How to Reverse Fatty Liver Disease Naturally | Jason Fung

Summary

This video discusses non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), its increasing prevalence, and the role of dietary sugars in its development. It explains how excessive fructose and glucose intake lead to fat accumulation in the liver, causing inflammation and potentially cirrhosis. The script highlights studies showing that reducing sugar intake, through low-carb or fasting diets, can significantly decrease liver fat and reverse NAFLD, offering a natural and drug-free solution to this growing health crisis.

Takeaways

• 📚 Fatty liver, also known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is characterized by an excessive accumulation of fat in the liver, which is not its normal function.
• 🔍 The issue arises when triglycerides, which should be stored in adipocytes (fat cells), are instead stored in the liver, leading to inflammation and potentially severe liver damage like cirrhosis.
• 🌐 NAFLD has become a global health problem, with up to 25% of people in the United States estimated to have the condition, and it has increased significantly since the 1980s.
• 📈 The liver naturally produces some fat, but in NAFLD, there is a dramatic increase in de novo lipogenesis, the process of creating new fat from sugars, particularly fructose.
• 🍬 Fructose is a key molecule in the development of fatty liver because it is exclusively metabolized by the liver and contributes to the creation of new fat.
• 🥖 High carbohydrate diets, especially those rich in glucose, can lead to increased conversion of glucose into new triglycerides, contributing to fatty liver.
• 🧪 Studies have shown that overfeeding carbohydrates, especially in the form of glucose and fructose, leads to increased body weight and liver fat.
• 💉 The hormone insulin, stimulated by high glucose intake, promotes fat storage, including the creation of new fat in the liver.
• ✂️ Reducing sugar intake, both glucose and fructose, has been shown to be an effective strategy in reversing fatty liver disease.
• 🍽️ Recent research supports the effectiveness of low sugar diets and fasting or low carbohydrate diets in significantly reducing liver fat and potentially reversing NAFLD.
• 🌟 The video suggests that by understanding the development of fatty liver and applying this knowledge through dietary changes, it is possible to naturally and effectively combat this growing health issue.

Q & A

What is fatty liver and why does it occur?

Fatty liver, also known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is a condition where there is an excessive accumulation of fat in the liver. It occurs when the liver stores fat molecules called triglycerides instead of adipocytes (fat cells), leading to problems such as inflammation and potential liver damage.

What is the progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease?

The progression of NAFLD starts with the simple accumulation of fat in the liver, which can lead to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a more severe form characterized by inflammation. This inflammation can destroy the liver, potentially leading to cirrhosis, a condition that may require a liver transplant.

Why is non-alcoholic fatty liver disease becoming a global epidemic?

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is becoming an epidemic due to its rapid increase in prevalence, affecting up to 25% of people in the United States alone. It was barely known in 1980 but has since grown significantly, with hospitalizations for fatty liver disease increasing almost 10-fold from 1998 to 2010.

What is the role of fructose in the development of fatty liver?

Fructose plays a significant role in the development of fatty liver because it is metabolized by the liver and can lead to the creation of new fat, or triglycerides, through a process called de novo lipogenesis. Since fructose cannot be metabolized by other cells in the body, it contributes to the accumulation of fat in the liver.

How does a high carbohydrate diet contribute to fatty liver?

A high carbohydrate diet can contribute to fatty liver by increasing the amount of glucose available to the liver. The liver can convert this excess glucose into new triglycerides, leading to an increase in liver fat.

What is de novo lipogenesis and why is it significant in fatty liver?

De novo lipogenesis is the process by which the liver creates new fat from non-fat sources, primarily sugars like glucose and fructose. It is significant in fatty liver because it leads to an excessive accumulation of fat in the liver, contributing to the disease's development.

How does insulin relate to the development of fatty liver?

Insulin is a hormone that signals the body to store energy. When there is a high intake of glucose, insulin levels rise, promoting the storage of energy, including the creation of new fat in the liver, which can contribute to fatty liver.

What dietary changes can help reverse fatty liver disease according to the research mentioned in the script?

Research suggests that reducing the intake of sugars, both glucose and fructose, can help reverse fatty liver disease. This can be achieved through very low carbohydrate diets or fasting, which have shown to decrease liver fat by over 50 percent.

What was the outcome of the study involving teenage boys with fatty liver who followed a low sugar diet?

The study showed that after following a low sugar diet, the average liver fat in the teenage boys decreased from 25 percent to 17 percent, indicating a significant reduction in liver fat.

How did the fasting and low carbohydrate diets compare in terms of reducing liver fat in a 2021 study?

Both the fasting and low carbohydrate diets resulted in over 50 percent reduction in liver fat, showing that dietary interventions focusing on reducing sugar intake can be effective in treating fatty liver disease.

What is the potential impact of reversing fatty liver disease naturally without drugs?

Reversing fatty liver disease naturally without drugs can help reduce the risk of liver failure and the need for liver transplants, contributing to better overall health and potentially reducing healthcare costs associated with liver diseases.

Outlines

00:00

🍲 Understanding Fatty Liver and Its Dietary Causes

This paragraph introduces the concept of fatty liver, explaining that it is an accumulation of fat, specifically triglycerides, in the liver where it doesn't belong. It contrasts the normal storage of fat in adipocytes with the problematic storage in the liver, leading to inflammation and potential liver damage. The speaker outlines the progression from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which can result in cirrhosis and the need for a liver transplant. The paragraph also discusses the increasing prevalence of NAFLD globally and the role of de novo lipogenesis, the production of new fat from sugars, particularly fructose, in the development of fatty liver. The importance of fructose, found in high fructose corn syrup and table sugar, is highlighted, as it is exclusively metabolized by the liver and contributes to fat accumulation.

05:01

🍏 Reversing Fatty Liver Disease Through Diet Modification

The second paragraph delves into the dietary interventions that can reverse fatty liver disease. It discusses how overconsumption of glucose and fructose leads to increased insulin production and de novo lipogenesis, resulting in liver fat accumulation. The speaker cites studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of reducing sugar intake, including both glucose and fructose, to decrease liver fat. A study involving teenage boys with fatty liver is highlighted, showing significant reduction in liver fat with a low sugar diet. Additionally, another study from 2021 is mentioned, which found that both fasting and low-carbohydrate diets can reduce liver fat by over 50 percent. The paragraph concludes by emphasizing the natural and cost-free approach to reversing fatty liver disease through dietary changes, suggesting the use of very low carbohydrate diets and fasting as potential solutions.

Keywords

💡Fatty Liver

Fatty liver refers to the condition where there is an abnormal accumulation of fat in the liver. It is central to the video's theme as it discusses the causes and potential natural reversal methods. In the script, fatty liver is described as having too much fat, specifically triglycerides, stored in the liver instead of adipocytes (fat cells), leading to health complications.

💡Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)

NAFLD is a type of fatty liver disease that is not caused by alcohol consumption. It is a key concept in the video, illustrating the growing health issue discussed. The script explains that NAFLD can progress to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which involves inflammation and can lead to cirrhosis, a severe liver condition.

💡Cirrhosis

Cirrhosis is a severe liver disease characterized by the replacement of liver tissue with scar tissue, leading to liver failure. It is mentioned in the script as a possible outcome of advanced fatty liver disease, emphasizing the seriousness of unchecked NAFLD.

💡De Novo Lipogenesis

De novo lipogenesis is the process of creating new fat molecules in the body from non-fat sources, such as sugars. The script highlights this process as a significant factor in the development of fatty liver, especially when there is an overproduction of fat from sugars like glucose and fructose.

💡Fructose

Fructose is a simple sugar found in high fructose corn syrup and table sugar. The video explains that fructose is particularly important in the context of fatty liver disease because it is metabolized by the liver and can lead to increased de novo lipogenesis, contributing to fat accumulation in the liver.

💡Glucose

Glucose is the primary sugar found in starches and is essential for energy production in the body. The script discusses how a high carbohydrate diet rich in glucose can lead to increased conversion of glucose into triglycerides, thus contributing to fatty liver.

💡Insulin

Insulin is a hormone that regulates blood sugar levels by signaling the body to store energy. The video describes insulin's role in fatty liver development, as high levels of glucose stimulate insulin production, which in turn promotes fat storage, including in the liver.

💡Fasting

Fasting is a dietary intervention that involves abstaining from food for certain periods. The script refers to fasting as a potential method for reducing liver fat, suggesting that it may help in the reversal of fatty liver disease by lowering sugar intake.

💡Low Carbohydrate Diet

A low carbohydrate diet restricts the intake of carbohydrates, which can include sugars, starches, and grains. The video presents this type of diet as an effective intervention for reducing liver fat, aligning with the theme that reducing sugar intake can help reverse fatty liver.

💡Triglycerides

Triglycerides are a type of fat found in the blood and are stored in fat cells. In the context of the video, triglycerides are the fat molecules that, when stored in the liver, contribute to fatty liver disease. The script explains that an overproduction of triglycerides in the liver is a key issue in NAFLD.

💡Foie Gras

Foie gras is a controversial delicacy made from the fatty liver of a goose or duck, typically produced by force-feeding the birds with starches. The script uses foie gras as an example to illustrate how high carbohydrate diets can lead to increased liver fat, similar to the process in humans with NAFLD.

Highlights

Fatty liver disease is a condition where the liver accumulates too much fat, leading to potential health problems.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) can progress to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), causing inflammation and potential liver damage.

NAFLD has become an epidemic, affecting up to 25% of people in the United States.

Hospitalizations for fatty liver disease have increased significantly, with a 10-fold increase from 1998 to 2010 in the UK.

De novo lipogenesis, the creation of new fat from sugar, is a key process in the development of fatty liver disease.

Fructose, found in high fructose corn syrup and table sugar, is particularly harmful as it is metabolized by the liver and contributes to fat production.

High carbohydrate diets can lead to increased glucose conversion into triglycerides, contributing to fatty liver.

Insulin, a hormone stimulated by glucose, promotes fat storage and is linked to increased liver fat.

Overfeeding of fructose in humans has been shown to increase de novo lipogenesis and liver fat significantly.

A low sugar diet has been proven effective in reducing liver fat in teenagers with fatty liver disease.

Both fasting and low carbohydrate diets have shown to reduce liver fat by over 50%, suggesting a dietary approach to treating fatty liver.

Cutting back on sugar, both glucose and fructose, is a logical intervention for reversing fatty liver disease.

Fatty liver disease can be reversed naturally without drugs, through dietary changes.

Intermittent fasting and low carbohydrate diets are potential methods for managing and reversing fatty liver disease.

The video provides educational content on understanding and addressing fatty liver disease through lifestyle changes.

Transcripts

today i'm going to talk about fatty

liver

what it is how we get it and what new

research is telling us

about how we can reverse it naturally

without any drugs

just a change in our diet

this is a picture of what fatty liver

looks like it's

pretty much what it sounds like too much

fat

in the liver what's wrong with that well

fat which is the molecule called

triglycerides

should be stored in fat cells which are

called adipocytes

if you store fat in fat cells well it

doesn't cause a lot of problems

but if you store fat in the liver where

it's not supposed to be stored

then you're going to get a lot of

problems so

when you look at non-alcoholic fatty

liver disease

and the first stages what you can see is

that the cells are swollen up

with all this extra fat as it progresses

to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis

or nash you start to develop

a lot of inflammation and this

inflammation in the liver

can actually destroy the liver and

completely wipe it out

leading to destruction which is called

cirrhosis

and at that point you might even need a

liver transplant

non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is

becoming

a bigger and bigger problem in north

america and now

all over the world in fact it was barely

known in 1980 when the first cases were

described

from a virtually unknown disease in 1980

it's become an epidemic up to 25 percent

of people in the united states are

thought to have

non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and

it's not just a problem with the fat

in fact it's causing a lot of liver

problems overall

this is data from the united kingdom

which shows that

hospitalizations for fatty liver disease

have increased almost

10-fold from 1998 to 2010

as a cause of liver transplantation it's

doubled

from 2007 to 2013.

normally the liver can produce some fat

and it does take in

fat from other sources such as the

plasma

which is the bloodstream their fatty

acids the evening meal contains fatty

acids as well

and it will go into the liver and the

liver will export it out

the difference between normal livers and

non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

is that there's a massive increase in

the amount of fat

that is produced by this process called

de novo lipogenesis

this is the creation of new fat

but what is it created from it's not

from old fat

it's from sugar when we talk about

sugars

there's two main molecules we're talking

about glucose

which is the main sugar that you find in

starches

like bread flour rice potatoes

those are long chains of glucose the

other simple sugar

is fructose and that's what's found in

high fructose corn syrup

and also table sugar or sucrose that is

one molecule of glucose and one molecule

of fructose

fructose is a very important molecule

for de novo lipogenesis

because the fructose cannot be

metabolized by

any cell other than the liver whereas

most of the cells of your body that is

your heart your muscles your kidneys

your liver

can use glucose for energy none of those

can use the fructose so all the fructose

that you eat

essentially goes straight into the liver

and from this diagram you can see

that it gets turned into triglycerides

or new fat and from there it's supposed

to be exported out but if you're

producing

too much of this new fat then it's going

to accumulate

in the liver the other main molecule we

have to worry about is glucose

if you're eating a very high

carbohydrate diet

then you're going to take this glucose

and you're going to turn it into

new triglycerides this is a diagram

of how it happens and it seems very

complicated

but essentially you can see that you're

taking the feedstock which is glucose

putting it through this metabolic

pathway

in the liver which is the hepatocyte and

out comes

triglycerides or new fat we know how

this process

works in animals for example in the

production of foie gras

well this is a very controversial food

because

of potential animal cruelty it is the

fatty liver of a goose

and it's made by putting a tube down

and feeding these ducks large amounts of

not

fat but starches corn mash in this case

they take all this corn which is high in

glucose

and their liver creates more fat you get

fatty liver

which is the the food that we call foie

gras

and it works in humans too in this study

what they did

was they overfed humans carbohydrates

and from baseline when they fed them a

lot of

glucose and fructose they increased

their body weight but only by two

percent

however when they measured their liver

fat it went up

by 27 and when they measured how much

de novo lipogenesis was happening they

found an identical

27 percent when they took them off of

their

high starch diets they lost all that

liver fat

when you eat a lot of glucose

this is going to stimulate the

production of the hormone insulin

which is a storage hormone it tells our

body to store

some of this energy that's coming in and

one of the ways that our body does that

is through the creation of new fat these

studies show that there's a clear

correlation

between giving people insulin and how

much

fat is in their liver the same effect

is seen in overfeeding of fructose

things like

sugar or high fructose corn syrup when

they did this to humans what they found

was that the amount

of de novo lipogenesis that was

being done in the liver increased the

amount

of new fat by 79 the rate

of de novo lipogenesis increase from

baseline

by six times so the liver is responding

to this high load of fructose by turning

it into

fat in the liver once we understand

how this fat is created and stored in

the liver

that leads us naturally to how we're

going to treat it

since fatty liver is caused by too much

sugar

both glucose and fructose the logical

solution

is simply to cut them down and that's

what recent research has shown us to be

highly effective in the reversal of

fatty liver disease

this study published in 2019 looked at

teenage boys who had developed fatty

liver

and what they did was they randomized

them to

a normal diet versus a very

low sugar diet less than three percent

of calories compared to

a normal diet which was less than 10

percent of calories

what were the results this is a graph

of what happened on the low sugar diet

the dotted line is the amount of fat in

the liver prior to the diet

and the circle is how much liver fat

there was

after following this low sugar diet and

on

average the liver fat decreased from 25

percent to 17 percent

you can see that most of the circles

drop below the original dotted line

compared to the usual diet where there

really wasn't much change

and the average liver fat moved from 21

only to 20 or no change at all this

study

from 2021 randomized

people to two different types of dietary

intervention

either a fasting type diet which is a

five to two diet or a low carbohydrate

high fat

diet in the fasting diet their diet

didn't change much although on two of

the days

they ate very few calories the low carb

diet

severely restricted the amount of

carbohydrates that they ate

so what happened both the fasting and

the low carb diets

resulted in better weight loss compared

to the usual diet

but more importantly when they looked at

the liver fat they could reduce the

amount of fat in the liver

by over 50 percent both with fasting

and low carbohydrate diets

this makes a lot of sense if fatty liver

is really just caused by too much sugar

that is too much glucose and too much

fructose

then the logical intervention is to

simply cut them back

by using very low carbohydrate diets

and or fasting we can reverse

fatty liver disease a blossoming

epidemic

and one that's contributing to a lot of

liver failure

and we can do it completely naturally

and

completely free we just have to take the

knowledge of

how it develops and apply it to our

lives if you want to learn more

about how to use intermittent fasting

you can check out the other videos

in my playlist somewhere here

thanks for watching if you learned

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i'll see you next week