Fat Burning Foods for Liver Health

Some foods have a thermogenic effect, and some can help to boost your metabolism, find out which foods fat burning foods are best for supporting a healthy liver.

What’s In this article

Why Fat Burning Foods?
How do fat burning foods work?
Foods That Burn Fat
What not to eat
Exercise

Why Fat Burning Foods?
If you are overweight, then losing weight is essential for not only liver health but overall health too. The liver plays a vital role in fat metabolism and when the liver cannot perform this function efficiently, fat stores build up in the liver. Usually this does not cause any harm, however, it can lead to inflammation and scarring which can ultimately cause liver damage. Keeping a well-balanced low-fat diet will reduce the processing work that the liver needs to do. Some health foods have a very high thermogenic effect and can burn calories as you digest them.

How Do Fat Burning Foods Work?
When eating any food, your metabolism increases to digest and use the food’s calories for various functions. There are some foods that have a very high thermogenic effect, so you burn calories as you chew. Other foods contain nutrients and compounds that fuel your metabolic rate.

According to a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, daily consumption of one of the compounds found in pepper (capsaicin) speeds up abdominal fat loss by boosting the body’s ability to convert food into energy. It also acts as a natural appetite suppressant: men who ate spicy appetizers consumed 200 fewer calories at later meals than those that did not

In a study by the Advanced Medical and Dental Institute, Universiti Sains Malaysia, obese men who added 2 tablespoons of coconut oil per day to their usual diet lost an average of 1 inch from their waist without making any other diet changes or increasing their physical activity.

Foods That Burn Fat

The following foods are known for aiding in fat burning:

Coconut Oil
Fresh Tropical Fruits
Leafy Greens
Peanut Butter
Green Tea (however not green tea supplements)
Garlic & Onions
Beans and legumes
Nuts
Cayenne pepper

What Not to Eat
Even though eating fat burning foods helps to improve liver health, there are certain foods that you should also avoid eating. Cutting out refined sugars is very important, carbohydrates such as white breads and pasta and limit or cut out alcohol consumption altogether. A study from the University of Texas appearing in the January 2009 issue of the journal “Hepatology” found that those who ate a diet low in high-glycemic carbohydrates, which include refined-white-flour foods and sugar, lost more fat from their livers compared with those simply eating a low-calorie diet. It appeared the lower glucose production caused the liver to burn more fat for energy.

Exercise
Exercise is important for everyone to maintain a healthy body. Creatine is a natural substance found in certain meats and fish and also produced by the human body, it is often linked to working out and there are misconceptions that it burns fat. Creatine can help to burn fat in an indirect way as part of a consistent resistance training program. Consistent exercise is vitally important for improving liver health. This is because exercise creates a demand for calories to flow to muscles, just eating a healthy diet alone is not enough for optimum liver health.