Let’s start with understanding what is Dairy because it can get confusing. Simply put, dairy includes milk products like milk, yogurt, sour cream, cheese, etc (including Lactaid milk). Dairy does not include milk alternatives that you also find in the dairy aisle, these include oat milk, almond milk, soy milk, etc. In this article we are going to only tackle the question – Can we have dairy with fatty liver?
One can ask this question in many different ways – Is it ok to have milk with NAFLD? Is dairy good for fatty liver? Whether you are looking for a milk-specific or all-dairy answer to these questions, the answer thankfully doesn’t change much.
Opinions vs Science – Milk & Fatty Liver
First, we need to understand why is dairy consumption even being challenged for fatty liver. As you know, there are certain undesirables – Bad Fat, Carbs, and Sugar – we try to keep away from a Fatty Liver friendly diet. Most dairy has some of these ingredients and that causes confusion. So the reasons why dairy consumption confuses us:
- Full-fat dairy has a considerable amount of fat
- Dairy in general has carbs and
- Sugar content is high
However, we must also understand that dairy is not just one thing – fat, carb, or sugar. Milk has many other nutrients that are beneficial for the body – Calcium, Vitamin D, Protein, and other important and liver-friendly ingredients.
Now then, we also need to address the “opinions”. Everyone is entitled to their opinions, however, these opinions confused me when I started. There were many opinions on “why not milk” – however, I do not want to fuel them by sharing them in my article. In fact, I have been part of forums and Facebook groups where debates went on page after page on whether dairy/milk is good for fatty liver or not. In the end, I decided to go with the science as much as possible, because I found it tough to bet my liver on someone’s opinion – popular or otherwise.
I decided to bet on science to improve my liver and not opinions. I did improve my fatty liver – so I guess I ended up making the right decision.
Meanwhile, in the article below, I would like to share my conclusion and my personal experience using dairy in trying to reverse my fatty liver. I have also shared the link to the studies at the end so that you can continue the research on your own.
I have provided the research articles, my personal conclusions from them and what I did in terms of using dairy as part of my diet to reverse my fatty liver.
Research on Dairy & Fatty Liver
Science however didn’t make things easy either. There is a lot of research on dairy and milk on the body, however, we are interested in one specific item – “Fatty Liver”. In other words, we want to really understand the impact of dairy on NAFLD / Fatty Liver disease. This was hard to find and understand – so the research took longer than anticipated. I am hoping to see more research on this topic as NAFLD is rising toward pandemic proportions.
During my research, I found that there are in fact several studies on fatty liver and dairy, and surprisingly, most of them point to dairy being beneficial for fatty liver disease along with other markers such as improving insulin sensitivity, glucose tolerance, and improving Hepatic Steatosis and liver inflammation. Dairy protein intake has been shown to prevent the development of NAFLD (Dairy protein intake study). In fact, even dairy fat has shown to be good for you and liver-friendly (study 1, study 2).
Let me take a moment to translate all of this: So what do you do about dairy?
So What Do You Do About Dairy?
First, remember the overall goal of fatty liver:
- Reduce fat consumption to reduce liver stress
- Loose weight
- Avoid sugars and carbs
Second, understand that there are two major outstanding questions around Dairy (and we will briefly explore both):
- Is Dairy Good for NAFLD?
- For Fatty Liver should I go for Full-Fat dairy or Low-Fat dairy or Zero-Fat dairy?
Third, remember that this post is for people suffering from Fatty Liver / NAFLD only. If you have any other condition like diabetes, you must check with your doctor regarding the consumption of dairy.
If you have additional conditions along with Fatty Liver for example diabetes – please always make a point to consult with your primary care physician before making any change to your diet.
Dairy & Your Options If You Have NAFLD/NASH
Let me state this outright unless you cannot consume dairy for any specific reason (allergies, diabetes, etc), dairy MUST be part of your Fatty Liver diet. A NAFLD diet without dairy is like leaving money on the table in a negotiation. In my opinion, dairy just has too many liver-friendly properties to completely give it up. Saying that here are your options:
- Consume Full-Fat dairy but in severe moderation to keep overall fat consumption in check (
maybe half cup 3 times a week) - Have a mix of full-fat dairy and Zero fat dairy (maybe 1 cup 3 times a week)
- Go somewhere in the middle and consume 1%, 2% milk only (half a cup daily)
- A mix of all – Full-fat, low-fat, and zero-fat with a keen eye on overall fat and sugars
Personally, Here is What Worked For My Fatty Liver
As you know, I have reversed my fatty liver. I have done it while drinking milk, especially with my coffee 2-3 cups a day (Coffee is very good for fatty liver). However, I have mostly avoided Full-Fat milk. I have done it using 1%, 2%, or Fat-Free milk (whichever was available during the pandemic). I also made sure to add only a little bit of milk (no more than a quarter cup per cup of coffee).
Occasionally I enjoyed full-fat dairy as well – however only when the other choices were not available during the pandemic. Similarly – I consumed low-fat yogurt (plain/sugar-free) regularly in moderation. I love cheese, however, I have stayed away from cheese most of the time except for a few cheat days. My toddler loves his string cheese. However, there was a phase when he stopped eating it and it was very tempting to not let all that cheese go to waste as it got close to expiry. I instead found a way to give it away rather than eat it.
Remember that yogurt, milk, and cheese all kind of go towards that daily limit of dairy consumption so be mindful of different varieties of dairy. you consume throughout the day.
Pro Tip – Use Milk or Yogurt in Smoothies
As you may know, fruits and veggies are really good for your Fatty Liver. So especially in summer, I also added a little bit of milk or yogurt to smoothies with lots of fruits along with liver and cholesterol-friendly add-ins like flaxseed powder, hemp seeds, and nuts.
Conclusion
Dairy should be part of your diet for NAFLD. It is beneficial for the liver, so feel free to add a little bit of milk to your coffee! 
Live a little! Dairy though is not a silver bullet (neither is coffee). Let’s just say there is no silver bullet for NAFLD and move on.
The second question gets a little complicated and the answer really depends on a variety of factors. In general, dairy fat has many positive benefits. However, this doesn’t mean you should only use full-fat dairy all the time. Depending on where you are in your NAFLD and weight loss journey, adding some amount of dairy fat is advisable. It doesn’t necessarily have to be full-fat dairy either (going from 0% fat to 1% fat for one serving is fine too).
Finally
While it’s a controversial topic, dairy has been shown to help with NAFLD. Since weight loss is an important goal for reversing NAFLD, no-fat dairy is often the go-to option. However dairy fat has benefits, so it may be good to land somewhere in between and not give up on dairy fat.
Verdict: Beneficial. Definitely include low-fat versions in your diet. Moderate intake of higher fat versions is ok. Watch out for sugars. Check with your doctor if you are diabetic.
Appendix: Studies Related to Dairy & Fatty Liver / NAFLD
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5575379/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31136662/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34534894/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4021783/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32297339/
Have more studies to share? Do not agree with this assessment? Please share your thoughts.
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