Recent advances in dietary supplementation, in treating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD) is currently known as the most common liver problem, characterized by excessive lipid accumulation in hepatocytes,which may progress to other liver diseases such as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, hepatic tissue fibrosis, livercirrhosis, and failure or hepatocellular carcinoma. Since NAFLD is positively associated with the development of obesity, insulin resistance, and ultimately type 2 diabetes mellitus, it is often regarded as the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome. No pharmacologic treatment has yet been proven for this disease. For most patients with presumed or confirmed NAFLD, the only proven strategy is to offer lifestyle advice that can lead to sustained weight loss. Since insulin resistance, oxidative stress, inflammation, and necro-apoptosis are involved in NAFLD pathogenesis, it seems that every potential therapeutic agent should target one or some of these pathologic events. There are many well known anti-oxidants, anti-inflammatory, and insulin sensitizer dietary supplements which have shown beneficial effects on NAFLD improvement in animal and human studies. The purpose of this review is to explore the existing evidences on dietary supplements considered to have hepatoprotective properties, and to present some proposed mechanisms by which they may protect against NAFLD.

Egg consumption and risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

To evaluate the association between egg consumption and risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) development. METHODSThis case-control study was conducted on individuals who were referred to two hepatology clinics in Tehran, Iran in 2015. The study included 169 patients with NAFLD and 782 controls. Egg consumption was estimated using a validated food frequency questionnaire. The participants were categorized according to the frequency of their egg consumption during the previous year: Less than two eggs per week, two to three eggs per week, and four or more eggs per week. RESULTSIn the crude model, participants who consumed 2 to 3 eggs per week, were 3.56 times more likely to have NAFLD in comparison to those who consumed less than 2 eggs per week (OR: 3.56; 95%CI: 2.35-5.31). Adjustment for known risk factors of NAFLD strengthened this significant association so that individuals have consumed two to three eggs per week had 3.71 times higher risk of NAFLD than those who have eaten less than two eggs per week (OR: 3.71; 95%CI: 1.91, 7.75). CONCLUSIONOur data indicate that higher egg consumption in common amount of usage is associated with higher risk of NAFLD.