Short-term weight loss and hepatic triglyceride reduction: evidence of a metabolic advantage with dietary carbohydrate restriction1,2,3
Jeffrey D Browning, Jonathan A Baker, Thomas Rogers, Jeannie Davis, Santhosh Satapati, and Shawn C Burgess
1From the Departments of Internal Medicine (JDB), Pathology (JAB and TR), and Pharmacology (SCB), The Advanced Imaging Research Center (JDB, JD, SS, and SCB), The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.
2 Supported by the Clinical and Translational Science Award at The University of Texas Southwestern (UL1RR024982), the Task Force for Obesity Research (TORS) at The University of Texas Southwestern (5UL1DE019584), the TORS Human Biology Core (5PL1DK081183), the TORS Molecular and Metabolic Mouse Phenotyping Core (5PL1DK081182), and NIH grants 5RL1DK081187 (to JDB and SCB), 1K23DK074396 (to JDB), RR02584 (to SCB), R01DK078184 (to SCB), and DK082872 (to TR).
3 Address reprint requests and correspondence to JD Browning, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases and the Advanced Imaging Research Center, 5323 Harry Hines Boulevard, Dallas, TX 75390-8568. E-mail: jeffrey.browning@utsouthwestern.edu.
This study can be accessed at: http://www.ajcn.org/content/early/2011/03/02/ajcn.110.007674.abstract
Browning notes that individuals with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) have excess liver triglycerides. This is due, in part, to the liver making fat from carbohydrates via lipogenesis. Although weight loss is currently recommended to treat NAFLD, little attention has been given to dietary carbohydrate restriction.
The aim of the study was to determine the effectiveness of 2 weeks of either dietary carbohydrate restriction or calorie restriction at reducing liver triglycerides in subjects with NAFLD. Eighteen NAFLD subjects (5 men and 13 women) with an average age of 45years, consumed a carbohydrate-restricted (20 grams per day) or calorie-restricted (1200–1500 kcal per day) diet for 2 weeks.
The study revealed:
(a) The carbohydrate-restricted group lost slightly more weight 4.6kg - The calorie-restricted group lost 4.0kg.
(b) Liver triglycerides decreased significantly more in carbohydrate-restricted subjects 55% - The calorie-restricted group liver triglycerides decreased by 28%.
The low carbohydrate diet was more effective than the calorie restricted diet in reducing NAFLD risk
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