Not sure what food I can have

[Lady5]

I have just been diagnosed with fatty liver. I am not sure what I am allowed to eat. Is it okay to have sweet potatoes , brown bread and rice?

[Alterity]

Listen to your body. Do you feel ill after eating? Does it feel hard to digest. Red meats are the hardest for the liver to digest. Sweets and Carbs fall in that bracket in some people. I know longer eat a lot of breads, just once in a while. I eat cauliflower rice rather than real rice, but rice should not hurt you. If you get flu like symptoms then your body is not digesting well. This is just some of the things I have learned over the 20 years, but every body body is different. I find I get exhausted if I'm having trouble digesting. I go to get when super tired, it tends to help the liver digest in a relaxed state rather than a busy stressed state. Just learn to listen to your body.

[Lady5 in reply to Alterity]

Hi Alterity I haven't eaten red meat for years. I only eat fish and chicken. There has been times I have had problems digesting my food but I didn't really think much of it, I only decided to go to the dr because i noticed my eyes were turning an off white colour, and I was constantly feeling exhausted for no reason. I guess all those were my warning signs. I definitely will be listening to my body from now on. Thanks for the advice i appreciate it.

[NYLassie in reply to Alterity]

My approach is slightly different. I have a list of things that are bad for my liver. I avoid those. Alterity has a great list of those. I tend to stick to foods and beverages with study proven benefits to the liver: Organic extra virgin olive oil, avocado, organic soy products (mostly soy milk and tofu), mung beans and mung bean sprouts, cruciferous veggies, onions, garlic, beetroot, rutabaga, ginger, turmeric, apple cider vinegar, berries (blueberries, blackcurrant, strawberries, and black ckokecherries). If it is not contraindicated due to a medical condition or medication interaction, grapefruit is good.

Unlike others, I avoid all grains as my body does better without them. I am also not fond of fish, eggs, or chicken anymore. I take fish oil capsules recommended by my doctor. I add powdered choline and taurine to my iced tea, and drink a quart of pedialyte a day, recommened by my doctor.

There is very little variety in my diet. I have a vanilla coffee shake for breakfast that has coffee, olive oil, a puree of moong dal, and soy milk. I know, it sounds awful but it is quite good. I add alcohol free vanilla extract and stevia.

Dinner is always tofu, steamed broccoli, and bean sprouts with a garlic ginger sauce.

I generally have a cup of coffee with soy milk, along with fruit or a salad, for lunch. Sometines I make a smoothie with berries, green tea, and avocado instead. I make iced green tea and drink a quart a day, and drink another quart or more of filtered water.

I do either 30 minutes of cardio twice a day (12 hrs apart) or 30 minutes once a day consisting of 20 minutes modetate, followed by a 10 minute HIIT program. I do resistance exercise every other day. I have lost a bit over 40 pounds.

I take a low dose statin, low dose aspirin, fish oil, and a blood pressure medication daily. I take a once weekly injection of Bydureon for my blood sugar. My liver enzymes are improving, my cholesterol profile is great, blood sugar is good. Triglycerides are a wee bit high but I am doing all I can re diet and exercise. My hepatologist was very pleased with my progress when I saw him last month.

[Lady5 in reply to NYLassie]

Hi NyLassie. I like your list i will definitely be trying the foods you have mentioned. I'm open to trying all different types of foods. I just want to be as healthy as possible. Thank you so much.

[TNWONDER]

Lets start with what you shouldn't have:

1. Sugar / Added Sugar: basically poison. I was a 3 sugar in his coffee every day type of guy. I've cut my sugar intake to ZERO. Thats right. ZERO. I only get natural sugars from fruits. Thats it. I read the labels. No sugar / no added sugar. Eat clean.

2. Refined Carbs: anything white. White bread. White rice, etc. Its garbage. I only have whole grains. Brown Rice and quinoa are staples.

3. Red Meat / Fatty Meats: once you really learn more about this, you realize how disgusting it is and how toxic it is to your body. I cut it out completely.

4. Alcohol: This is a hard one for me because I'm a huge red wine enthusiast. I wasn't a heavy drinker but i liked to have wine with dinner at least a few nights per week. Maybe 2-3 glasses each. Initially i cut it out completely. But after researching it, i am comfortable allowing myself a glass or 2 per week. I would say that limiting your intake is likely wise

5. Processed Foods - all garbage, poison and unnatural. Refrain completely

Now in terms of what to eat. Breakfast - eggs, avocado, unsweetened almond butter with a slice of sprouted bread or whole grain toast is fine. Of course whole grain oats is a go to. Lunch, try to stick with a green smoothie - its ok to add some whey protein or a scoop of unsweetened almond butter. I also used unsweetened almond milk. Dinner is where the planning ahead comes in. I try for a plant based main dish 4-5 days per week. Look up some recipes. You will be surprised how easy and good it is. Lentils is a staple. Beans is a staple. Eggplant is a staple. Broccoli over brown rice pasta drizzled with some olive oil very nice. The other 2-3 days a week i'll have organic fish, chicken or turkey. Snacks - i love my hummus - i found a good quinoa/chia seed chip that i have with it. Pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds. Sometimes i will have a small piece of dark chocolate (no added sugar). I love berries, so i usually have a bowl of blueberries. Ive ratcheted up my coffee and tea intake. I have 3 large mugs of coffee in the morning with some almond milk. English breakfast tea in the afternoon and evenings. Life is good. I was diagnosed with fatty liver, but thankfully F0 for fibrosis and no portal hypertension. I have a genetic disorder that leads to excess iron so i had to address that and also change my lifestyle. Lots of exercise. Lost 25 lbs in 6 months. BMI down to 23. I go for my MRI this summer and my expectation is that i got rid of the liver fat. Good luck.

[Lady5 in reply to TNWONDER]

Hi TNWONDER. Sugar is not a problem for me I don't take it anyway. I also don't drink alcohol and I have always worked out and ate pretty healthy when it comes to meals. My problem is I've always had a sweet tooth so that partly the reason why ive always exercised. I think that may be how i got non alcoholic fatty liver. I eat a lot of junk crisps , chocolate sweets etc. I have just started drinking coffee no sugar no milk this week. I didn't realise I should be having more than one cup, which I have first thing in the morning with some oats porridge. Thanks for the list its so helpful. I will up my intake to have at least 2/3 cups of coffee a day. I will also try the sprouted bread that you mentioned. It is good to know I can have brown rice as an option. Do you know if sweet potatoes are okay please? some websites say yes and others say no I must stay away from starchy foods. It is all very confusing.

[unie in reply to TNWONDER]

Hi I have nash, stage 3. I have a major problem with sugar, I have to figure out how to give it up. Any suggestions. I also loved my Cabernet and have had none since my diagnosis two years ago. What sources did you find that made you feel comfortable having a glass or so? I probably still won’t drink it because every dr I have seen, including my liver specialist at the Mayo in Rochester said no to any alcohol. Even non alcoholic, which usually is a very small trace.

[unie in reply to TNWONDER]

I also like your list and plan on posting it on my iPad.

[Herman7275]

I live in the states and I have been placed on a low carb diet which after 2 yrs, has helped my fatty liver considerably, and my fibrosis. and I exercise daily, I only eat 30 carbs a day, that's no rice ,potatoes, bread, pasta or sugar, I eat some vegetables, berries in fruit, lean meats and fish some dairy, hard cheese and lots of eggs.