My Mom's Diabetes Took Her Foot. Nobody Ever Checked My Liver.

If you have type 2 diabetes, you probably know the routine by heart: metformin, an A1C every few months, the yearly foot exam, the eye exam, the kidney test. Many people check their own feet every night, because they watched what diabetes did to a parent.

The organ that isn't on the list

Type 2 diabetes puts fat in your liver. About 7 in 10 people with type 2 already have a fatty liver, and about 1 in 5 already have scarring. You won't feel it, your A1C doesn't measure it, and the standard liver blood test misses most of it. That's why the American Diabetes Association now tells doctors to check every type 2 patient for liver scarring.

A drinker's liver, without the drinking

When doctors first described this disease, they called it alcohol-like liver disease in people who don't drink. It ends the same way: cirrhosis. Type 2 diabetes roughly doubles the risk of cirrhosis and liver cancer.

What drains, and what rebuilds it

Your liver protects itself with glutathione, and type 2 diabetes drains it. In a 2011 study, people with type 2 were severely short. Given the building blocks, including the cysteine that NAC supplies, their glutathione was back up within two weeks.

Keep your metformin, ask for the liver scarring check at your next appointment, and don't wait for a result to start protecting your liver.

Read Linda and Mike's full story →

See Nordvia Complete Liver Support

General health information, not medical advice. Keep taking your diabetes medication as prescribed. If you take insulin or another blood-sugar-lowering medication, talk to your doctor before starting any supplement.