New research from Western Sydney University shows aerobic exercise, including either high-intensity interval training (HIIT) or moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT), is effective in treating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This is reported on the pages of MedicalXpress.

One of the most common liver diseases in the world, affecting approximately 20-30% of the population, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is characterized as the accumulation of excess fat in the liver of people without excessive alcohol consumption. The growing burden of obesity and metabolic syndrome is due to its high prevalence and development of a serious health problem, as well as the possibility of causing cirrhosis and liver cancer. Due to the lack of effective treatments, weight loss lifestyle interventions remain the mainstay of the treatment for NAFLD..

For this review, researchers at the University of Western Sydney, the University of Sydney and the University of Queensland conducted over 28,000 studies, with a primary analysis of 19 studies involving 745 adult participants.. The results of the study are published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism..

This study is the first to exclusively include studies that assessed liver fat using non-invasive gold standard measurement techniques such as proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Pooled analysis showed that both HIIT and MICT resulted in clinically significant reductions in liver fat versus control (-2.85% for HIIT versus control and -3.144% for MICT versus control).

In addition, HIIT training (characterized by bouts of high-intensity aerobic exercise alternating with rest periods) was just as effective as MICT training (traditional aerobic training) in reducing liver fat, despite requiring less time and energy..

Lead Author, Research Fellow at the NICM Health Research Institute, Dr. Angelo Sabag said that regular aerobic exercise is an important management intervention, be it HIIT or MICT, and that if left untreated, NAFLD can lead to serious complications..

“Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is a predictor of metabolic disorders closely related to the development and severity of various diseases such as type 2 diabetes.. Our review demonstrates the importance of regular aerobic exercise as an effective therapy for those at risk, as both HIIT and MICT have been found to reduce liver fat to the same extent..

“It's good to know that by exercising harder in less time with HIIT, you can achieve the same results as MICT, which is ideal for those with busy lifestyles and little time.. Another interesting finding was that even if people did not exercise enough to meet the recommended exercise guidelines, they could still achieve clinically significant improvements in liver fat if they exercised regularly at moderate intensity.. The study may have practical guidance and clinical relevance and may help reduce NAFLD, ”said Dr. Sabag.

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