Treatment of liver disease could be stored in the fridge next to the milk
There is no specific treatment for patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, but diet and lifestyle play a role in the severity of the disease. Professor Henning Grønbæk from Aarhus University and Aarhus University Hospital is now investigating whether milk proteins given as part of a high-protein diet can be used as treatment.
In a new research project supported by Arla Food for Health, Professor Henning Grønbæk is investigating the effect of milk protein in a diet with a high protein content for patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. He has particular focus on milk proteins as the hypothesis is that the high-protein diet based on milk proteins has a beneficial and better effect than a diet based on plant proteins.
Expectations are that nutritional treatment with milk proteins in a diet with a high protein content can alleviate the disease, lead to a better carbohydrate metabolism and have a beneficial effect on fatty liver inflammation and scar tissue formation in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Henning Grønbæk hopes that the research project will produce new knowledge about treating the disease and also dietary guidelines for patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and that it can lead to the development of new milk-based protein foods which could possibly also become part of the treatment of patients with diabetes and obesity.
Arla Food for Health is supporting the research project with DKK 5.6 million.
Contact
Professor, PhD & Consultant Henning Grønbæk
Aarhus University, Department of Clinical Medicine and
Aarhus University Hospital, Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology
Mobile: 21 67 92 81
Email: henning.gronbaek@clin.au.dk