One Unhealthy Meal Could Be Enough To Trigger Liver Disease and Diabetes
Researchers have found that having a single unhealthy meal could do enough damage to trigger liver disease and type-2 diabetes. This is because eating just one unhealthy meal is enough to alter the body’s metabolism, this change is linked to both fatty liver disease and diabetes.
Whilst someone who is fit and of a healthy weight will withstand to recover more quickly from such a meal, it doesn’t alter the fact that their body will go through the same challenges.
To test their theory, scientists gathered 14 healthy men. 7 men drank a glass of vanilla-flavoured palm oil; the other half drank a glass of water. The palm oil contained as much saturated fat as an 110g cheeseburger with a large portion of fries.
The results showed that those who drank the palm oil had an immediate increase in fat accumulation and a reduced sensitivity to insulin by 25%, making them less able to regulate their blood sugar. Levels of triglycerides were also heightened by 35% – the type of fat linked to heart disease, this led to changes in gene activity associated with fatty liver disease.
There is an assumption that healthy individuals are able to compensate more effectively when an excessive consumption of fat is eaten, but that regardless of this, repeated exposure will lead to chronic insulin resistance and fatty liver disease. But with these findings, researchers are now able to say that the same damage is done, not matter how frequently consumed, and no matter of the health of the individual.
