Non alcoholic fatty liver disease

Non alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) refers to a wide spectrum of liver diseases ranging from the most common, fatty liver (accumulation of fat in the liver, also known as steatosis), to non alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH, fat in the liver causing liver inflammation), to cirrhosis (irreversible, advanced scarring of the liver as a result of chronic inflammation of the liver). All of the stages of non alcoholic fatty liver disease are now believed to be due to insulin resistance, a condition closely associated with obesity. In fact, the BMI correlates with the degree of liver damage, that is, the greater the BMI the greater the liver damage.

As expected, non alcoholic fatty liver disease is observed principally in developed countries. In these societies, a sedentary lifestyle and high calorie, sugar, and fat intake lead to a high prevalence of obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes.

Non alcoholic fatty liver disease is currently the most common liver disease in the US and worldwide, affecting estimated 10-24% of the world’s population. In the US, the Centers for Disease Control reports that currently, approximately one half of the U.S. adult population is overweight (BMI>25) and one quarter of the U.S. adult population is obese (BMI>30). That means upwards of 29 million Americans have non alcoholic fatty liver disease, while 6.4 million of these persons have non alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Even more alarming than these statistics, non alcoholic fatty liver disease is occurring among children in the US.

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