One of the first supplements a doctor may prescribe you for Fatty Liver is Vitamin E. However, while Fatty Liver Vitamin E supplements are generally shown to be ok, they are still processed. As you know, I reversed my fatty liver in 2021. One of the things I have tried is to reduce as many supplements with natural and fatty liver-friendly alternatives as possible.
Also, think about why you would want to spend money on supplements when you can get Vitamin E naturally from so many different food sources. Here is a list of 11 sources that contain Vitamin E naturally.
1. Sunflower Seeds: Best Natural Vitamin E source for Fatty Liver
My absolute favorite! These seeds have so many health benefits – lowering blood pressure, bettering cholesterol, protecting the liver, and reducing cardiovascular risks.
Here is another benefit – there are so many ways to eat these! Eat them raw, roast them or mix them in a smoothie.
Pro tip: Be careful of the store-bought variety (make sure you are not getting fried or oil-added variety).
Most importantly, do not overdo eating these. They are great, however, eating too much of them could cause issues.
2. Almonds
In general, nuts are good for Fatty Liver. However, almonds, in particular, are rich in Vitamin E and unsaturated fats. Both help the liver eliminate that bad cholesterol from the body and protect against fatty liver disease.
Pro tip: Be careful about store-bought almond milk. [#link]. Here is why: Almond milk may not be great for fatty liver!
While almonds are really good, make sure that any store-bought almonds do not have additives like oils, honey, bread crumbs, and other things that are not fatty-liver-friendly.
Also, a warning! Almond milk (store-bought) has almost nothing similar in terms of nutritional profile. So DO NOT ASSUME that your favorite almond milk is doing the trick for you. It is not!
3. Hazelnuts
Although hazelnuts are high in calories, they pack a punch regarding nutrients and liver-related benefits.
Along with Vitamin E, they are also loaded with antioxidants, omega 9, and omega 6 fatty acids that help the liver fight NAFLD. Other than that, hazelnuts also have heart-healthy and cancer-fighting capabilities, making them high on my list of snacks.
Pro-tip: Make your own nuts and seeds mix at home! And use it as a snack between meals at home or in the office.
4. Peanuts
As I have already mentioned, nut intake is heavily associated with fatty liver risk reduction. Peanut has a similar nutritional profile as other nuts mentioned in the list. More importantly, it has about 5mg of vitamin E per 100g of dry roasted variety.
Pro-Tip: Make sure to buy plain, dry roasted ones rather than the ones with a lot of salt and other flavored coatings. Add your own spices to the mix to control the flavor.
5. Beet greens: A Surprising Source Of Vitamin E For Fatty Liver
Don’t throw the greens out! I have been guilty of discarding the greens in favor of beet myself because beets are just so good (in nutrition) in themselves! While you may be on the fence about the taste of these greens, they pack an amazing fatty-liver-friendly nutritional punch. They contain Vitamin K, Vitamin E, Flavonoids, and Fiber that help reduce oxidative stress in the liver.
Pro-Tip: Sautee in a little bit of olive oil and chopped for a flavorful meal side/salad ingredient. Add pink salt / paprika per taste.
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6. Collard greens
Those Glucosinolates! What are glucosinolates? You don’t really need to know. All you need to know is that glucosinolates help protect the liver and have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer benefits. And collard greens have a lot of glucosinolates along with a good amount of Vitamin E. One cup contains about 1.7 mg of Vitamin E.
7. Spinach: An Easily Available Source Of Vitamin E For Fatty Liver
Two cups of spinach contain about 1.2 mg of Vitamin E. A recent study shows high spinach intake reduces the impact of a high-fat diet and improves blood glucose and reduces cholesterol accumulation. Spinach is one of the richest sources of ingredients such as polyphenol and antioxidants. The beauty of spinach is that it can easily be used to enrich other homemade recipes.
So just add spinach to as many recipes as you can and reap the benefits for fatty liver.
8. Asparagus
The ability to break down liver toxins in the liver and reduce alcohol toxicity makes asparagus one of the most important vegetables in your diet. Additionally, half a cup of asparagus contains about 7% of the daily recommended dose of Vitamin E.
Add asparagus to your diet, avoid supplementation, and reap so many additional benefits for your liver. And it is easy to add to the diet also since it can be cooked in a variety of ways including boiling, grilling, steaming, roasting, and sautéing. Grilling is my absolute favorite way of cooking asparagus.
9. Mango: Tastiest Natural Vitamin E Source
Just one cup of Mango has about 1.5 mg of Vitamin E. Mango, especially raw Mango, is used to treat a variety of liver ailments. Mango helps the secretion of bile acid and cleanses the toxins out of the body. Fruits do have fructose, so eat it whole and in moderation.
10. Avocado: A Superfood And A Great Natural Vitamin E Source For Fatty Liver
Avocado is a popular source of research regarding fatty liver disease. While it has so many liver benefits, it also has a decent amount of fats, making scientists wonder if there is a threshold beyond which avocado can become harmful for Fatty Liver patients.
Saying that 100g of avocado contains about 2.07 mg of Vitamin E which is awesome. So much liver-friendly goodness in one place. My recommendation – is just to use it in moderation to avoid any negative effects.
11. Atlantic Salmon: A Great Non-Vegetarian Vitamin E Source for Fatty Liver
Vitamin E and Omega-3 fatty acids both help lower the levels of fat in the liver and reduce inflammation of the liver. Atlantic Salmon not only contains high amounts of these, but it is also part of the highly recommended Mediterranean Keto (Also Read: Which Keto diet is best for Fatty Liver) for fatty liver.
Just adding Atlantic Salmon for 1-2 days a week to your diet will be a great option.
Pro-Tip: Here is My Favorite Salmon Recipe By Gordon Ramsay! I have since modified the recipe in several ways (as you know I like it spicey!)
Conclusion
There is no evidence of toxic effects from vitamin E found naturally in foods. However, with supplementation, an upper limit for vitamin E has been set for adults 19 years and older of 1000 mg daily (1465 IU) of any form of tocopherol supplement. If you are already consuming enough Vitamin E in your diet, you should avoid taking further supplements.