LIVING WITH NASH DISEASE

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I am living with Nash disease which is a liver disease, my diet is fruit ,veg and lean meat (no red meat) , I am watching my carbs ,fat and sugar in my diet. is there anyone else out there with the same disease that could get me some tips on foods I can eat ?

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  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 9,970 Member
    edited July 2023
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    Hepatic steatosis or fatty liver can be reversed by simply doing the opposite of what caused it in the first place which is the accumulation of visceral fat overall from eating too much and becoming overweight or obese with the progression of more serious conditions like Insulin resistance, diabetes, elevated blood pressure, etc. NASH is basically the progression from the less inflammatory stage of fatty liver to more inflammation and is basically the 2nd stage of fatty liver and quite reversible.

    Of course losing weight and exercising is the cornerstone for reversing metabolic syndrome which fatty liver is a symptom, so that should be first and foremost on your mind.

    As far as diet is concerned, sugar should be avoided like the plague simply because fructose is metabolized by the liver and stored in the liver as triglycerides for future energy, which is actually adipose tissue which is what we want to be reducing and not accumulating and the fact the liver is being (over) worked to do that and is for the very reason we're looking to avoid any additional fat accumulation in the liver. An of course avoid alcohol.

    Refined carbs also have various forms of sugars attached including fructose, so there can be an argument that reducing refined carbs is a good course of action. A whole food diet with less carby foods would imo be something I would get behind. So the fruit your eating is probably not something I would recommend and I'm sure you've done some research and have found that authorities also state that the reduction or total elimination of fructose is recommended and yes fruit is good for us but not in this context and veg will support any shortcomings for vitamins and minerals. We're also trying to reduce inflammation overall so less carbs in that context makes sense. As far as protein is concerned I would probably be looking at cold water fish as a staple along with grass fed and real free range in a diet simply because of the consumption of omega 3's which in effect will reduce the ratio of omega 6's in the diet that is considered inflammatory and unfortunately most people have an imbalance and mostly from the consumption of seed oils, and in that context I would be consuming the unrefined forms of olive oil and avocado oil and not refined soy, corn or canola. Hopefully your talking to a dietitian for advice. Again, this is just my opinion.

  • Limey9681
    Limey9681 Posts: 7 Member
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    Thank you so much for this great information, I have ben seeing a nutritionist but you have made some great points. thank you
  • NoodleAddict89
    NoodleAddict89 Posts: 12 Member
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    I don't have that disease, however, I have gastroparesis and type LADA diabetes. Try keto and low carb recipes. They are easy to find and you can adapt them to your specific needs. Pinterest and Instagram are my go-tos
  • Christi6604
    Christi6604 Posts: 245 Member
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    I was just diagnosed with NASH this week. I found this guide online and my gastroentrologist said it's a good guide. My primary care physician also agreed. I asked the gastro to pleae be specific about how often a treat like a 1/2 cup of ice cream or a small piece of chocolate would be ok and he said I should treat that like red meat - no more than twice a week.

    I've looked everywhere and this is the best guide I could locate. My mom passed from cirrhosis 10 years ago. She never had the opportunity to be diagnosed before it was too late, so I'm trying to focus on the good news that at least I know about it and can take action. Good luck to you!
    https://www.bcm.edu/sites/default/files/a-guide-to-what-and-how-to-eat-non-alcoholic-fatty-liver-disease.pdf
  • jennywren93
    jennywren93 Posts: 17 Member
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    Limey9681 wrote: »
    I am living with Nash disease which is a liver disease, my diet is fruit ,veg and lean meat (no red meat) , I am watching my carbs ,fat and sugar in my diet. is there anyone else out there with the same disease that could get me some tips on foods I can eat ?

    Be advised that if you are watching sugar in your diet, then you need to get as low to no fruit as possible. All that natural sugar acts just like added sugar. My enzymes were out of whack for a little bit, but I started taking Milk Thistle for liver support, cut carbs to 0 or as close as possible, started walking 30 minutes a day to work on getting my blood sugar down, upped my fat and protein intake and now my enzymes are just fine :) It doesn't make sense that you need to eat fat when you have fatty liver, but the fat in the liver is there because of too much sugar. I bet your blood sugar or A1c are out of whack too. Fat has little to no insulin response, and protein has a small response. By controlling blood sugar spikes, your body will use up the fat in your liver. It is very reversible with work and it can bounce back in a month or less if you are strict!
  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 13,338 Member
    edited February 25
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    Eating fruit is a lot different than eating foods with added sugar. Fruit has nutrients and fiber. There are some fruits that can be problematic for diabetics, and while I'm not familiar with Hash Disease, fruit is good for most people to eat.

    Dates are among the sweetest of fruits, but they actually have a low glycemic index. Go figure.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 9,970 Member
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    mtaratoot wrote: »
    Eating fruit is a lot different than eating foods with added sugar. Fruit has nutrients and fiber. There are some fruits that can be problematic for diabetics, and while I'm not familiar with Hash Disease, fruit is good for most people to eat.

    Dates are among the sweetest of fruits, but they actually have a low glycemic index. Go figure.

    Sounds logical but for someone with fatty liver, sugar is not what you want to be consuming mainly because the fructose portion of the sugars, which is about half will be metabolized by the liver and much of it is stored as triglycerides, this is fructose's normal metabolic process of lipogenesis and those triglycerides are what can increase fat around the liver. Also there's nothing in fruit that can't be obtained through other vegetables etc. that are very low or don't have any sugars. imo. :)