http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Because of the prevalence of obesity in our country, many Americans are expected to develop a serious condition called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which can lead to cirrhosis, fibrosis, and in some cases liver failure. It is also one of the best predictors for coronary artery disease. http://phys.org/news222419309.html Medicine & Health Tue, 19 Apr 2011 08:09:19 EST news222419309 Researchers have identified a molecular switch that appears to be a common feature in the development of fatty liver disease. The discovery made in mice is consistent with data from human patients, suggesting that it may provide an underlying explanation for the development of fatty liver in people with obesity and metabolic syndrome. http://phys.org/news221226549.html Medicine & Health Tue, 05 Apr 2011 12:49:33 EST news221226549 According to new data presented today at the International Liver Congress, the United States (U.S.) could soon be faced with an epidemic of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)1, one of the major contributing factors of chronic liver disease (CLD), considered as one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The study highlights that if the current rates of obesity and diabetes continue for another two decades, the prevalence of NAFLD in the US is expected to increase by 50% in 2030. http://phys.org/news220938201.html Medicine & Health Sat, 02 Apr 2011 04:44:42 EST news220938201 University of Queensland Diamantina Institute PhD student, Veronique Chachay, hopes to determine if a nutrient found in grape skin could hold the key to better managing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). http://phys.org/news216300531.html Medicine & Health Mon, 07 Feb 2011 11:40:01 EST news216300531 (PhysOrg.com) -- Regular doses of a licensed medication derived from fish oil could be used to improve nerve damage and prevent the onset of some of the serious complications of diabetes such as amputation, blindness or heart disease. http://phys.org/news213963009.html Medicine & Health Tue, 11 Jan 2011 10:11:59 EST news213963009 People suffering from fatty liver disease may be three times more likely to suffer a stroke than individuals without fatty liver, according to a study by researchers at St. Michael's Hospital and the London Health Sciences Centre. The study is the first to find a link between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease — a disease characterized by the accumulation of fat in the liver in non drinkers — and stroke. http://phys.org/news213619425.html Medicine & Health Fri, 07 Jan 2011 10:43:52 EST news213619425 Researchers from Israel have determined that more than half of liver transplant recipients develop post-transplantation metabolic syndrome (PTMS), placing them at greater risk for cardiovascular disease. Prior to transplantation only 5% of the patients were diagnosed with metabolic syndrome, but rates of obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, hypertension, and diabetes were significantly higher post transplantation. Full details of this retrospective-prevalence study are available in the January 2011 issue of Liver Transplantation. http://phys.org/news213530780.html Medicine & Health Thu, 06 Jan 2011 10:06:38 EST news213530780 Long-term use of statins, a drug widely prescribed to prevent artery-blocking cholesterol, is less risky than thought for patients with a common form of liver disease, according to a study published on Wednesday by The Lancet. http://phys.org/news209797489.html Medicine & Health Wed, 24 Nov 2010 05:40:01 EST news209797489 The link between sleeping and obesity is drawn tighter as a new research published online in the FASEB Journal study shows that what your mother ate when she was pregnant may make you obese or overweight by altering the function of genes (epigenetic changes) that regulate circadian rhythm. In the report, pregnant primate females consuming a high-fat diet altered the function of fetal genes that regulate circadian rhythm (including appetite and food intake) during development. The offspring also had non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. http://phys.org/news209644966.html Medicine & Health Mon, 22 Nov 2010 10:43:06 EST news209644966 Mounting evidence linking childhood obesity to an increasing risk of obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and other cardiovascular and metabolic disorders in adulthood is clearly presented in a comprehensive review article in the current issue of Childhood Obesity, published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. http://phys.org/news209391563.html Medicine & Health Fri, 19 Nov 2010 12:19:42 EST news209391563 Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) rank mortality related to chronic liver disease and cirrhosis as the 12th most common cause of death in adults in the U.S. Using a modified definition that includes diseases such as viral hepatitis, liver cance and obesity-related fatty liver disease (liver diseases), Mayo Clinic-led researchers have found that liver-related mortality is as high as fourth for some age groups, and eighth overall. The findings are being presented today at the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases 61st Annual Liver Meeting in Boston. http://phys.org/news207826548.html Medicine & Health Mon, 01 Nov 2010 11:00:12 EST news207826548 Curcumin, a chemical that gives curry its zing, holds promise in preventing or treating liver damage from an advanced form of a condition known as fatty liver disease, new Saint Louis University research suggests. http://phys.org/news207590730.html Medicine & Health Fri, 29 Oct 2010 17:06:01 EST news207590730 Scientists at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center have discovered that a diet with high levels of fructose - levels equivalent to that in high fructose corn syrup - and of trans fats not only increases obesity, but also leads to significant fatty liver disease with scar tissue. http://phys.org/news196426705.html Medicine & Health Tue, 22 Jun 2010 11:59:14 EST news196426705 (AP) -- People with a common, obesity-related liver disease that has no known treatment got a surprising benefit from vitamin E pills, researchers reported Wednesday. http://phys.org/news191757010.html Medicine & Health Thu, 29 Apr 2010 11:00:01 EST news191757010 Recent studies suggest that modifiable risk factors such as cigarette smoking and fructose consumption can worsen nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). With NAFLD, fat accumulates in the liver of overweight individuals despite drinking little alcohol, causing in some cases liver scarring that can lead to liver failure. Identifying modifiable factors that contribute to disease severity and progression is essential in improving patient outcomes. Details of these studies are published in the May issue of Hepatology, a journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). http://phys.org/news191582245.html Medicine & Health Tue, 27 Apr 2010 10:17:50 EST news191582245 Results of a German study presented today at the International Liver Congress 2010, the Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Liver in Vienna, Austria, have shown that overall, treatment with high dose (23-28mg/kg/d) ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is no more effective than placebo in the treatment of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the most advanced form of non-alcoholic liver disease associated with cirrhosis of the liver . http://phys.org/news190631886.html Medicine & Health Fri, 16 Apr 2010 11:00:01 EST news190631886 Children with more body fat and less endurance than their fitter, leaner counterparts have stiffer arteries at a young age, Medical College of Georgia researchers said. http://phys.org/news190288733.html Medicine & Health Mon, 12 Apr 2010 11:30:01 EST news190288733 (PhysOrg.com) -- For the first time, Yale researchers have identified common genetic variants that predispose lean individuals to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and insulin resistance. NAFLD is now the most common chronic liver disease in the U.S. and insulin resistance is the major factor that leads to type 2 diabetes. Their study also explains the mechanism by which individuals develop these conditions, despite maintaining normal body weight. The research appears in the March 25, 2010 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. http://phys.org/news188765913.html Medicine & Health Thu, 25 Mar 2010 20:20:02 EST news188765913 (PhysOrg.com) -- High fructose corn syrup, which is linked to obesity, may also be harmful to the liver, according to Duke University Medical Center research. http://phys.org/news188147759.html Medicine & Health Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:50:01 EST news188147759 Increased appetite and insulin resistance can be transferred from one mouse to another via intestinal bacteria, according to research being published online this week by Science magazine. http://phys.org/news186922842.html Medicine & Health Thu, 04 Mar 2010 14:00:08 EST news186922842 Researchers from the Karolinska Institute determined that patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) have a higher overall mortality rate compared with the general population. Details of this study are available in the February issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. http://phys.org/news183808051.html Medicine & Health Wed, 27 Jan 2010 10:00:03 EST news183808051 A recent metobolomics study by researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center in Richmond found that impaired peroxisomal oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) is associated with the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). The study also found significantly higher plasma monounsaturated fatty acids in the blood of patients with NAFL and NASH. Full findings appear in the December issue of Hepatology. http://phys.org/news178265314.html Medicine & Health Tue, 24 Nov 2009 06:40:01 EST news178265314 Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is often caused by abdominal obesity, which is also one of the main causes of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome. The latter, in turn, is an important cardiovascular risk factor, and has been found to be associated with the presence of carotid atherosclerotic lesions. It is therefore understandable that an association may exist between NAFLD and carotid lesions. Although the association between NAFLD and carotid lesions is plausible and demonstrated, its practical implications have not been fully understood. http://phys.org/news175513288.html Medicine & Health Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:42:13 EST news175513288 Scientists have discovered a previously unknown link between a mother's diet in pregnancy and a severe form of liver disease in her child. http://phys.org/news174661978.html Medicine & Health Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:14:02 EST news174661978 Researchers studying a large sample of adolescent American boys have found an association between metabolic syndrome, which is a complication of obesity, and elevated liver enzymes that mark potentially serious liver disease. http://phys.org/news173459901.html Medicine & Health Tue, 29 Sep 2009 16:30:07 EST news173459901 A team of scientists at the University of California, Riverside has found that even second-hand tobacco smoke exposure can result in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a common disease and rising cause of chronic liver injury in which fat accumulates in the liver of people who drink little or no alcohol. http://phys.org/news171808160.html Medicine & Health Thu, 10 Sep 2009 13:50:23 EST news171808160 Researchers from the University of Sydney, Australia determined that patients with a sedentary lifestyle who engage in routine physical activities lower their risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The lower risk of problems associated with fatty liver was not contingent upon weight loss, but a direct result from the increased aerobic exercise. The results of this study are published in the October issue of Hepatology, a journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. http://phys.org/news171731410.html Medicine & Health Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:10:49 EST news171731410 New findings from nutrition researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggest that it's not whether body fat is stored in the belly that affects metabolic risk factors for diabetes, high blood triglycerides and cardiovascular disease, but whether it collects in the liver. http://phys.org/news170346913.html Medicine & Health Mon, 24 Aug 2009 16:20:04 EST news170346913 Counseling patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) on how to increase physical activity leads to health benefits that are independent of changes in weight. These findings are in a new study in the July issue of Hepatology, a journal published by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). http://phys.org/news165671139.html Medicine & Health Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:20:03 EST news165671139 Intestinal permeability and an overgrowth of bacteria in the small intestine are both associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). These findings are revealed in a new study in the June issue of Hepatology, a journal published by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). http://phys.org/news162828727.html Medicine & Health Fri, 29 May 2009 15:12:36 EST news162828727