Been diagnosed with Fatty Liver: What can I do about it?

I had my gall bladder removed, never drink or smoke and have avoided fried foods since the 90's, still having symptoms of fatty liver. I found milk thistle has helped reduced the dull pain. I also started walking daily. It is a struggle but truly hoping i can avoid it becoming cancer.

Weight loss does help. The fat gets lodged in the liver as we gain weight. It good back out when we lose weight. I had fatty liver diseaseany years ago and it worked for me. Good luck

Have you cut added sugar from your diet? YouTube Dr Robert Lustig.

Most all people over 50 have Fatty Liver of some kind .
Usually it’s just from gaining weight as we age .
I eat the cleanest , healthiest diet , esp last 10 years since I have severe gastrointestinal issues, many diagnoses and chronic . Still that fatty liver always shows up on tests .
It not severe at all and if mild case … don’t put too much worry in your head about it .

@bettersleep68
Please consult with your liver doctor before you take any medicines, supplements, herbs, tonics, etc. He/she knows your condition and he/she is the only one to know what is going to be helpful or harmful to you.

Congratulations on focusing on eating habits. I remember, in my situation ( with my liver disease, that I was advised to eat a heart healthy diet, get exercise/stay active, and to avoid any over-the-counter medications and NO alcohol.
What are some new eating habits that you have introduced?

I have cut out sugar and most grains...and no fried food (even though I love fried chicken)..no ice cream .cakes. cookies etc.. To be honest it is very hard and I hope I soon see some weight lose so I dont get discouraged..thank you for your encouragement

Through my annual labs drawn 10/2024, thePCP stated I have fatty liver.I didn't think to much about the information, nor did I ask for help to understand what a fatty liver is.
This is 6/2025, and all of a sudden I was awakened to start searching for my answer. I will be 83 soon, and am getting an appointment with a Specialist quite soon!! So happy to have found a place for support, and prayerfully have someone to talk with.

Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect, @jl42. I think your search is great to fully understand what fatty liver is and know what may be occurring in your body.

I moved your post here where others have shared about fatty liver so you can talk with members such as @rosemarya @bettersleep68 @rozy288 @riflemanz64 and others about their experiences with or knowledge of fatty liver.

When is your specialist appointment? Have you noticed any symptoms thus far?

My appointment is not until September.

I have a fatty liver story to share. A few years ago, I had an ultrasound to check my liver because one of the liver markers from my lab work was elevated. With my healthy diet, my doctor at the time was in disbelief that it came back with a “fatty liver”. I was, too! To further investigate since ultrasounds can be misleading, she ordered an MRI for me (bless her heart!). According to that more advanced and detailed test, it turned out I did NOT have a fatty liver. I got myself all upset due to the ultrasound reading — but then was relieved to find a different result with the MRI. She even called the radiologist to be 100% sure about it. He concurred. Two years later, I had another MRI, for a different reason, and as an “incidental” find, my then newer doctor says to me, “Oh, and by the way, you have a fatty liver!” What??? That can occur in just two years or so??? I guess so! I thought that ship had sailed! But no, the winds of the state of the world brought it right back! This was during the pandemic and I will admit, I was absolutely stress eating salty-snack foods I knew I shouldn’t have been indulging in — with an occasional sweet, too. I was going through a rough time in my personal life, as well, so stress eating was how I coped. In any case, I asked her what percentage of my liver had fat in it! She said something on the lines of, “they don’t tell you how MUCH of your liver has fat. If you have ANY fat, you have a fatty liver!” Gees! It’d be nice to know the status of my liver fat! They really should let you know how much of your liver has been infiltrated with fat. It seems like a blanket statement to just say to someone, “you have a fatty liver”. She also added to me, “just about everyone I see has a fatty liver”. So, apparently, it’s all part of being human these days . . . from what I’ve read, it’s actually quite common, sadly. And, yes, I did gain weight over the pandemic, as I’ve come to learn many people did. I’ve lost 23 pounds since that diagnosis. I’m still working on losing weight through strict control of my diet, cardio and strength training at the gym and at home. When I get tested again either via ultra sound or MRI, I’ll post again if it went away! All the best to others who may have also been diagnosed. We can learn from each other here!