New research finds that eating this kind of food can improve your liver!

Recent studies have shown that eating a diet rich in resistant starch can change the composition of intestinal bacteria and reduce triglycerides and liver enzyme levels associated with liver damage and inflammation, thereby reducing fatty liver. So, what foods are rich in resistant starch? And how should we eat them specifically?

What is "resistant starch"

Resistant starch is a type of starch that is resistant to pancreatic amylase and is found in natural foods such as green bananas, whole grains, potatoes, sweet potatoes, beans and whole wheat. Although it cannot be digested in the small intestine, it can be fermented by the microbial flora in the colon and has a positive effect on metabolism.

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The study recruited a total of 200 patients with fatty liver, 100 of whom ate resistant starch (high-amylose starch) from corn; 100 patients ate control starch of equal energy. Both groups of patients with fatty liver consumed 20 grams of resistant starch mixed with 300 ml of water before each meal, twice a day.

4 months later, we found:

1. Fatty liver and weight loss

Compared with the control group, resistant starch significantly reduced the triglyceride content in the liver of the participants, with an absolute decrease of 9.08% and a relative decrease of 39.42%. In addition, it also significantly reduced the weight and BMI of the participants.

2Liver damage has improved

Participants in the resistant starch group also had significant decreases in alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, suggesting that liver damage was improved.

3. Dyslipidemia has been alleviated

Participants in the resistant starch group experienced improvements in total cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, alleviating dyslipidemia.

What foods contain resistant starch?

The study used a special resistant starch product, but in our daily lives, we also consume some resistant starch to a certain extent. Resistant starch is mainly found in foods with high starch content, such as whole grains, beans, potatoes, and green bananas.

Whole grains, beans (lentils, peas, red kidney beans), potatoes, green bananas, etc. are rich in natural resistant starch; in addition, after starchy foods are cooled, part of the gelatinized starch returns to the state of raw starch. This process is called "retrogradation". Starch can produce resistant starch during the retrogradation process, such as cooled rice and potatoes.

How can people with fatty liver improve their health through daily diet?

There are many causes of fatty liver, such as viral hepatitis, drinking, drug damage, autoimmunity, etc. For patients with fatty liver with clear causes, eliminating the cause is the most important thing, and timely antiviral treatment, quitting drinking, stopping liver-damaging drugs, etc. In addition, the more common cause of non-alcoholic fatty liver is excessive energy intake, so it is important to pay attention to a balanced diet on a daily basis.

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Dietary principles: "5 to eat and 4 not to eat"

5. Eat

1. Eat more fiber-rich vegetables and fruits

The vegetable intake for each meal of lunch and dinner should reach 300 grams.

150g leafy vegetables, mainly green leafy vegetables, including cabbage, rapeseed, cabbage, spinach, amaranth, etc.;

100g other nightshades, excluding potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes, lotus roots, etc.;

50 grams of fungus and algae food.

2. Limit refined rice and flour and choose whole grains

3. Eat more beans

4. Limit added sugar

WHO recommends that daily calories from added sugars (free sugars) should be less than 10% of total calories.

5. Eat high-quality protein

Protein can protect liver cells and promote the recovery and regeneration of damaged liver cells. Therefore, you should increase your intake of protein-rich foods such as soy products, lean meat, fish and shrimp.

Sample Meal Recipes:

Breakfast: a vegetable bun, a boiled egg, and a glass of milk;

Lunch: Replace the refined rice you usually eat with whole grain rice, one portion of fried zucchini with pork slices, one portion of stewed black fungus with tofu, and one portion of blanched green vegetables;

Lunch snack: a glass of low-fat milk and an apple;

Dinner: red bean rice, one serving of chicken legs stewed with mushrooms (skin removed), one serving of celery fried with dried tofu, and one serving of blanched vegetables.

In short, the dietary principle for people with fatty liver is to increase the intake of whole grains, replace refined white rice and noodles with whole grain rice or rye/buckwheat noodles, increase the intake of vegetables, and choose high-quality protein.

In addition, you should also pay attention to the cooking method. Steaming, boiling, cold mixing, stir-frying, and stewing are more recommended. Deep-frying and pan-frying are not recommended. Use less oil, salt, and sugar when cooking. This way you can achieve both deliciousness and health.

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4. Don’t eat

1. Avoid high-fat diets

People with fatty liver should limit their intake of fatty foods, usually 25 to 30 grams of fat is appropriate.

2. Don’t be hungry one meal and eat a full meal

Be sure to eat on time. When hungry, in order to maintain blood sugar levels, the body will break down fat, resulting in an increase in free fatty acids in the blood. A large amount of fatty acids enter the liver, causing liver fat accumulation. Staying up late to eat supper and overeating can easily increase the liver's fat storage capacity, eventually leading to fatty liver.

3. Don’t just eat vegetarian food

If you only eat vegetarian food, resulting in insufficient protein intake, it will affect the synthesis of lipoprotein, resulting in a lack of "boats" to transport fat out of the liver.

4. Don’t drink alcohol

Because more than 95% of alcohol that enters the body is metabolized in the liver, drinking large amounts of alcohol for a long time can also cause alcoholic liver disease and aggravate fatty liver disease.

Planning and production

Source: CCTV Life Circle

Author: Li Huating, researcher at Shanghai Diabetes Research Institute

Editor｜Yang Yaping