title: Dietary composition and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
abstract: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common and potentially serious form of chronic liver disease that occurs in patients who do not abuse alcohol. Present dietary recommendations for all Americans, including those with NAFLD, endorse a low-calorie, low-fat diet. However, little is known about the effect of diet composition on liver histopathology in patients with NAFLD. The aim of this study was to determine whether overall calorie intake and diet composition are associated with the severity of NAFLD histopathology. Seventy-four consecutive morbidly obese patients presenting for bariatric surgery from January 2001 to March 2002 were retrospectively reviewed. In addition to a standard surgical and psychological evaluation, all patients underwent a preoperative dietary evaluation using a standardized 24-hr food recall. Food intake was evaluated for total calories and macronutrients and compared to liver histopathology from biopsies routinely obtained during surgery. Associations with the severity of steatosis and the presence of inflammation or fibrosis were assessed separately using chi-square for categorical variables and ANOVA for continuous variables. Further, we conducted multiple logistic regression analyses for each histological outcome. There were no significant associations between either total caloric intake or protein intake and either steatosis, fibrosis, or inflammation. However, higher CHO intake was associated with significantly higher odds of inflammation, while higher fat intake was associated with significantly lower odds of inflammation. In conclusion, present dietary recommendations may worsen NAFLD histopathology.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology, Johns Hopkins Hospital, 600 North Wolfe Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA. solga@jhmi.edu
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Solga
authors.forename: Amir R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Alkhuraishe
authors.forename: Jeanne M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Torbenson
authors.forename: Ashli
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Greenwald
authors.forename: Anna Mae
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Diehl
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Magnuson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004032:Diet; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D004044:Dietary Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000453:epidemiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D004041:Dietary Fats; D004044:Dietary Proteins