Yvonne knew every trendy food outlet and health food store along her well-worn work routes. As a veteran sales consultant, she regularly traveled long distances in the car or on train trips. At 50, she prided herself on eating healthy despite her hectic schedule.
Cooked vegetables, salads, protein bars, and packaged meals were her go-to foods. Her days were long, and her fridge at home was mostly bare. Struggling to lose weight, she even pushed herself to squeeze in workouts at hotel gyms.
When her doctor’s concerned face appeared over a clipboard of test results at her check-up, Yvonne was floored to learn she had sky-high liver enzymes. Yvonne’s mind raced with frustration. She‘d given up alcohol three years ago.
How could her liver be in trouble? She’d tried everything—exercise, supplements, even those new weight loss drugs everyone was talking about. Nothing seemed to last long enough to budge the stubborn weight that had crept on since her milestone birthday. I used to tell my patients this analogy: Think of a sink in an old home.
You turn the water tap on full, but it drains from the sink slowly, indicating a blockage is forming. You might ignore it for years, but eventually, the amount of water pouring out of the faucet is more than the water that’s going down the drain, causing water to overflow into your home. This is similar to what happens when the liver can no longer filter out an overload of toxins.
Fat accumulates and then circulates in the bloodstre.