Liver Disease In Children And Adolescents Linked To High Fructose Consumption, New Study Suggests

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Liver disease is also associated with high intake of sugar. A new study suggests that a large amount of fructose is highly linked to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Children and adolescents are mostly involved in excessively consuming of fructose, which is commonly from sweetened drinks. NAFLD is a condition characterized by an accumulation of fat in the liver that is not resulted from alcohol intake. NASH, on the other hand, could progress to serious complications like cirrhosis and liver cancer.

Overweight is a foremost risk influence for NAFLD and NASH, Medical News Today reported. The suggests that up to 9.6 percent of all children and 38 percent of obese children in Western countries have liver disease, including NASH. 

Dr. Valerio Nobili of the Bambino Gesu Hospital in Italy, and colleagues examined whether fructose and uric acid might be separately linked with NASH. They studied 271 obese children and adolescents who had NAFLD, and all underwent a liver biopsy.

Their discovery was recently published in the Journal of Hepatology. All participants accomplished a food frequency questionnaire. It includes exactly what foods they ate, how often they consumed them, and the portion size. 

Almost 90 percent of the participants were reported drinking soda and other sweetened beverages per week. On the other hand, approximately 95 percent of them consumed pizza, crackers, yogurt, and salty foods for their snacks.

Basing from the details, team leader Dr. Nobili and fellows calculated the participants' fructose consumption. The team found out that soda and other sweetened drinks were the leading source of fructose. 

The researchers discovered that 37.6 percent of the children and adolescents had NASH from results of their liver biopsies. From these, 47 percent had high concentrations of uric acid, as compared to 29.7 percent of non-NASH participants.

The team also found that fructose consumption was independently connected with elevated uric acid concentrations. Fructose intake was more common among participants with NASH than those without NASH.