Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a significant public health problem worldwide, representing a spectrum of liver diseases from simple steatosis to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HC). The global prevalence of NAFLD has reached epidemic proportions, closely paralleling the rising prevalence of obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome.