Reduced Carb Diet and a Little Weight Loss is Reducing My Blood Lipids and Liver Inflammation Markers

[DBradley]

I just thought I'd share my findings, maybe it'll help encourage those struggling with carbohydrate reduction and a change in diet.

For the past 6 weeks i have been restricting carbohydrates (to around 100ish grams per day), with the complete elimination of added sucrose or foods containing sucrose as an ingredient. I ensure the majority of carbohydrate I consume is low GI.

I have drastically increased my vegetable intake, and am restricting overall calories (between 1000 - 1500 per day), in the hope I can lose a little weight and more importantly reduce the fat in my liver. I haven't particularity reduced fat, but I only eat "healthy" fats as a matter of course anyway.

I have been doing a little exercise, running 1 mile on the treadmill every few days. I am also taking L-Carnatine (1g daily), Flaxseed oil (1g), Vit D, and a sea kelp for iodine.

At the start of this I was around 153 lbs, (I'm 5 foot 8 inches tall).

My cholesterol was:

Serum Cholesterol - 6.2 mmol/L

Serum Triglycerides - 1.30 mmol/L

Serum HDL - 1.27 mmol/L

Serum LDL - 4.3 mmol/L

Serum Non Cholesterol - 4.93

My liver enzymes were:

Gamma GT - 84 U/L

ALT - 96 U/L

ALP - 94 U/L

After 6 weeks of this, I had a follow up blood test, and the results were very encouraging. I now currently weigh around 143 lb, I have reduction in all serum liver enzymes, though my ALT is still above where it needs to be. Furthermore, I have managed to reduce the circumference of my waist at the belly button.

To my amazement, I have found a massive (for me) reduction in my blood lipids. My cholesterol levels, which have been pretty unchanging over the last couple of years, (with a slight increase with a weight increase in the lock-downs due to COVID) are now back in the "healthy" range:

My cholesterol is now:

Serum Cholesterol - 4.3 mmol/L

Serum Triglycerides - 0.98 mmol/L

Serum HDL - 1.11 mmol/L

Serum LDL -2.74 mmol/L

Serum Non Cholesterol - 3.19

My liver enzymes are now:

Gamma GT - 47 U/L

ALT - 65 U/L

ALP - 88 U/L

I currently don't know the effect this has had on the level of fat in my liver, as I won’t be able to get an ultrasound for some time. But I feel encouraged to continue with this diet with the hope that my liver enzymes will reduce further, and this will translate into reduced liver fat.

See my data over the last 3 years, and the dramatic change over the last 6 weeks in the attached pic: The spike in the liver enzyme levels in 2019, were from when I last lost a little weight, but not through carb restriction. At this time a I also tried a concoction of neutraceuticals that was being trialed by a Swedish NAFLD researcher, including NAC, Serine, L-Carnitine, and a few other things. Sadly, this didn't have the desired effect at the time; the NAC made my head feel strange, and my GGT became elevated.

[Gratefulhog]

Congratulations! We have to win this battle one day at a time. I'm on a similar journey, combined with Type 2 diabetes (which is now tightly controlled). We learn we are eating to live rather than living to eat. 👍

[dave_tsda]

Congrats! This was almost the exact same approach I have taken with 100g of carbs and limiting sugar. I also had really good results, and all my enzymes dropped back to healthy levels after 8 weeks and normal after 12.

Keep up the good work. Everybody has a different time frame for their body to heal but it sounds like you're on the right track

[obssessive69]

I like what you’re doing. It sounds reasonable and you’re getting results. I need to add more exercise to my plan. You had a good weight loss, too.