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Timing of meals plays important role in development of liver disease

Category: Liver Diseases

Individuals who have received unhealthy liver panel test results may be able to improve the function of the organ simply by adjusting the schedule of their meals. When a person eats may be just as important as what they eat.

Diet plays an important role in the development of fatty liver disease, which is one of the most common causes of liver damage. It is often brought about by high-fat diets and excessive weight gain. Eating a low-fat diet is widely believed to be the best way to avoid these problems, but the new study suggests that the timing of meals may play a larger role.

For the study, researchers from the Salk Institute fed two groups of mice high-fat diets. One section could eat whenever they wanted, but the other had the timing of their meals regulated, with several hours of fasting between each feeding.

The results showed that the group on the regulated diet gained less weight and experienced less liver damage than the group that ate whenever they wanted.

The researchers said that periods of fasting may play an important role in maintaining metabolic function and avoiding obesity and liver damage.