Around 25% of our population has this condition, and results from a new study could help shape how it's treated.
This Liver Condition Affects 100 Million Americans and May Have a Surprising Cause, Says the Mayo Clinic
Published on Jul. 05, 2025
Fatty liver disease is often associated with alcohol abuse, but for the millions of Americans with this condition, drinking isn’t to blame.
The American Liver Foundation estimates that around 100 million Americans, or around 25% of the population, have metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), often referred to as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). MASLD is a “group of liver diseases that happen when your body stores lots of fat in your liver,” the Cleveland Clinic explains. While it can be asymptomatic for years, it can lead to hepatitis, or inflammation in your liver, as well as other serious conditions like cirrhosis, if left untreated. According to the ALF, fatty liver disease is the most common form of liver disease in children, with the number of diagnoses doubling over the past two decades. It’s also been on the rise among U.S. adults.
Fatty liver disease is believed to be caused by high lipid levels, obesity, type 2 diabetes, or insulin resistance. Or, according to 2025 research, possibly your genes.
Science published in the medical journal Hepatology details a study conducted by the Mayo Clinic’s Center for Individualized Medicine in collaboration with John & Linda Mellowes Center for Genomic Sciences and Precision Medicine that analyzed the genetic data of 3,904 people with this metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease, which affects around one-third of adults worldwide.
Specifically, when looking at the DNA of a woman and her father who had been diagnosed with MASLD and had no history of high cholesterol or diabetes, researchers “found a small but potentially significant error in the MET gene,” per a news release shared by the Mayo Clinic. The MET gene is involved in cell development and repair, per the National Cancer Institute.
The research team then referred to the Mayo Clinic’s Tapestry study, which “analyzed germline DNA from over 100,000 participants across the U.S.” Germline DNA is the “tissue derived from reproductive cells (egg or sperm) that become incorporated into the DNA of every cell in the body of the offspring,” per the National Cancer Institute.
Researchers determined that 1% of the almost 4,000 adults who participated in the Tapestry study and had been diagnosed with MASLD carried the variants in the same gene.
Further, about 18% of these adults were found to have “variants in the same critical region as the initial woman and her father.”
Raul Urrutia, MD, who led the Medical College of Wisconsin team, concludes: “This study demonstrates that rare diseases are not rare but often hidden in the large pool of complex disorders, underscoring the immense power of individualized medicine in identifying them, and enabling the design of advanced diagnostics and targeted therapies.”
So, though more research is needed, this research uncovers a possible breakthrough to better understand what’s long been thought of as a lifestyle-related disease with potentially serious consequences.
For daily wellness updates, subscribe to The Healthy by Reader’s Digest newsletter and follow The Healthy on Facebook and Instagram. Keep reading:
