I am 51 years old, Hispanic female. My liver enzymes were mild elevated for more than one year. During this period of time, I had a liver/hepatic panel approximately every two months and always my transaminases, mainly the ALT enzyme, were always going up little by little.
Before my liver enzyme problem had started, my ALT was 19 IU/L, but in the year of 2011 it kept climbing gradual and continuously (ALT elevations: 37 IU/L, 39, 46, 49, 51, 54, and 61).
My gastroenterologist ordered many tests for me such as viral hepatitis (A, B, y C), autoimmune hepatitis, ferritin and iron test, Celiac Disease, etc. Also I had two abdominal ultrasounds; but all of these tests came out fine. He told me that if my liver enzymes continue to rise, I should consider the need of having a liver biopsy in the future.
Then, I started to think of any changes in my life, diet, etc. that could be the cause of my problem and I realized that from January 2011 I began to eat 1 or 2 tablespoon of peanut butter (Jif brand, twin package) daily. So, in April 2012 I decided to quick peanut butter. In June 2012 I had another liver panel and my ALT enzyme had dropped to 31 IU/L, which is the normal range, again!
Recently, I had read health information about a potent carcinogen called aflatoxin that is always present in peanut butter, being impossible to remove it even after the peanut has been roasted. Aflatoxin attacks mainly the liver: Initially, it kills cells in the liver, later nodules and scar tissue gets produced, and eventually cirrhosis and liver failure occur.