In a new study from Penn State, researchers found exercise may help certain patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) reduce their risk of developing blood clots.
While diet and physical activity have always been recommended treatments for these patients, the results confirm that exercise has a multitude of benefits, including many that extend outside the liver, and should be included as a routine part of NAFLD treatment.
The condition, NAFLD, where too much fat accumulates in liver cells, affects nearly 1 billion adults worldwide.
Patients with NAFLD have an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer and blood clots. At this time, there is no approved drug treatment or cure for this common condition.
In the study, the team examined how exercise programs affect the health of patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)—an aggressive form of NAFLD.
Twenty-four patients completed the study, which required two-thirds of the participants to complete a 20-week aerobic exercise training program and dietary counseling.
The team found the participants who completed the exercise program—which consisted of five moderate-intensity, 30-minute exercise sessions per week—had a much lower amount of a protein that helps blood clots remain formed.
The team found NAFLD and NASH patients have an increased risk of developing blood clots in the veins of the legs, lungs or liver.
If these occur, they can have serious consequences including an increased risk of hospitalization or death.
The findings illustrate the importance of prescribing physical activity to NAFLD and NASH patients as a way to improve their overall health.
In addition to measuring clotting risk, the researchers also found exercise led to a greater decrease in liver fat, a greater increase in the body’s ability to supply oxygen to skeletal muscles during exercise (cardiorespiratory fitness), changes in blood sugar and insulin levels, reduction in body fat and improvement in quality of life.
The research team noted these benefits appeared to be independent of weight loss or dietary change.
If you care about fatty liver disease, please read studies about how to prevent fatty liver disease, and ginger may help reduce obesity and fatty liver disease.
For more information about liver health, please see recent studies about exercises that may help reduce fatty liver disease, and results showing this vegetable oil linked to spread of cancer.
The study is published in Hepatology and was conducted by Dr. Jonathan Stine et al.
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