University of Adelaide Professor Alastair Burt specialises in liver diseases and says while
most people only associate liver disease with alcoholism, people who are
overweight, obese or with type 2 diabetes, are also prone to serious
liver conditions. “Fatty liver diseases are a group of diseases
that interfere with the normal functioning of the liver and can lead to
cirrhosis and an early death,” says Professor Burt. “It has long
been recognised that excess alcohol consumption can lead to liver
diseases, and while there is a relationship between the degree of
alcohol consumption and severe disease, other individual traits also
have a significant influence. “In particular, it is becoming
increasingly recognised that the whole spectrum of fatty liver diseases
can also occur in people who are overweight, obese or those living with
type 2 diabetes,” he says.
