What Are the Treatments for Fatty Liver?
According to WebMD, fatty liver disease has several causes, and the treatment varies depending on the cause of the disease. Often the condition is treated by treating the underlying cause. General recommendations for patients with fatty liver disease include avoiding alcohol, losing weight and limiting unnecessary medications.
WebMD maintains that nonalcoholic fatty liver disease usually correlates with pre-diabetes or diabetes and high cholesterol and triglyceride levels. In this case, treatment involves following a plan to control blood sugar and to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Common treatment plans include limiting carbohydrate and fat intake, increasing physical activity and taking medications that lower blood sugar and cholesterol. Alcoholic fatty liver disease is treated by providing patients with the support they need to quit drinking completely. Untreated alcoholic fatty liver disease may progress to cirrhosis or alcoholic hepatitis, which potentially necessitates a liver transplant.
Gradual weight loss, eating a healthy well-balanced diet and exercising regularly correlate with a reduction in fat deposits in the liver for patients with all types of fatty liver disease, notes WebMD. It is especially important to limit refined carbohydrates. Trials are exploring the possibility that certain antioxidants and antidiabetes medications may prove effective in treating fatty liver disease. Other researchers are studying the connection between bacterial infections and fatty liver disease with the hope that probiotics and dietary supplements are effective treatments.
