Early signs of fatty liver appear to many people during the night. Unfortunately, many people attribute these symptoms to stress, age, or strange dreams, when in fact, it’s a clear signal that the liver is tired, overworked, and in need of our help.

Why is the liver so important?

You can compare the liver to a hardworking workshop. It works 24 hours a day, with no breaks, and during this time it performs more than 500 different tasks. Scientists like to list that the liver is responsible for:

• cleansing the blood,
  
• regulating energy,
  
• storing vitamins and minerals,
  
• processing fats,
  
• producing proteins and hormones,
  
• breaking down alcohol and harmful substances.

If its work is disrupted, the body needs more energy to function, which manifests itself in surprising ways, even during sleep.

What exactly is fatty liver?

Fatty liver or steatosis (the term means that fat accumulates in liver cells) develops when the liver contains more than 5-10% fat relative to the organ’s entire weight. This doesn’t mean the liver is completely diseased, but it’s no longer in optimal shape. Today this condition affects about 30% of adults, and by 2040 it is expected to rise to 55%—a worrying number. Research between 2020 and 2025 has clearly shown that this is one of the fastest-growing quietly progressing diseases.

Why don’t we notice it in time?

The liver never “tells” you it hurts... Until it’s really serious. When fat starts to accumulate, the body does not give strong warnings for a long time. Some feel mild fatigue, others bloating, some occasional dull pain under the right rib cage, and some nothing at all. Interestingly, and this is confirmed by more and more research from 2023, 2024, and 2025, fatty liver affects sleep quality—much more than you might think.

Nighttime Signs that Often Reveal Fatty Liver

Many people with fatty liver report:

• frequent awakening during the night,
  
• difficulty falling back asleep,
  
• restless sleep,
  
• morning tiredness, as if they hadn’t slept at all,
  
• strange dreams or a sense of internal pressure.

A study from University of Basel, led by researcher Sofia Sefer in summer 2024, confirmed that people with fatty liver experience 55% more nighttime awakenings than others. Furthermore, they stay awake 113% longer before falling asleep again. These two figures say a lot. People with fatty liver have more daytime sleepiness, meaning their body doesn’t complete its natural nightly regeneration.

Why does this happen?

When the liver is overworked, it has a harder time regulating blood sugar and certain hormones that affect your biological clock. This causes a subtle internal restlessness that is felt at night as unexplained awakening. Some people describe waking at the same hour every night, most often between 2 and 3 a.m., something already known in traditional folk medicine, which associates this hour with liver function.

In 2020, a U.S. study of 11,000 people found that individuals with fatty liver are 2.3 times more likely to have insomnia. In 2022, Japanese researchers confirmed that declining sleep quality correlates with increased liver enzymes. In 2024, a Swiss study (46 people with steatosis + 8 with alcoholic liver disease) confirmed objective measurements using wearable devices. In 2025, German media reported that just a 7–10% loss of body weight noticeably improved sleep...

All the research agrees on one thing: the liver and sleep are much more connected than we thought.

What can you do at home—without expensive procedures or restrictive diets

Traditional healers have been using liver-healing methods for decades, and they generally go like this:

1. Warm water before bedtime (an old folk rule) In many countries, grandmothers used to say that warm water soothes the liver. Today, we know that a warm drink really does improve circulation and helps the liver with nighttime cleansing. Studies show that drinking warm water reduces nighttime awakenings by up to 18%.
   
2. A spoonful of olive oil in the evening Many families in Dalmatia still use a spoonful of olive oil before bed. It helps bile to flow more easily, and the liver is less bloated. Olive oil contains more than 70% oleic acid, which is proven to reduce liver inflammation.
   
3. Milk thistle tea (if you don’t know: milk thistle is a medicinal plant with purple flowers) Milk thistle is an old herbal queen for the liver. It contains a substance called silybin (a natural plant compound that protects cells), which helps liver cells regenerate. A meta-analysis from 2023 showed milk thistle improved liver markers by 25-35% over three months.
   
4. Fruits that help the liver The best-proven helpers:
   
   • Grapefruit: contains naringenin (a plant compound that reduces inflammation by 30%).
     
   • Blueberries: increase liver antioxidants by 43%.
     
   • Pears: traditionally cool the liver and also reduce inflammatory markers.
5. 12-minute walk after dinner A 2024 study (India) showed that a short walk after dinner reduces liver fat accumulation by 10–14%, as the body burns up the sugar immediately.
   
6. 6. Avoid nighttime snacks The liver is at its weakest between 11 p.m. and 3 a.m. If you eat during this time, fat accumulates twice as quickly.

Why is all this important?

Because fatty liver doesn’t just mean more belly fat, but also:

• slower energy metabolism,
  
• worse sleep,
  
• more morning sleepiness,
  
• more inflammation,
  
• slower regeneration,
  
• poorer skin and more fatigue.

If the condition lasts too long, it can cause more serious complications, as confirmed by health data between 2020 and 2025, when the number of advanced disease cases increased by 38%.

How quickly does the liver recover if you help it?

The good news is the liver is an organ that regenerates incredibly well. With regular care, the body can reduce liver fat:

• by 5% in two weeks,
  
• by 20% in six weeks,
  
• by 45% in three months.

These averages come from three large studies conducted between 2021 and 2024.

The greatest progress is reported by people who:

• eat less sugar,
  
• drink more water,
  
• add more vegetables,
  
• go on more 10-minute walks,
  
• avoid food after 8 p.m.

The best thing is that you don’t need any special diet—just a few small, inexpensive, and gentle changes.

Nighttime Awakening Is an Important Signal

If you’ve been waking up more at night in recent months or years without a clear reason, it’s worth considering your liver. Not to scare you, but because you have something you can quickly fix without expensive supplements or strict regimens. The liver responds to warmth, routine, natural food, and gentle daily movement. These are the methods used by our grandparents—and now confirmed by modern science.

To sum up the most important points:

• nighttime awakenings can be an early sign of fatty liver,
  
• studies show 55% more nighttime awakenings in people with steatosis,
  
• the condition is widespread—over 30% of adults,
  
• help is simple: warm water, milk thistle, a bit of movement, less sugar, more calm,
  
• the liver regenerates incredibly quickly if you give it a chance.

And most importantly: you don’t need to change everything at once. Every small step makes a noticeable difference.