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World Liver Day 2025: Are you on a dedicated diet , maintaining a calorie deficit, working out, but still seeing no change on scale? Turns out, the answer might not lie solely in what's on your plate or how much you're sweating it out. You need to look inwards, literally. The vital organ liver , too plays an important role to understand this halt in weight loss.
On World Liver Day, it's important to understand how your liver is stalling your weight loss journey and holding you back, and what you can do about it. In an interview with Ht Lifestyle, Dr Pawan Rawal, Head Unit I- Gastroenterology, Artemis Hospitals, explained how an unhealthy liver can stop you from losing weight . Dr Rawal explained the basic function of liver and said, “The liver is one of the most hardworking organs in the body.
It assists in more than 500 important functions, such as detoxifying the blood, hormone regulation, nutrient processing, and fat regulation. Breaking down fats and converting them into energy is one of its main functions. It also metabolises carbohydrates and proteins to stabilise energy levels within the body.
When your liver is healthy, it functions like a well-oiled machine, filtering toxins, managing blood sugar, and metabolising fat efficiently. But when it becomes overloaded or fatty, everything slows down.” Furthermore, here's the detailed guide Dr Pawan Rawal shared that would explain why an unhealthy liver may stall weight loss: How unhealthy liver slows down weight loss 1.
Slow metabolism When the liver stores too much fat or toxins, its capacity to carry out vital functions such as nutrient metabolism and detoxification is compromised. This impacts the liver's function in lipid metabolism, glucose control, and hormone processing. As a result, the basal metabolic rate of the body, the amount of calories burned at rest, decreases.
With reduced metabolic effectiveness, only a few calories are burned even with physical exercise, and losing weight becomes challenging even with a caloric deficit. This tends to result in chronic fat storage and metabolic imbalance. 2.
Hormonal imbalance The liver helps regulate key hormones like cortisol and estrogen by metabolising and breaking them down. When liver function is impaired, as in the case of hepatic steatosis, or fatty liver, this clearance is hampered, resulting in elevated hormone levels. Increased cortisol stimulates fat storage, particularly in the abdominal region, while excess estrogen is associated with insulin resistance and weight gain, causing overall metabolic imbalance.
3. Insulin resistance An unhealthy liver can cause insulin resistance, in which the cells of the body fail to respond to insulin. This makes the excess glucose remain in the blood, which gets stored as fat.
Insulin resistance leads to weight gain and makes it difficult to lose fat. 4. Toxin buildup and water retention A healthy liver detoxifies by removing toxins from the blood.
When the liver is damaged, either through hepatic steatosis or inflammation, the detoxification process is interrupted. As toxins accumulate, the body reacts by enhancing fluid retention and fat storage to protect vital organs. This protective mechanism typically results in bloating in the abdomen and weight gain, especially around the waist.
What can you do? To support liver health, incorporate liver-supportive foods such as leafy greens, garlic, turmeric, beetroot, apples, lemons, and walnuts, which assist in detoxifying naturally. Restrict processed sugar and alcohol, as they cause fatty liver. Drink plenty of water to support toxin elimination, and exercise regularly to enhance liver function and fat metabolism.
Have regular health checkups to identify early indicators of liver problems through enzyme tests or imaging. ALSO READ: Cut liver disease risk by 50 per cent: Top doctors reveal what to eat and what to ditch Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.
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