As alluded to above, the best diet for people with NAFLD is virtually any hypocaloric diet that suits the individual’s preferences and facilitates a weight loss of at least 5%, preferably ≥10%, as more weight loss is associated with improved outcomes.[1] However, significant weight loss is difficult to achieve, which begs the question of whether dietary adjustments can improve liver health independent of changes in body weight.
Several societies recommend the Mediterranean diet for people with NAFLD.[2][3][4] A Mediterranean diet has been consistently shown to improve cardiovascular health.[5] In addition, evidence from mechanistic studies and a couple of randomized controlled trials in humans suggests that a Mediterranean diet may reduce liver fat independent of changes in body weight.[6][7][8]
Other evidence suggests that under eucaloric conditions, a low-fat, low-saturated fat diet (16–25% of energy from fat; 5–7% of energy from saturated fat) may reduce liver fat compared to a high-fat, high-saturated fat diet (45–56% of energy from fat; 25–28% of energy from saturated fat).[9][10]
References
- ^Kenneth Cusi, Scott Isaacs, Diana Barb, Rita Basu, Sonia Caprio, W Timothy Garvey, Sangeeta Kashyap, Jeffrey I Mechanick, Marialena Mouzaki, Karl Nadolsky, Mary E Rinella, Miriam B Vos, Zobair YounossiAmerican Association of Clinical Endocrinology Clinical Practice Guideline for the Diagnosis and Management of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Primary Care and Endocrinology Clinical Settings: Co-Sponsored by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD)Endocr Pract.(2022 May)
- ^European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO)EASL-EASD-EASO Clinical Practice Guidelines for the management of non-alcoholic fatty liver diseaseJ Hepatol.(2016 Jun)
- ^Plauth M, Bernal W, Dasarathy S, Merli M, Plank LD, Schütz T, Bischoff SCESPEN guideline on clinical nutrition in liver disease.Clin Nutr.(2019-04)
- ^Younossi ZM, Corey KE, Lim JKAGA Clinical Practice Update on Lifestyle Modification Using Diet and Exercise to Achieve Weight Loss in the Management of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Expert Review.Gastroenterology.(2021-02)
- ^Martínez-González MA, Gea A, Ruiz-Canela MThe Mediterranean Diet and Cardiovascular Health.Circ Res.(2019-03)
- ^Shira Zelber-Sagi, Federico Salomone, Liat MlynarskyThe Mediterranean dietary pattern as the diet of choice for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: Evidence and plausible mechanismsLiver Int.(2017 Jul)
- ^Elena S George, Anjana Reddy, Amanda J Nicoll, Marno C Ryan, Catherine Itsiopoulos, Gavin Abbott, Nathan A Johnson, Siddharth Sood, Stuart K Roberts, Audrey C TierneyImpact of a Mediterranean diet on hepatic and metabolic outcomes in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: The MEDINA randomised controlled trialLiver Int.(2022 Mar 31)
- ^Marno C Ryan, Catherine Itsiopoulos, Tania Thodis, Glenn Ward, Nicholas Trost, Sophie Hofferberth, Kerin O'Dea, Paul V Desmond, Nathan A Johnson, Andrew M WilsonThe Mediterranean diet improves hepatic steatosis and insulin sensitivity in individuals with non-alcoholic fatty liver diseaseJ Hepatol.(2013 Jul)
- ^Utzschneider KM, Bayer-Carter JL, Arbuckle MD, Tidwell JM, Richards TL, Craft SBeneficial effect of a weight-stable, low-fat/low-saturated fat/low-glycaemic index diet to reduce liver fat in older subjects.Br J Nutr.(2013-Mar-28)
- ^Westerbacka J, Lammi K, Häkkinen AM, Rissanen A, Salminen I, Aro A, Yki-Järvinen HDietary fat content modifies liver fat in overweight nondiabetic subjects.J Clin Endocrinol Metab.(2005-May)