Fatty Liver, the looming epidemic
Dr. Jesse P. Houghton is a board-certified gastroenterologist. He was born and raised in New Jersey and has been practicing in Southern Ohio since 2012. He has been in practice for over 13 years. He treats both gastrointestinal as well as liver diseases. He prides himself in carefully listening to his patients and their... more
Fatty liver and NASH are huge problems in our country, traveling in tandem with obesity. NASH (Non-Alcoholic Steato Hepatitis) is a fatty liver with associated liver inflammation and often scarring, or fibrosis. NASH can even lead to cirrhosis. Since so many people have fatty liver and NASH, it is a major cause of cirrhosis in this country, right up there with alcohol abuse and hepatitis C.
As the obesity epidemic grows in this country, so does fatty liver disease. Risk factors include the following: obesity, diabetes, high cholesterol, and excessive soda/pop intake. In addition, an ingredient in numerous foods and condiments called high fructose corn syrup is strongly associated with the development of a fatty liver. Since so many people in the United States drink excess soda pop, the rates of fatty liver and NASH are extremely high in our country, especially in the midwest and southern states. Where I practice in southern Ohio, we literally see at least one new cirrhosis patient in the hospital on an almost daily basis, and most are due to NASH.
The treatment of fatty liver disease includes the following: weight loss (10% of body weight) through diet and exercise, control of blood sugars in diabetics, treatment of high cholesterol/triglycerides, avoidance of high fructose corn syrup, and STOPPING EXCESS POP INTAKE. I tell my patients to limit pop intake to one can/bottle per day, at most.
Numerous medications have been studied for fatty liver, but most have shown disappointing results. Drug companies are working as we speak on several new medications for this very common problem, and the first is expected to be coming out soon.
If YOU fit the above patient profile (overweight, diabetic, excess soda intake), please do yourself a favor…..work on those risk factors starting today! Trust me when I tell you, you do NOT want to develop cirrhosis. It is a chronic, difficult condition to get under control.
