Overweight individuals with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) who lose significant body weight may experience a reduction or resolution of the disease. Researchers published two studies in the journal Gastroenterology, one that examined the effects of a one-year weight-loss intervention in overweight or obese individuals with NASH, and another looking at the effects of bariatric surgery on obese individual’s NASH condition.

In the weight-loss intervention study, researchers found that a body weight loss of 10 percent or more was needed to resolve NASH and reverse scarring of the liver. Weight loss of 7 to 10 percent lessened NASH severity among some subgroups, such as males and people without diabetes. Ninety-three percent of those who lost less than 5 percent of their body weight saw their liver scarring worsen. Less than half of the study participants lost at least 7 percent of their body weight.

In the bariatric surgery study, NASH resolved in 85 percent of the participants within a year of the operation. Ninety-four percent of those who had mild NASH experienced resolution of the disease, compared with 70 percent with a severe case.

To read a press release on the study, click here.

To read the weight-loss intervention study abstract, click here.

For the surgery study abstract, click here.