Anti-Oxidants for NAFLD: A Concise Review

This review is done to briefly highlight the therapeutic options available for NAFLD (Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease), and the role of anti-oxidants in support of NAFLD. PubMed and Google Scholar search was done using the keywords such as NAFLD, Liver cirrhosis, fibrosis, steatosis, anti-oxidants, inflammatory markers, apoptosis. This review article contains precise data from a few crucial recent articles that throw light on the current situation and treatment options available for NAFLD patients. NAFLD was recently re-termed as MAFLD (Metabolic Associated fatty Liver Disease) and has started affecting a significant proportion of the population mainly due to the incidence of metabolic syndrome as one of the greatest risk factors of NAFLD. Therapeutic options for the same have been studied for a long time but no single effective option has been discovered yet. Understanding the mechanism of NAFLD has led to the use of vitamins especially vitamin E and other substances such as polyphenols which are the emerging new options included for the treatment. These targets the reactive oxygen species, inflammatory markers, modulate fatty acid oxidation, and insulin resistance. Recent guidelines have recommended the use of Vitamin E in biopsy-proven NAFLD patients without diabetes. On the contrary, vitamin E has side effects seen at certain doses due to which the therapeutic ability although most effective, is limited in such patients. Despite the risk profile, vitamin E is still considered one of the safest options due to patient tolerability and improvement in NAFLD stages that has been proven histologically as well but in non-diabetic patients. This article also provides a brief insight into other therapeutic options available in the category of nutrients. There is a need for research to look into more options available as treatment and also to identify the risk and benefits of vitamin E to find a more permanent therapeutic solution for NAFLD patients.