After being diagnosed with a fatty liver disease (NAFLD aka MASLD), I always looked for natural ways to cleanse my liver, based on the idea that every little bit of help… helps.
The truth is that I am a bit skeptical when it comes to natural remedies, but in some cases, I am willing to give something a try if I consider that the worst thing they can do is have no effect.
If the natural help that I’m trying actually proves to be helpful, then it’s even better.
And one of the things that is considered to be helpful for your fight to reverse a fatty liver disease is Green Tea, one of the best teas for fatty liver.
Does it really work? Well, this is what we’re talking about today!
Drinking Green Tea with a Fatty Liver Disease
We’ve already talked about the always-hyped milk thistle which I took for a long time during my eventually successful battle to reverse fatty liver, so it appears that natural remedies might indeed work.
Drinking green tea when you have a fatty liver is probably not the first dietary change that a doctor would recommend. It’s surely not the most important one either.
I didn’t knew anything about it until doing extensive research on all methods that help reversing fatty liver disease and I saw that every now and then, the beneficial effects of Green Tea were mentioned.
You can imagine how pleasantly surprised I was to find out that this otherwise delicious drink might actually help those with a fatty liver!
Like many things out there regarding one’s health – including NAFLD / MASLD – there is no certainty that green tea helps your liver. As we will see, there are some studies that show encouraging results, but more research is required.
However, since green tea is 100% natural and at most non-harmful (if not healthy), I’ve decided to give it a go and I make sure to drink a cup of green tea every day.
Unsweetened, because sugar is bad for the liver!
I haven’t stopped drinking coffee (which is also considered good for fatty liver), but I consider that green tea adds some welcome variety to our otherwise limited beverage options.
Why should people with fatty liver drink green tea?
A study conducted in 2008 found out that mice suffering from fatty liver who were on a treatment based on the amino-acid EGCG – which is found in green tea – after 4 weeks of treatment showed reduced inflammation of the liver and reversed the condition.
Even better, those on a longer treatment – 16 weeks – continued to show progress and had reduced body weight gain and fat percentages, proving to the scientists that green tea can provide long term health benefits.
It’s true that this study has been made on mice only, but this is how most studies begin.
All lab studies start on mice, and even though we still need conclusions made after humans consume it, I am still happy and encouraged by the results.
Plus, we have no less than 10 studies conducted on the matter in the US and China. A whooping 8 of them concluded that green tea has a protective role over various liver diseases and the “studies showed a positive correlation between green tea intake and attenuation of liver disease” (Source here)
A few months after being diagnosed I found out about the benefits of drinking green tea for fatty liver and I had a period of maybe a couple of month (or more) when I drank a cup each day.
While consistency dropped as summer arrived (and it was too hot for warm tea), I kept drinking it as often as I could and I still have it almost daily during the colder months of the year.
I managed to reverse my fatty liver during this time and I can’t help but wonder if Green Tea had any role in that. But at the very least, it surely didn’t cause any harm!
Green tea has long been praised for its plethora of antioxidants and for its general health benefit and I tend to believe that there’s at least a bit of truth behind this statement.
It might not be the main thing when it comes to reversing fatty liver, but at least you’re trying out something new – something that might be the cure of your problem, without risking any side effects (note that green tea does have caffeine, so if you suffer from hypertension or you’re already drinking a lot of coffee, add it to your daily caffeine intake to keep numbers under control).
So why not give it a try? It’s extremely easy to add green tea to your diet – but make sure to discuss this with your doctor to make sure you’re good to go.
How to drink green tea for fatty liver
The general rules of thumb when it comes to any diet to reverse NAFLD aka MASLD also apply in the case of green tea.
This means that you should not drink it sweetened (compared to coffee, I found it extremely easy to drink this one without any added honey or sweeteners). This is the main and most important rule.
If you like to add a bit of milk to your tea, I believe that you still can do this, but make sure to use milk that is low in fat (1.5% or less) or any other milk substitute that is natural and without any added sugars or chemicals.
Finally, you can add a variety of flavors to it if you want to change its taste: I personally prefer it with mint (when I have them, I use fresh mint leaves, but you can even get a green tea & mint combination) or squeeze some fresh lemon juice in it.
If you want to drink it cold, you can prepare it in just a bit of warm water, then add cold water on top (or ice).
Refreshing and nice for a hot summer’s day – this is what I plan to drink when the weather gets warm again!
All in all, you have a lot of options when it comes to drinking green tea, which definitely beats the repetitiveness of the regular plain water (or maybe lemon water) that we all drink on a daily basis now.
What green tea is best for you?
To be honest, I think that you can choose absolutely any type of green tea and it will be just as healthy and tasty, as long as it has a well known brand behind it.
You want it to be clean from pesticides (there are voices claiming that non-organic tea can have too much) and other chemicals.
Therefore, the best option is to go for an organic Green Tea, as that should be the cleanest of them all.
I don’t always go this route and instead I choose renowned brands whose promise for clean and natural products I believe.
If you still can’t decide, I can recommend my favorite which can be bought online – Twinnings Green Tea (affiliate link).
Or you can go 100% safe and search for an organic green tea (affiliate link). In all honesty, any would be just as good.
Conclusion
As I said, the worst thing that could happen if you drink green tea if you have a fatty liver is it having absolutely no health benefits at all, but without doing any type of harm.
However, I would consider the studies made over the years – both on humans and mice – pretty encouraging, since they all conclude that green tea indeed helps the liver.
This is what has convinced me to add green tea to my daily diet. I have reversed my fatty liver in the mean time, and even though I did all the right things (like dieting and exercising), maybe it helped too.
So unless your doctor tells you not to drink it, go for it – a cup per day shouldn’t be too difficult to incorporate into any diet.
I was diagnosed with a fatty liver back in 2014 and managed to reverse it by mid-2015. Since then, I’ve been studying it, continuously updating my knowledge with the latest scientific findings and practical approaches to give others the help they need to reverse their condition.
My approach to managing fatty liver is holistic, balancing scientifically-backed information with real-life, practical advice based on personal, direct experience.
I am also the admin of the Fatty Liver Support Group on Facebook and the Fatty Liver Subreddit.
Could you add in some fruit to help with the taste?
Yes, I would say that fruits can be added as well.
What about green/mint combo tea or decaf green tea from Trader Joe’s? Any experience with that?
Haven’t tried the decaf one, but I drink green/mint combo often. I don’t think that adding the mint reduces its effectiveness.
A squeeze of lemon will boost the benefit of green tea for fatty liver. STASH is another green tea that I enjoy. Green tea is actually great cold. Bring 32oz of water to almost a boil, pour over 8 green tea bags, and steep for 5-8 minutes. Let it sit to cool, then add a little fresh ice and lemon if you desire, refrigerate. It is a great iced tea drink, a sprig of mint if you like mint is a nice addition.
Indeed, especially during the summer, I also like to drink it cold, although I don’t make it as strong and use 4 bags for the same quantity.