Skinny Liver: A Proven Program to Prevent and Reverse the New Silent Epidemic Fatty Liver Disease – Review

skinny-liver

What is Fatty Liver Disease?

Fatty liver disease (FLD) is where large amounts of fat build up over time on the liver. NAFLD is non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, where the extra fat isn’t due to alcohol consumption. AFL is alcoholic fatty liver and is caused by alcohol. Even though both are reversible, both can lead to cirrhosis if left unchecked. NASH is nonalcoholic steatopepatitis, a damaged fatty liver with inflammation, which is the more severe of the fatty liver diseases.

Preventing and Reversing Fatty Liver Disease

Skinny Liver: A Proven Program to Prevent and Reverse the New Silent Epidemic Fatty Liver Disease, a new book by Kristin Kirkpatrick with Ibrahim Hanouneh delves into factors causing this disease and ways to prevent or reverse it.

The Liver Organ: Central Role in Metabolism

Why is taking care of your liver important? The authors note that besides metabolizing carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, the liver also performs these other important functions:

  • Helps to keep blood sugar steady.
  • Converts amino acids to energy.
  • Produces bile to help the body breakdown and absorb fats.
  • Stores fat-soluble vitamins and releases them as the body needs them.
  • Keeps the balance of sex hormones even in the body.

Skinny Liver Book Overview

It is everything you need to know about keeping your liver in top shape, including information about the organ you probably didn’t know before. Skinny Liver is divided into three sections to make all the information more digestible. Part 1 introduces you to the liver, what NAFLD and NASH are, and how everyday toxins can damage the liver. Part 2 shows you ways to protect the liver. Part 3 contains two diet plans: The Love-Your-Liver Eating Plan (4 weeks worth of menus), and the Skinny Liver Diet Plan (also 4 weeks worth of menus). This section includes over 70 tasty recipes from the two menus.

The stress-trigger tracking sheet and the healthy liver weekly journal from the appendix are very helpful, too.

Overall, this is an important read on a little talked about organ. The heart, kidneys, and the digestive system are all familiar to most people, and there are many great books that specialize in those organs. Skinny Liver focuses on just taking care of the liver.

With liver disease indeed being a silent epidemic, the more you know about preventing or reversing this disease the longer you’ll be around to enjoy life.

Book Info:

  • Skinny Liver by Kristin Kirkpatrick with Ibrahim Hanouneh.
  • DeCapo Press; 2017.
  • ISBN13: 978-0738219165
  • Hardcover, 304 pages.

Here is a great recipe from the book for Tuna Patties.

Tuna Patties

These burgers make a great lunch or dinner. Serve them up as a sandwich inside pita or between a sliced whole grain bun, or go without the bread and serve with steamed or roasted vegetables.

Ingredients
  

  • 4 5-ounce cans chunk light tuna in water, drained
  • 1 1/4 cups 100% whole wheat panko or whole wheat bread crumbs
  • 1 large egg plus 2 large egg whites beaten together
  • 1/2 small sweet onion finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives green onion, or scallions
  • 1 stalk/rib celery finely chopped
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. and place an ovenproof plate in the oven.
  • In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients, except the olive oil, and mix well. Use your hands to form the mixture into twelve 1/2 inch thick patties; place the patties on a second plate.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, place the patties in the skillet in a single layer. Cook until golden brown on both sides, about 6 minutes total, flipping once or twice. Transfer the cooked patties to the plate in the oven.
  • Wipe out the skillet and repeat with the remaining oil and patties. Serve warm.

Notes

Excerpted from Skinny Liver: A Proven Program to Prevent and Reverse the New Silent Epidemic—Fatty Liver Disease by Kristin Kirkpatrick, MS, RD, LD with Ibrahim Hanouneh, MD. Copyright © 2017. Available in January 2017 from Da Capo Lifelong Books, an imprint of Perseus Books, LLC, a subsidiary of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

Disclosure: This book was provided by the publisher and any opinions are my own.