black coffee
Quality pure black coffee protects your liver, especially fatty liver. It has documented scientific benefits. Our liver cancer patients and those with liver issues have made black coffee a part of their routine.
Do not mistake this for your frappuccinos, mochas, cold coffees, and all that sugary whipped cream rubbish. We are talking about plain black coffee. Learn to drink it. Don’t like it? Drink it like medicine.
If it doesn’t suit you or you are allergic, it’s a no-brainer – avoid it. Ensure to never have coffee on an empty stomach or in a fasted state.
Many cultures like to put you into that box and say – Hey, you can fast on coffee. Anyone can do that because coffee doesn’t make you hungry. Having coffee while fasting means your body is not truly in a fasted state.
You don’t want to put a stimulant that spikes adrenaline and cortisol into a fasted body. If you are fasting, do it without stimulants like coffee. Fast the right way, or don’t at all.
Struggling with fatty liver? Get in touch with us.
#10 Get your MUFAs and PUFAs
Get your dose of monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs and PUFAs).
- Olive oil is very protective for the liver. Don’t cook Indian food in it because it has a very low smoking point and oxides when burnt cause more problems for your liver. How can you use it? Add extra virgin olive oil to your raw salads.
- You get MUFAs and PUFAs in your nuts and seeds as well.
- A rich source of these is also pure ghee and cold-pressed coconut oil.
- If you like avocado oil and can afford it, it is a beautiful combination of MUFAs and PUFAs.
#11 Stop refined oils
Yes, we know exactly what your next question is going to be. Luke, but unrefined, cold-pressed, wood-pressed oils are so expensive! Not everyone, but many of you are saying this while holding your latest gadgets.
Refined seed oils are slow poison because their consumption has gone up. We don’t just see that at home but every restaurant uses it. And because of the overconsumption of all of this, we have more inflammation and fat in the liver. Change the oils you consume.
#12 Smoking, vaping, binge-drinking?
If you’re smoking, vaping, chewing tobacco, or excessively binge drinking alcohol, I don’t have to say anything. Use Vitamin C which here stands for Common Sense. And you know what to do.
#13 Lower your carb intake
When you lower your carbohydrates, increase your protein and good fats so that you don’t get snappy, frustrated, hungry, or hangry. The moment you start to drop your carbohydrates, you will notice an immediate change in your body fat and the fat in your liver. Don’t go ‘no carb’ or ‘low carb the wrong way’ like most people do.
When you go low carb, you have to balance your macros. Your protein and fat increases, and your fibrous vegetables increase. When you do this, you don’t feel hungry and you do not kill your metabolism. Go smart carb and believe me a lot will change, not just fat burn. You will feel more energetic.
It is unbelievable how so many of us overdose on carbohydrates. And instead of feeling alert, we then feel tired. If you are wondering why you feel tired despite eating so many carbs, know this. More carbs do not mean more energy. We can get fuel from different sources in the human body. Burn our body fat for fuel because that’s the most efficient one.
#14 Ditch that fruit platter. More fruits ≠ being healthy.
Last, but not least, one extremely important aspect, especially relevant to the eating culture in India. Most of us think eating more fruits = being healthy.
It is untrue. Overdoing fructose or natural fruit sugars is one of the worst things you can do for a fatty liver.
You need to stop having massive fruit platters first thing in the morning, thinking it is healthy. Excess fructose will cause more problems with your liver if you have any. Does this mean you should avoid fruits completely? No.
Nature has given you an apple, that’s your portion size. You don’t have to have an apple plus a papaya topped with strawberries.
If you are eating fruits in balance and working out, everything will work well. For instance, if I have an apple in the morning, in the evening I may have a bowl of pineapple paired with protein and fiber. But you need to stop eating fruit platters.
I can guarantee you this. For patients who come to us with a very serious fatty liver, we stop them from eating fruits completely. Sometimes for 20 days to a month. This leads to a big drop automatically because excess fructose is dangerous to your fatty liver.
Stop juicing your fruit. Whether you make it at home in a cold pressed juicer or you buy it outside, it’s nothing but a glass of sugar. Fruits were designed to have whole. Packaged juices are poison to the liver and your plan if you are trying to lose body fat.
To sum it up
Why do these lifestyle changes matter? Because these help you address and improve your metabolic health. The fact that you have a fatty liver means your metabolic health is poor.
Poor metabolism makes you vulnerable to inflammatory conditions like diabetes, insulin resistance, cardiovascular problems, blockages, cognitive decline, and more.
Do what it takes and make these lifestyle changes with consistency and discipline. Missed a day? It’s fine. Just get back on track the next day. The truth is there is no magic pill to reversing a fatty liver. But lifestyle can be your most powerful weapon in reversing or managing your fatty liver. The question is: are you willing to move to action? Share this with someone who needs to read this. All the best.
Disclaimer: None of what is mentioned in this blog is a replacement for any medical advice. Always keep your healthcare provider in the loop before trying anything new, especially if you have a medical condition or are currently undergoing treatment or on medications. Make an informed decision, always.
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