By Dr David Unwin

“It’s not just about diabetes; belly fat matters.”

Up to 20% of the developed world now has a condition described as Fatty Liver Disease. This is split into alcoholic and Non-alcoholic Steatotic Hepatitis (NASH). The latter is in large part obesity related. In this way I worry that excess sugar and starchy carbs are leading to the three great modern epidemics; diabetes, obesity, and fatty liver disease. In 2008 The World Health Organization concluded there was convincing evidence that central obesity (defined as waist greater than 80 cms in women or 94 cms in men) was associated with significantly increased risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, colorectal and breast cancer and overall mortality.

The good news is that I have often seen a low carb approach help not just Type 2 Diabetes but also liver function, blood pressure, lipid profiles (particularly triglyceride and HDL cholesterol levels), and central obesity.