Can thin people also get fatty liver? Is eating too much fruit bad for the liver? Remember these "little liver" tips

A 25-year-old girl weighing 90 pounds suffers from moderate fatty liver! Can thin people also get fatty liver? Why is eating too much fruit harmful to the liver? This article will talk to you about fatty liver.

Compiled by New Media Editor Li Yunfeng

Recently, the news that a 25-year-old girl weighing 90 catties suffered from moderate fatty liver became a hot topic. According to her own account, her weight once rose to 110 catties, which made her determined to lose weight. From then on, she did not eat breakfast in the morning, only had simple boiled vegetables at noon, and did not eat a single meal at night. After three or four months of persistence, she successfully lost weight to more than 90 kg. However, she was found to have moderate fatty liver during the physical examination at her company, which puzzled her.

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Can thin people also get fatty liver?

Fatty liver refers to a disease caused by excessive fat accumulation in liver cells due to various reasons, which affects the normal function of the liver. This is a common liver pathological change, which can manifest as fatigue, nausea, vomiting, or discomfort in the right upper abdomen. According to the cause, fatty liver is divided into two categories: alcoholic fatty liver and non-alcoholic fatty liver.

In most people's perception, it seems that only those who are obese and drink frequently will suffer from fatty liver, and thin people seem to have nothing to do with fatty liver. However, this is not the case.

Regarding this patient's condition, the attending doctor, Xu Chengfu, deputy director of the Department of Gastroenterology at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, said that when a person is hungry, the body cannot obtain the necessary glucose, so it will mobilize the fat and protein stored in other parts of the body and convert them into glucose, which will lead to an increase in free fatty acids in the serum. A large amount of fatty acids enter the liver, and the body lacks the enzymes and vitamins necessary for lipid metabolism, causing fat to remain in the liver, resulting in fatty liver. This is what we often call nutritional deficiency fatty liver.

(Photography: Li Yunfeng)

So how to treat fatty liver caused by excessive weight loss? Bi Manru, deputy chief physician of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, said in an interview that patients with malnutrition-type fatty liver should have a balanced diet, such as amino acids, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and trace elements. Nutrients need to be fully supplemented. Patients should choose high-quality protein, cereals and fresh vegetables, eat three meals at regular times and quantitatively, control high-fat foods, and intravenous nutrition can be used for severe cases. If liver function is abnormal, liver-protecting drugs should be given appropriately.

Therefore, if you want to maintain a healthy weight, it is okay to lose weight appropriately, but don't overdo it, otherwise it will only backfire.

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Don’t all obese people have fatty liver?

Relevant surveys and studies have directly pointed out that fatty liver is closely related to body weight, but not all obese people have fatty liver, they are just more likely to get this disease. Data show that nearly 1/2 of obese people have symptoms of fatty liver. The more overweight they are, the greater the chance of fatty liver disease, which can even increase to about 94%. The degree of fat accumulation in the liver is basically proportional to body weight.

This is because the fat cells around the abdomen are more sensitive to stimulation, resulting in an increase in fatty acids transported from the abdominal fat cells to the liver. In addition to partially synthesizing phospholipids and cholesterol, the main route for fatty acids in the liver to synthesize triglycerides is to combine with apolipoproteins in liver cells and release into the blood. When the triglycerides synthesized in the liver exceed the liver's ability to transport triglycerides out of the liver, triglycerides can accumulate in the liver to form fatty liver.

In addition, obese people often have impaired glucose tolerance and hyperinsulinemia, which play an important role in the pathogenesis of obese fatty liver. As the peripheral tissues' sensitivity to insulin decreases, the muscle's ability to take up glucose also decreases, so that glucose cannot be fully utilized. Excess glucose continuously stimulates the pancreatic cells to secrete a large amount of insulin. Under the action of the pancreatic islets, the liver synthesizes a large amount of triglycerides using glucose and fatty acids as raw materials, resulting in endogenous hyperlipidemia and fatty liver.

To prevent this type of fatty liver, we must pay attention to the following aspects in diet: First, limit the intake of sugars. Second, limit the intake of fats and try to use vegetable oils. Third, adequate protein intake. Protein is indispensable for patients with liver diseases. Adequate protein can protect the function of liver cells and effectively promote the regeneration of liver cells. Foods rich in protein in the diet include: lean pork, beef, dried tofu, eggs, lamb, etc. The liver stores a variety of vitamins and participates in the metabolism of the liver. When the liver is damaged, it will affect the absorption of vitamins, especially leading to deficiencies in vitamins A, B, C and K. When vitamin deficiencies occur, they should be supplemented in time. In addition to paying attention to diet, moderate exercise is also essential.

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Alcoholic fatty liver disease is more common in women?

The so-called alcoholic fatty liver, as the name suggests, is fatty degeneration of the liver caused by long-term and heavy drinking. It is a reversible (i.e. recoverable) alcoholic liver disease.

Fatty degeneration refers to abnormalities in any "link" during the liver's fat metabolism process. For alcoholic fatty liver, the amount and duration of alcohol intake is a very important cause.

For men who drink more than 40 grams of alcohol a day, especially more than 80 grams (about 2 to 8 cans of beer, 3 to 6 glasses of liquor or 3 to 6 glasses of wine), the risk of disease increases significantly. In addition, for those with a history of drinking for more than 10 years, the risk of disease increases greatly. Secondly, women are more susceptible to alcoholic fatty liver disease. Intake of 20 to 40 grams of alcohol per day can significantly increase the risk of disease, and men consume twice as much as women. Because women have less alcohol dehydrogenase in their gastric mucosa, more intact alcohol will reach the liver, which will also cause the disease to develop faster. At the same time, alcoholic fatty liver disease is also related to genetic factors.

Therefore, if you want to prevent alcoholic fatty liver, you should try to drink less alcohol. Of course, not drinking alcohol is best.

At present, the incidence of fatty liver in my country is increasing, and it has gradually become the number one liver disease in my country. Some people think that fatty liver is not a serious disease and do not pay enough attention to it. However, they do not know that fatty liver can also develop into cirrhosis and liver cancer in the long-term chronic development process, and is also closely related to the occurrence of type 2 diabetes, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and extrahepatic malignant tumors. Early intervention is needed to prevent further liver lesions.

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Will eating too much fruit damage your liver?

Research in recent years has discovered a potential dangerous molecule that causes fatty liver: fructose. Fructose is a type of sugar that exists in many natural foods, such as fruits and honey.

A 2013 study in J Hepatol found that the increase in the consumption of soft drinks with high fructose corn syrup was directly proportional to the explosive growth in the number of people with fatty liver in the U.S. A new study in Nature Metabolism in August showed that fructose is 2 to 3 times more effective than glucose in increasing "liver fat."

(Image source: C Jang, The Small interstine converts dietary fructose into glucose and organic acids. Cell Metabolism, 2018, Feb 6)

Fructose is mainly metabolized in the liver. There is no enzyme that specifically limits the rate of metabolism, so a large amount of intermediate products will accumulate and then be converted into fat. Excessive intake of fructose will cause fat to accumulate in the liver, eventually developing into fatty liver and other metabolic diseases.

A dietary survey of patients diagnosed with fatty liver disease showed that the daily fructose intake of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease was about 2 to 3 times that of healthy people.

(Image source: Ouyang, X., et al., Fructose consumption as a risk factor for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Journal of hepatology, 2008. 48(6): p. 993-999.)

However, don't worry too much about fatty liver caused by fructose. There is no problem with fructose intake within a certain range, as long as it is not excessive. How to eat it in moderation? First, eat 200-350 grams of fruit a day; second, don't drink juice instead of eating fruit; third, pay attention to the ingredient list on the packaging of processed food. If you see fructose syrup, high fructose corn syrup, and glucose isomerate syrup on the ingredient list, it means that fructose is added to the food. It is better to consume such food in small amounts.

In addition to the above-mentioned causes, skipping breakfast, long-term use of some medications that have side effects on the liver, diabetes, and eating too fast are also causes of fatty liver.

(Information compiled from Dingxiang Doctor, Tencent Medical Dictionary, Baidu Encyclopedia, Youlai Doctor, Laboratory Medicine Network, Yangzhou Evening News, Ningbo Evening News, etc.)

Produced by: Science Central Kitchen

Produced by: Beijing Science and Technology News | Beijing Science and Technology Media

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