I have Non alcoholic fatty liver disease and I am very overweight. The last couple of days has been a big wake up call for me and I really want to improve my diet. I already have huel but I was wondering if it is an ideal choice to help my fatty liver? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
That’s rough. I had heard of the non-alcoholic fatty liver and from what I heard it’s related to excess sugar consumption, especially from the fructose.
I Also had to check this out
Let’s just focus on this for now:
"Experts don’t know exactly why some people accumulate fat in the liver while others do not. Similarly, there is limited understanding of why some fatty livers develop inflammation that progresses to cirrhosis. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis are both linked to the following:
- Overweight or obesity
- Insulin resistance, in which your cells don’t take up sugar in response to the hormone insulin
- High blood sugar (hyperglycemia), indicating prediabetes or actual type 2 diabetes
- High levels of fats, particularly triglycerides, in the blood"
So, just from the first looks of it, Huel may actually be a good option for you. It has 1 gram of sugar per serving, which is very low. It’s almost sugarless. The carbs are from oats which are slower releasing. The Glycemic Index of Huel is, what, 27. That’s quite moderate compared to a lot of foods we eat. Empirically, Huel should not cause big spikes in blood sugar and should not invoke a strong insulin response.
Basically, from what I understand, fructose (or it’s fermented version called Ethanol) are converted into fat in the liver. Our body cannot directly use fructose or Ethanol to make energy, so it has to do this. Ideally we are only suppose to consume modest amounts of these sugars/alcohols and our liver has a limited capacity to process this. Excessive exposure over time can lead to a build of of the fat in the liver from this chemical conversion. It’s poisonous to the liver.
Excess fructose consumption has been linked to (and probably causes) insulin resistance. So, it’s no surprise that non-alcoholic fatty liver is associated with insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes.
Curious. Has your doctor recommended blood glucose monitoring (an Accucheck meter)? And/or have you had a recent Hemoglobin A1c lab done?
1 Like
I appreciate the response Deron, back in january my A1c results were on the high end of normal (then again I didnt fast before the blood test) and I also had a blood test at the Er a couple days ago and apparently everything was fine.
Glad your lab results are good.
One clarification. The Hemoglobin A1c does NOT need to be drawn fasting. It is not dependent on your last meal. HbA1c is an indicator of average blood glucose over the last 3 months. Goal number is 6.5% or less.
The fasting blood sugar is something they want you to fast. Goal fasting glucose is 80 to 110.
{I’ve been a hospital pharmacist for 18 years now.}
2 Likes
I did not know that, the more you know! So do you think Huel would be good for reversing my fatty liver? I know huel a lone wont fix it, I also plan to exercise and eat healthier foods but it would be great if I could use huel to help.
That’s a hard question to answer. There may be no way to tell until you try it.
But let’s consider this. You have to eat something. And since fatty build up in the liver might be caused by chronic sugar intake (or at the very least, consuming significant sugar could exacerbate the fatty buildup), then a low sugar diet might be the first thing to try. Huel has 1 gram of sugar per serving. Doesn’t get much lower than that.
And Huel has the lower Glycemic Index, so it may be helpful for anyone who has insulin resistance. It’s also probably good for any person, in general. We should all be eating lower GI meals, regardless if we’re diabetic or not.
I really can’t think of any reason why a Huel diet would make fatty liver worse. Worth a try.
On a side note, I picked up a bottle of grape soda in the market while in line last week. Took a glance at the label. It contained 77 grams of sugar. I was thinking to myself, if someone were to do an all Huel diet, they will consume less sugar in one week than in this one bottle of soda. You could even add a few blueberries or natural peanut butter in some of your Huel shakes and come in less than 77 grams for the week.
2 Likes
pandaken123
I have been dealing with fatty liver disease for going on 8yrs now, definitely had it longer, but that is how long I have been diagnosed. When my initial blood work was done my liver function tests were off the charts. A healthy diet and exercise my levels came down into normal range, but I am always on the high side of normal. Recently I have been feeling fatigued and excessively tired. A quick trip to my nephrologist and regular gp revealed some disturbing test results.
I plan on using Huel as my lunch replacement. Lunch is catered daily which I can no longer partake in. As I have to walk a fair distance to the office I find this to be a better alternative than carrying another bag with food etc.
1 Like