What causes fatty liver?

Fatty liver disease is an extremely common condition.  Approximately one in five overweight people have a fatty liver.  We certainly see a great number of these people at our clinics.  Many of our patients are quite confused about the term fatty liver and I don't blame them because it sounds like an insult.  It is, however, a medical term and means that the liver has accumulated too much fat inside it, and fat cells have actually taken the place of normal healthy liver cells.  This means you have less liver cells to carry out the important jobs your liver does each day.

Most people think a fatty liver is caused by eating too much fat.  This is definitely not always the case.  You can follow a low fat diet and eat fat free foods, yet still end up with a fatty liver.

The causes of fatty liver include –

By far the most common cause is incorrect diet such as

• Diets high in refined carbohydrates
• Diets high in unhealthy fats such as deep fried foods, chips/crisps, margarine and most vegetable oil
• Diets low in plant food such as fruits and vegetables 
• Diets low in anti-oxidants especially vitamin C and selenium
• Diets low in good quality protein

It’s interesting to know that the most common cause of fatty liver is too much sugar and carbohydrate and not dietary fat. A high carbohydrate diet combined with inadequate exercise will cause your body to become resistant to insulin. Thus the insulin levels rise and the high insulin levels tell your body, and especially your liver, to store more fat.
Lack of exercise will make you insulin resistant, especially if you have a high carbohydrate diet. Insulin resistance and high insulin levels are known as Syndrome X.  Syndrome X is the most common cause of fatty liver disease today.  There is a diet to reverse fatty liver in my book Fatty Liver: You Can Reverse It.

Other causes of fatty liver:

Liver damage from prescribed medications such as some anti-inflammatory drugs, immuno-suppressants, analgesics, and cholesterol lowering drugs etc. Drugs that may cause or contribute to fatty liver include – Amiodarone, Perhexiline, Paracetamol, the calcium channel blockers diltiazem and nifedipine, methotrexate, chloroquine, hycanthone, synthetic oestrogens, the glitazone drugs used in diabetics, and Tamoxifen. This list is not exhaustive and some people can have very severe unusual reactions to drugs that other people do not have; these are called idiosyncratic drug reactions. Always check with your doctor if you are taking long term medications, to find out if they have potential side effects on your liver. If they do, make sure that you have a regular liver function test, and if any damage shows up, your doctor can change your medications to more liver-friendly types of drugs.
Liver damage from recreational drugs such as alcohol, narcotics, and amphetamines etc, especially as huge doses of these substances may be used in addicted persons.
Liver damage from exposure to environmental toxins such as solvents, dyes, plastics, glues, insecticides, pesticides, dry cleaning fluids, harsh detergents and many industrial chemicals. Many of these toxins find their way into our water ways and food chain, so this further increases the workload of the liver. Those in the following occupations are more at risk of chemical-induced fatty liver damage – dry cleaners, agricultural workers, plumbers, painters, printers, mechanics, hair dressers, nail technicians and factory workers in some industries. Despite the fact that occupational health and safety measures have improved dramatically over the last few years, chemical-induced fatty liver cases are still occurring. I am amazed at just how little care some people take of their liver; they do not wear gloves or masks when handling poisons and they use insecticides to great excess. I often watch in horror as some of the people I work with, heat their food in a plastic container, covered with glad wrap in a microwave oven. Well the over use of microwave ovens in itself has unknown dangers, but if you heat food in plastic containers in a microwave, your liver is going to be eating plastic.

Family history of fatty liver or cryptogenic cirrhosis increases your risk of developing a fatty liver.

Being overweight and/or diabetic increases your risk of fatty liver, and fatty liver is present in 57-74% of obese individuals. Fatty liver is found in 95% of patients undergoing surgery for morbid obesity. This association can be compared to the “chicken and the egg” relationship. In other words, what comes first? In the majority of cases the fatty liver leads to being overweight in the first place and then the excess weight makes the fatty liver progress to a more severe degree. This is why it’s so hard for overweight persons with a fatty liver to lose weight, unless they first improve their liver function.  Livatone Plus contains herbs and nutrients that help to support liver health, protect liver cells from damage and even help to regenerate damaged liver cells.

Rapid weight loss – such as in those with eating disorders like anorexia or bulimia. It is important to avoid very rapid weight loss if you have a fatty liver and that is why fasting or extreme fad diets are dangerous in such cases.

Gastric bypass surgery (jejuno-ileal bypass) for the treatment of morbid obesity can cause fatty liver.

Thus you can see that there are several possible causes of fatty liver disease, and in some sufferers there are multiple causes acting together. It is thought that those with the more benign condition of “simple fatty liver”, will only progress to the more severe form of fatty liver known as NASH, if they experience other insults to their liver. This could include the use of liver toxic drugs, poor diabetic control, infections, excess iron in the body, heavy smoking or exposure to toxic chemicals.

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Could you have adrenal gland exhaustion?

Do you continually feel tired, depressed and rundown? Do you wake feeling exhausted rather than refreshed? What about cravings for sweets or salty food? These are all possible symptoms of adrenal fatigue.

In a nutshell adrenal exhaustion is caused by too much stress and too much work. Several other factors contribute to the condition, but adequate rest and relaxation is a hallmark of overcoming adrenal fatigue. In today’s world it is almost inevitable that most people will experience some degree of adrenal exhaustion at some point in their lives. Life can be so busy and stressful, plus caffeine, nicotine, allergies, food additives and sugar all place physical stress on the adrenals.

Function of the adrenal glands

Your two adrenal glands sit on top of your kidneys and are responsible for producing several hormones. Two of these hormones are adrenalin and cortisol. They are both called stress hormones in that you release them when you are physically or emotionally stressed and they prepare your body to deal with the stress. Adrenalin is released when you feel immediate, intense stress (such as narrowly avoiding a car accident), whereas cortisol is released when you are chronically stressed (deadlines at work, sleep deprivation or chronic anxiety).

If you have been stressed for several months or years, you probably have chronically elevated blood cortisol levels. Cortisol promotes abdominal weight gain, cravings and it makes weight loss very difficult. High cortisol also suppresses your immune system. If your cortisol level has been high for a long time, there usually comes a point when your adrenal glands just can’t pump out enough cortisol any more; they become exhausted. In this case you will probably be left with abnormally low cortisol.

Symptoms of adrenal gland exhaustion

- Feeling tired despite adequate rest and sleep
- Unrefreshing sleep
- Light, broken sleep
- Strong cravings for sugar and/or salt
- Feeling overwhelmed and like you can’t cope with life’s hassles
- Feeling tired in the morning but getting an energy burst anywhere between 4pm and 8pm
- Poor memory and inability to concentrate
- Weakened immunity with frequent infections

What causes adrenal gland exhaustion?

- Not enough sleep or poor quality sleep
- Stress
- Too much work and not enough rest
- Not enough good fats in the diet and too many bad fats
- Deficiency of vitamin C, magnesium and antioxidants
- Stimulants: caffeine, nicotine
- High sugar diets
- Chronic illness. This is a major stress on the body and places a large demand on your adrenal glands.

How is adrenal exhaustion diagnosed?

Many doctors do not acknowledge adrenal conditions unless they are severe diseases like Cushing’s syndrome (excess cortisol) or Addison’s disease (severe lack of cortisol usually caused by autoimmune disease). However milder forms of adrenal imbalance can definitely impair the quality of your life and produce quite severe symptoms.

There are blood tests available for the adrenal hormones cortisol and DHEA. Low levels of these hormones usually indicate adrenal fatigue. Cortisol is best tested early in the morning and again in the evening. You are supposed to have higher cortisol in the morning and lower levels in the evening, however this pattern is often back to front in people with adrenal conditions.

How to treat adrenal exhaustion

1. Try to get adequate sleep. People with adrenal fatigue often have poor quality sleep, but your adrenal glands will greatly benefit if you can be in bed before 10:30pm. The hours before midnight are much more restorative to your body.

2. Try to reduce the stress in your life or find more effective ways of dealing with it. Massage, meditation, yoga, dancing classes, facials, counselling, reading or going for a bike ride can all be healthy ways to unwind.

3. Steer clear of stimulants. Generally caffeine is only bad for you if you consume too much, but people with adrenal fatigue should really cut it out of their diet. Black tea and green tea are fine in most cases, but coffee should be avoided for now. It is best to keep your alcohol consumption to a minimum, especially before bed. It can help you get to sleep but reduces the quality of sleep.

4. Try to minimise sugar and salt. People with adrenal fatigue often crave these foods and feel like they must consume them in order to keep going. Try to indulge in healthier versions of these foods instead. People with adrenal fatigue should add small amounts of salt to their diet, and you could snack on olives, which are salty yet nutritious. When it comes to sugar, small amounts of fresh dates, manuka honey or maple syrup are best. These foods have an intense flavour, so usually only small amounts are necessary to appease a sweet tooth. Once your energy level improves you will not be craving sugar as much and can use stevia as a natural sweetener.

5. Make sure you eat enough protein and good fats. These two nutrients will help to keep your blood sugar stable throughout the day, thereby reducing energy slumps caused by a blood sugar crash. There is an easy to follow lower carbohydrate higher protein eating plan in my book Can’t Lose Weight? Unlock The Secrets That Keep You Fat.

6. You may benefit from a tyrosine supplement. Tyrosine is an amino acid that your body uses to manufacture adrenalin and noradrenalin. It helps you to emotionally cope with stress more effectively and even helps mood and concentration.

7. Most of the vitamin C in your body is stored in your adrenal glands. Most people do not consume enough fresh vegetables and fruit to get sufficient vitamin C in their diet. Your adrenal glands will struggle to function unless you consume enough vitamin C.

8. Magnesium is calming to the nervous system and muscles and allows the adrenal glands to repair themselves. If you take some magnesium before bed it should help to improve the quality of your sleep.

9. Find out if you have a food allergy or intolerance. Eating foods that your body cannot tolerate is a major stress on you physically. You may need a naturopath’s help in uncovering hidden food sensitivities.

10. Herbs that help the adrenal glands are called adaptogens. They literally help your body to cope with stress better. Some of these herbs include Siberian ginseng, licorice and schizandra, which are all found in my Adrenal Plus Support tablets.

It is possible to heal adrenal exhaustion but it takes time and persistence.

The above statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease.
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Your Body Type and your weight

Have you ever wondered?

• Why some people put on weight easily and others don’t
• Why some people put on weight mainly in the lower parts of their body and others only put on weight in their upper body
• Why some people only put on weight in their abdomen
• Why some people can eat whatever they like and as much as they like and hardly put on any weight, whilst all you have to do is look at a pastry and you put on a few ounces I am sure you have.

We all have skinny friends who complain they can’t gain weight and yet they eat heaps more fattening foods than you do – so frustrating! Most people think it’s due to differences in the metabolic rate between individuals, and to some extent that’s true, but it goes deeper than that. Your tendency to easy weight gain and where you will deposit fat cells is much more related to the type of body shape you have inherited. Your body shape determines your hormonal and metabolic characteristics and thus where and how you will deposit fat cells.

No one has a perfect body shape and we all have wishes to change parts of ourselves. Some women become really ‘hung up’ or unhappy about a part of themselves, so much so, that they allow it to erode their self-esteem and personality. I try to show women that they need to accept themselves as a unique individual with a unique beauty. The next step is to make the best of what you’ve got right now, today! Don’t let life pass you by! You should never change yourself just to please another but rather do it for yourself.

There are hundreds of thousands of diets out there and there are many ways to lose weight. In spite of this, many people fail to lose weight and become yo yo dieters. If you know and understand your body shape this will give you a special advantage in your weight loss journey. There is no other diet published for the four body shapes to follow – my Body Shaping Diet Book is the only one! Do not get confused with the Blood Type diet, which excludes many different foods, depending upon your blood type; this is completely different to my Body Shaping Diet. My Body Shaping Diet works on your hormones and metabolism and has nothing to do with your blood type – it’s all about your Body Shape.

Case history
Debra had found that menopause was not good for her weight or figure; she found that excess fat started to deposit around her hips and thighs and a little around her lower abdomen. She had not changed her diet or exercise regime and she was not taking any medications or hormones.

Debra found this annoying, as because she did not understand the cause, she felt hopeless to fix it. Debra went to see one of my Weight Loss Detectives named Juanita and this was a very fortunate thing for her, as Juanita was very helpful and pin pointed the problem for Debra.

Juanita explained to Debra that weight gain around the hips and thighs and lower abdomen is very common in G shaped women during menopause. Juanita explained the solution had to be tailor made for Debra’s Body Type and metabolism, otherwise results would be slower. Debra was not eating too many calories; rather she was just eating the wrong types of foods for her G Body Type. In particular Debra had secret cravings for foods that combined dairy products with sugar, in other words rich creamy sweet foods, such as ice cream, cream cakes, custards and thick shakes. These are the types of foods that cause a hormone imbalance in G Type women, especially once they become menopausal or pregnant.

Juanita prescribed the G Body Type tablets and advised Debra to stop the sweet creamy foods. One of the good features of the G Body Type tablets is that they reduce cravings; they also help to balance the metabolism and hormones for your body type.

After 3 weeks Debra could see a real difference; she had lost 7 pounds in weight, but even better, she had reduced the pear shape to her body.
The Body Type Weight Control Supplements are tailor-made for your body type and are scientifically designed to balance the metabolism for your body shape.
Each of the four different Body Types has unique hormonal and metabolic characteristics.

That’s why:
• Some people put on weight easily and others don’t!
• Some body types only put on weight in specific areas of their body but never in other areas

Your Body Type is inherited
You cannot change the genetic patterns in your DNA – thus you cannot change your fundamental skeletal structure; in other words you cannot turn a woman with a big bone structure into a fine boned woman. It is possible however to change the distribution of fat and muscle in your body, not only with exercise, but also with the technique of nutrigenomics. Nutrigenomics is best described as turning off or turning on certain genes by using specific supplements and foods. By regulating such genes we can change our metabolism, our biochemistry, our hormonal balance and in the long term our body shape. This is one of the ways in which the Body Type Weight Control supplements work.

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Metabolism – how to get it going

Many of my patients battle with their weight and seem to get nowhere with dieting and exercise alone. Such was the case for 57 year old Juanita who came to see me complaining of excess weight, fatigue and sore breasts. She had most of the weight around her middle and had the tell tale roll of fat around her upper abdomen, which often indicates a fatty liver.

I ran some tests on Juanita and found the following

• A fatty liver was obvious from her ultrasound scan of the upper abdomen
• A sluggish thyroid with a blood TSH level of 4
• Examination of her breasts revealed tender ropey areas of breast tissue

I explained to Juanita that her fatty liver was not breaking down the unhealthy estrogen known as estrone, which was being produced in her fat tissues. The estrone was building up in her body and was making her breast tissue inflamed. A fatty liver is not regulating fat metabolism efficiently and instead of burning fat, it stores fat.

The combination of a fatty liver and sluggish thyroid caused a very low metabolic rate leading to inability to burn dietary calories efficiently. This poor lady was trying to lose weight with exercise and calorie restriction but her slow metabolic rate made this impossible.

To speed up her metabolism we had to improve her liver function and get the unhealthy fat out of her liver. It was also vital to improve the production of thyroid hormone, as this hormone stimulates the energy factories inside every cell of the body. I recommended a short list of nutritional supplements to support thyroid and liver function which would result in faster metabolism.

I recommended that she avoid sugar and high carbohydrate foods such as bread, pasta, cookies, muffins, donuts, cakes and desserts. I also encouraged her to eat more vegetable salads to improve her liver function.

When I saw her 3 months later, she had lost 42 pounds and the roll of fat had gone from her upper abdomen. Her blood test showed an improvement of thyroid function with her TSH level now at 2. She had much more energy and no longer felt like having an afternoon sleep. This was because her metabolic rate had increased, so that dietary calories were now converted to physical energy instead of fat. As we get older we need to support the function of the liver and the thyroid gland, otherwise our metabolism often gradually slows down.


The thyroid gland and metabolism
The problem of a slow metabolism was illustrated by another woman I had first seen several years ago. She was aged 57 and had weighed around 180 pounds for 6 years. She suffered with a thyroid condition known as Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, which is an autoimmune disorder named after Dr Hashimoto. Eventually the thyroid gland becomes so damaged that it is unable to manufacture adequate levels of thyroid hormone and an underactive thyroid condition occurs, which varies from mild to severe. In most cases of Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis it will be necessary to give the patient thyroid hormone tablets to bring blood levels of thyroid hormone back to normal. Ideally this will restore an efficient metabolism and relieve the symptoms.

This patient had been taking Thyroxine (Synthroid) tablets for years; but they were not really working as well as she had hoped; she remained overweight and tired. The Thyroxine tablets provide the T 4 form of thyroid hormone, which contains 4 molecules of iodine, and the body converts the T 4 into a much more active form of thyroid hormone known as T 3, which contains 3 molecules of iodine. Unfortunately in this woman this conversion of T 4 into T 3 was not occurring and this was obvious from her blood tests. I explained to her that T 3 was much more active than T 4 and unless she had adequate levels of T 3 in her body, her metabolic rate would remain too low for her to lose weight. She was very relieved and asked me to balance her thyroid function as quickly as possible as she really wanted to lose weight and feel energetic again.

I prescribed the following –

• T 3 tablets known as Tertromel tablets, to be taken in a dose of 20mcg twice daily
• She was to continue the Thyroxine tablets at a lower dosage, as best results are obtained by a combination of T 3 and T 4 hormone tablets.
• Supplements of selenium and iodine and zinc as these minerals improve the health and function of thyroid tissue; selenium is needed for the conversion of T 4 into T 3.

Well I did not see her again for nearly 2 years but when she finally returned and told me of her incredible success with this program I was really impressed. Since the introduction of my program she had lost 36 pounds and regained her wellbeing; indeed she told me that she felt 20 years younger!
Once again I saw the excellent results of increasing the metabolic rate by fine tuning the thyroid gland function and the liver function.

Other common times for women to experience a slow metabolism is during menopause, after childbirth or after a period of prolonged stress has finished. It really can result in a dramatic improvement without a huge amount of effort and suffering. So many patients battle with their weight and low energy levels simply because their thyroid hormone levels are out of balance. Many also have a fatty liver, which even if of mild degree only, really slows down your metabolic rate.

It does not have to be this hard and it is sad to see so many people struggle to get the right kind of treatment. For more information see my book Your Thyroid Problems Solved and Fatty Liver – You Can Reverse It

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Hair Loss in women – you need to think outside the square

I recently had a patient aged in her late 30s who had lost all the hair on her scalp 5 years before she came to see me. This condition of total scalp hair loss is called Alopecia Totalis and is very challenging to treat. With such a distressing condition it was predictable that this poor woman had been to innumerable specialist doctors and was not getting anywhere. She remained totally bald. She also complained of lack of menstruation and fatigue.

Alopecia is an autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks the hair follicles and the longer you have it the harder it is to get the hair to regrow. I found that this woman had slight liver dysfunction and gluten intolerance and these things are common in autoimmune disease. Her blood levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) were not elevated so she was not menopausal. Tests revealed that she was low in vitamin D and iodine and her thyroid gland was slightly sluggish.

I said to her that we should be able to get some hair regrowth but in alopecia one is always guarded about being too optimistic.

I prescribed the following program

• A low dose of porcine thyroid extract and/or Thyroid Cream
• A supplement which contains vitamin D, iodine and selenium. I always prescribe selenium for autoimmune disease, as it regulates the immune dysfunction seen in such cases.
• Progesterone cream and a troche of low dose bio-identical estrogen; this would hopefully restore her menstrual cycle.
• A liver formula to improve her liver function, which would enable her immune system to calm down.
• A gluten free diet and glutamine powder to heal her leaky gut.

I did not see her for 6 months during which time she also consulted a prominent endocrinologist, who had agrees with my treatment.
At this follow up visit she told me that she was happy with her results, which were better than those obtained with previous treatments. Her menstrual cycle had returned and her skin condition was much improved. She had noticed that her scalp hair was starting to regrow after all these years, although in some areas it was like soft baby hair. I was relieved to see her happy and full of hope. We decided to wait another 6 months before proceeding to stronger hormone therapy if needed. I am very pleased with the results and I think this patient will gradually and slowly improve.

With hair loss it is important to think outside the square and not just focus on the scalp. As seen in this woman’s case we had multiple areas of imbalance to treat including

• Sex hormones
• Thyroid hormone
• Gut health and diet
• Liver health

When we address all these contributing factors we increase the chances of curing a challenging disease that is resistant to conventional therapies.

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Polycystic ovarian syndrome is often missed

I was recently consulted by a 36 year old woman who had tried IVF on 2 occasions without success. She had been diagnosed with the autoimmune thyroid condition of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. This was being successfully treated with porcine thyroid hormone and her thyroid function was normal on blood tests. She felt reasonably well apart from fatigue; however she did have a high powered office job.
She came to see me to check her thyroid function and was disappointed that the blood level of her thyroid antibodies had not come down over several years. These antibodies are produced by the immune system in high amounts in those with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. High levels of these antibodies are bad news – this is because they attack the thyroid gland causing damage to the thyroid gland. The thyroid gland then becomes under active because of this damage
She was disappointed because she was really trying to follow a healthy diet and lifestyle and was avoiding gluten foods, to which she was allergic.
She asked me “So why are my antibodies not coming down?

After taking a full history, my answers where the following
1. You are not ovulating regularly, as evidenced by your irregular menstrual bleeding, and this makes you deficient in progesterone. Her menstrual periods came every 6 to 8 weeks. Lack of progesterone will make autoimmune disease worse; in other words it keeps those nasty antibodies high.
2. Your blood test shows that you are deficient in vitamin D and this will make autoimmune diseases such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis worse; in other words it keeps those nasty antibodies high.

This woman had previously been using a progesterone cream but had stopped using it after her failed IVF attempts. She stopped using progesterone because she mistakenly believed that she did not have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) because her previous pelvic ultrasound scan had showed normal ovaries. I explained that you can still have PCOS, even if the pelvic ultrasound scan is perfectly normal, which she found hard to believe! PCOS often shows itself as infrequent or prolonged menstrual cycles, as it is fundamentally a hormonal imbalance.

She was a slim small boned woman and although she exercised regularly, she was worried about developing osteoporosis. Luckily we had discovered that her blood vitamin D level was below the normal range and we could give vitamin D 3 supplements. The most common cause of osteoporosis is not calcium deficiency; rather it is vitamin D deficiency, which is very common in my patients.

I also prescribed a supplement called Thyroid Health Capsules, which contain vitamin D 3, iodine, zinc and selenium to help lower the thyroid antibodies and support healthy thyroid gland tissue. I gave her a script for progesterone cream to be used in a dose of 50 to 100mg daily and I knew this would restore a healthy regular monthly menstrual cycle. This would reduce her risk of future osteoporosis and improve fertility.
As she left I said “be careful, your fertility will gradually increase and you may conceive naturally!”
For more information on fertility see our book INFERTILITY – THE HIDDEN CAUSES – How to overcome them naturally



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Endometriosis was associated with a thyroid problem - In clinic with Dr Sandra Cabot

Georgina had come all the way from New Zealand to see me as she was desperate to find relief for her chronic abdominal and pelvic pain. This was caused by endometriosis growing on her bladder and bowel despite having had a hysterectomy, which unfortunately had provided only partial relief. She was in her late 30s and had not had children. Georgina was a lovely lady with a bright bubbly personality and I admired her positive attitude and toughness, as she had managed to keep working despite this chronic pain.

Georgina was using a progesterone cream that was not strong enough to reduce the endometriosis growing on her bowel and bladder and when I checked the strength of her cream it was only 4 % (40mg per gram) and she had been using only half a gram providing her body with a daily dose of 20mg of progesterone.

I prescribed progesterone vaginal pessaries of 200mg strength and she was to insert a pessary once daily into her vagina as high up as possible. I also prescribed a progesterone cream of 10% strength (100mg per gram of cream) which she was to rub into the skin of her inner upper arm once daily after her shower. If natural progesterone was going to be able to control her severe endometriosis we had to use an adequate dose.

I explained to Georgina that it was vital to strengthen her immune system and reduce inflammation with nutritional medicine.

To achieve these goals I recommended the following –
• Liquid fish oil in a dose of one tablespoon just before every meal
• An ultra strong magnesium powder in a dose of ½ teaspoon twice daily to ease her bladder and bowel cramps
• A probiotic
• Raw vegetable juices from fresh green herbs (parsley, basil, mint, etc), carrot, ginger, citrus, cabbage and apple. This would reduce inflammation and improve liver function.
• A powerful liver tonic containing the herb St Mary’s Thistle, B vitamins and sulphur bearing amino acids. In all cases of oestrogen dominance it is vital to improve liver function, so that the liver can break down the excessive oestrogen produced from the ovaries and fat tissue.

I also noticed that she had a slight goitre with a few small nodules on her thyroid gland and on checking her serum vitamin D levels I found these to be deficient. Her urinary spot iodine concentration was very low thus revealing a deficiency of iodine. Thyroid problems are often caused by deficiencies of vitamin D, iodine, zinc and selenium.

Thyroid problems will often cause imbalances in the function of the ovaries leading to progesterone deficiency. Progesterone deficiency leads to oestrogen dominance and this worsens endometriosis. Thus it was vital to improve her thyroid function so I prescribed a capsule containing vitamin D, selenium, zinc and iodine to improve thyroid health.

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Case Study: Weight Loss Plateau

Sophie was frustrated – she was stuck in a weight loss plateau,
poor Sophie she was at her wits end. Despite going to the gym 4 times a week and devotedly counting her calories via the calorie king website she could not lose the fat around her abdomen. She also had digestive issues, as she had been prescribed triple antibiotics several times to clear a helicobacter infection in her stomach and despite this the infection kept recurring.

She was fatigued and complained of abdominal bloating, gastric reflux and heart burn and the antacid medication she took daily only partially relieved her acidity.
At 48 years of age she felt like an old fat women!
She weighed 79 kilograms and was an Android body type and thus gained all her weight in the upper body. To discover your Body Type go to Weight Control Doctor Body Type Questionnaire and do our questionnaire to get your answer.

I did some tests on Sophie which showed the following:

• Raised fasting insulin levels of 24
• Slightly elevated blood sugar at 6.0
• Low blood levels of vitamin D at 25 nmol/L
• Fatty liver was evident on the ultrasound scan of her abdomen
• Low iron levels in the blood although her menstrual periods has ceased due to menopause
• A blood test showed she had the HLA DQ8 and 2 genes which made her gluten intolerant

I explained to Sophie that good health begins in the gut and the liver and this was her problem – her liver was fatty and she had an inflamed gut with an overload of candida and unhealthy bacteria.

I prescribed the following program for Sophie –

1. 2 week detox diet during which she would eat only raw vegetable salads, citrus fruits and paw paw and vegetable soups. No meat, dairy or carbohydrates were allowed, except from the vegetables in her soup. The soup was flavoured with miso paste and garlic.
2. Glutamine powder to heal the inflamed gut
3. A good liver tonic to support the fat burning function of her liver
4. A selenium supplement of 200mch daily to support detoxification in her liver
5. Vitamin D supplement of 3000 units daily with food
6. Magnesium to help reduce her high levels of insulin

I explained to Sophie that it would take approximately 6 months to reverse her fatty liver and she was pleased that it could be repaired. After her detox, Sophie was told to follow the diet in my book Fatty Liver – You Can Reverse It. Her fatty liver had been caused by her excess intake of sugar and grains over many years, which had elevated her insulin levels. High insulin levels cause a fatty liver and also keep your metabolism in the fat storing zone.

Sophie returned to see me 6 months later and was very pleased with her results, which now showed normal fasting insulin levels of 6. Her ultrasound scan of the liver showed that it was no longer fatty and it looked completely normal. Sophie now weighed 67 kilograms and wanted to get down to 60 kilograms, which was easily achievable as her weight loss had been slow and steady. She had been helped by my naturopath and weight loss detective Victoria Taylor at my Camden clinic who had provided excellent support and reviewed Sophie’s food diary regularly. Sophie had avoided all gluten containing foods and kept up her supplements. She had also avoided sugar and was using the Nature Sweet Sugar Substitute in her drinks, which is free of carbohydrates. A breath test for the helicobacter infection was clear showing that she no longer had this infection in her stomach. If you want a copy of our new Weight Loss Detective Dairy you need to see one of my weight loss detectives or you can order it from 1800 151 052

Visit www.weightlossdetective.com.au and do our questionnaires to pin point problems that may be stopping you from losing weight.

Fatty liver, gut problems and high insulin levels often go together and are the most common problems that stop your exercise program from working.
 
As I always say “Good health begins in the gut and the liver”



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