Soy Protein Cuts Fatty Liver Disease Symptoms in Obese Individuals

SAN DIEGOObese individuals who consume a diet rich in soy protein may significantly reduce fat accumulation and triglycerides in their livers by partially restoring the function of a key signaling pathway in the organ, according to new research presented April 22 at the Experimental Biology 2012 annual meeting.

Researchers at the University of Illinois compared fat accumulation in the livers of lean and obese rats that were assigned to either a diet containing casein, a milk-based protein, or a diet containing soy protein, for 17 weeks after weaning. While diet had no effect on the liver profiles of lean animals, the obese rats that were fed soy showed a 20% reduction in triglycerides and overall fat accumulation in the liver. The researchers also found that soy protein isolate partially restored the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, a crucial player in fat metabolism.

When fat accumulates in an organ thats not supposed to store fatlike the liverthat organs vital function can be dangerously compromised," they said. In many obese persons, there's a sort of traffic problem, and when more fat can make its way out of the liver, there is less pressure on that organ."