Do You Have Fatty Liver Disease? Find Out The Answer
The primary function of the liver is to purify the blood, detoxify the system and to store certain vitamins, minerals and glucose. Hepatic steatosis or commonly known as Fatty liver disease (FLD) is the accumulation of more than normal fat in the liver. If this condition is caused by excessive alcohol consumption, then we call it Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (AFLD). Fatty liver can lead to serious health conditions, like liver inflammation, cirrhosis and even liver failure. Do not ignore if you have already been diagnosed with FLD and get immediate liver treatment.
Causes of Fatty Liver Disease
- Obesity
- Hypertension
- High cholesterol and fat in the blood
- Overconsumption of alcoholic drinks
- Sudden weight loss
- High blood sugar or diabetes
- Certain liver infections like Hepatitis C
- Poor nutrition
- Genetics.
Symptoms of Fatty Liver Disease
The symptoms of fatty liver are mild during the initial stages, hence can be only discovered through proper diagnosis. If the condition deteriorates, you’ll notice the following symptoms:
- Tiredness or Exhaustion
- Abdominal pain
- Weight loss
- Swollen abdomen
- Nausea
- Poor appetite
- Confusion.
Diagnostic tests for Fatty Liver Disease
A correct diagnosis is required to pinpoint Hepatic Steatosis. Your medical history is extremely important for the doctor to find out the exact cause of FLD, so ensure that you provide accurate previous medical reports and answer all the questions precisely. The medical professional will recommend the diagnostic tests as mentioned below:
- Physical exam, in which the doctor presses on your abdomen to check for any enlargement.
- Liver function tests, which are certain blood tests to determine the health of your liver.
- Diagnostic imaging tests, such as Ultrasound, MRI and CT scan, to find the presence of excessive fat in the liver.
- Liver biopsy, in which a tissue sample of your liver is collected to inspect the liver’s condition and damage.
There’s no specific treatment for Hepatic steatosis but with certain changes in the lifestyle and medical guidance, the damage can be reversed and the condition can be in full control. Let’s look at the lifestyle changes you are most likely to be prescribed by the gastroenterologist.
- Avoid drinking alcohol (in case of Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (AFLD).
- Eating a healthy and well-balanced diet.
- Losing weight.
- Getting regular check-ups and treatment from the concerned doctor.
You can always visit ILS Hospitals, one of the best hospitals in Kolkata and Agartala for any kind of medical help.
Liver Diseases – Causes And Symptoms
The liver is the largest organ in our body. It helps in digesting our food, stores energy and removes unwanted substances from the body. It is situated right under your rib cage on the right side of your abdomen. Like every organ, the liver can have diseases too. Liver diseases can be genetic or due to pathogens or the consumption of excess alcohol. There are various liver treatment approaches depending on the type of diseases. But how would you know if you have any liver disease? Today, we will discuss some of the symptoms that help detect liver diseases and also, which type of disease is caused by what.
Signs and symptoms of liver disease include:
- Skin and eyes appear yellowish: This is the most common symptom which usually means that you might have jaundice.
- Abdominal pain and swelling: If you are feeling pain and swelling in abdomen regularly, it means your liver is not functioning properly, leading to inflammation of the liver.
- Swelling in the legs and ankles: Due to liver disease, the secretion of a protein named Albumin can become inadequate and can cause fluid leakage known as edema. Due to gravity, this fluid gets deposited in the legs and ankles, causing their swelling.
- Itchy skin: It is caused due to the bile products deposited in the skin.
- Chronic fatigue: This is another common symptom for people with liver problems.
- Nausea or vomiting: If your digestive system is not working properly due to liver problems then you would feel nauseous and it becomes hard to keep your food down which also leads to loss of appetite.
Liver disease has many causes:
- Infection: Liver diseases can occur due to infection by Parasites and viruses causing inflammation that reduces liver function. These viruses can spread through blood, contaminated food or water, or close contact with an infected person. The common types of liver infection are hepatitis viruses, including Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C.
- Immune system abnormality: Some autoimmune liver diseases include Autoimmune hepatitis, primary biliary cirrhosis, etc can affect your liver system as well.
- Genetics: Liver diseases can be genetic where an abnormal gene is inherited from one or both of your parents causing various substances to build up in your liver, and thus resulting in liver damage. Some genetic liver diseases include Hemochromatosis, Hyperoxaluria, and oxalosis, Wilson’s disease, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency.
- Cancer and other growth: Liver cancer is a severe liver disease. There are various reasons for liver cancer. One of the reasons doctors have found is regular and heavy alcohol consumption. Another type of cancer is bile duct cancer which also happens due to the same reasons.
- Fat accumulating in the liver: Eating unhealthy food is pretty common these days which is why fat accumulation in the liver has become very common as well.
If you have any of the aforementioned symptoms, it might imply that you have some underlying liver disease. It is best to get these symptoms evaluated and avail liver treatment as soon as possible, to lead a healthier life ahead.
A Brief Introduction on Hepatitis on This Hepatitis Day
LIVER – one of the vital organ that performs many crucial functions of the living body. This includes its role in facilitating digestion, filtering toxins from the body, breaking down of fat and carbohydrate, removal of bilirubin, cholesterol, aiding in the blood clotting, synthesis of albumin etc. It is always advised to receive proper liver treatment in case of any discomfort or malfunction of the liver occurs.
We are observing World Hepatitis Day on 28th July. So, let’s have a look at the 5 different hepatitis types in brief.
Hepatitis, in general, is a condition that is characterized by inflammation of the liver. These occur mostly due to the viral infections, but can also onset due to high dosage of alcohol, drugs, medicines etc. Autoimmune hepatitis is a special case, in which it onsets when the body produces antibodies against the liver tissue.
The 5 common types are Hepatitis are A, B, C, and D and E, where a different type of virus is responsible for each type.
Hepatitis A
It is caused by Hepatitis A Virus (HAV). It gets transmitted through consumption of food and water contaminated by feces from a hepatitis A infected person.
Hepatitis B
It is caused by the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV). It is transmitted by coming in contact with infectious body fluids from a hepatitis B infected person. It also can spread by using common blades or razor.
Hepatitis C
It is caused by the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV). It transmits through direct contact with infectious body fluids from a hepatitis C infected person. It typically spread through needles or intimacy with an infected person.
Hepatitis D
It is also known as the Delta Hepatitis and is caused by the Hepatitis D Virus (HDV). It transmits through direct contact with infected blood from a hepatitis D infected person. It usually onsets in conjugation with Hepatitis B.
Hepatitis E
It is caused by the Hepatitis E Virus (HEV). Being a waterborne disease it transmits through water contaminated by fecal matters. It typically spreads in an area with poor sanitation.
In conclusion, Hepatitis A is always short term but highly acute, whereas type B, C, D, and E, mostly onsets as long termed and chronic. Type E gets equally acute and pose severe threats if infects pregnant women.
Despite the type and its degree of severity, it is best not to endure discomforts due to malfunctioning liver and seek quality liver treatment on time.
Why a Healthy Liver can help you Lead a Healthy Life?
The human body comprises of several organ systems and each of these consists of several organs. Every organ plays a significant role in maintaining and regulating a healthy and functional life. One of such important organs is the liver. It produces cholesterol and mainly regulates the body metabolism. In simple word, this controls whether you are slim or overweight.
The cholesterol produced by the liver is essential for the body and it becomes a threat only when it accumulates beyond a safe limit. Several times, the liver encounters several malfunctions and abnormalities, which makes liver treatment inevitable. Minor problems associated with liver lead to problems like bloating, gas or constipation. The severe ones cause more serious threats and requires surgery.
It is crucial that one eats healthy food to provide the liver with all the nutrients necessary for it. This way it keeps functioning in a normal way and keeps the body weight in check. In contrast, when one stuffs his belly with fried food and toxic substances, he ends up burdening the liver and also a need for liver treatment arises.
In order to cope up with the highly processed food, the liver has to get extremely indulged in detoxifying the body. Simultaneously, it skips the function of mobilizing fat altogether. With time, the fat and cholesterol gets accumulated in the bloodstream. It causes several conditions such as cardiovascular disorders, arthritis, diabetes, hormonal imbalance and many more.
It is important to keep the liver healthy at all times, so that it can keep the body’s metabolism and toxic level in check. It can be done easily by controlling the proportion of food along with exercising regularly. Also, limiting the amount of alcohol being consumed helps a lot. Though occasional drinking does not cause any significant deterioration of the liver, drinking regularly can cause cirrhosis.
One should also keep a distance for over the counter drugs, especially the un-prescribed pain killers. In any case, experiment with health is a bad idea, a doctor’s advice is compulsory before consuming any medicine. Also, one should watch out for some of the unconventional methods of liver damage such as Hepatitis B and C. These diseases can be kept at bay by avoiding IV drugs, multiple sexual partners, body piercing and tattoos with infected needles.
These small changes can make a significant difference in the liver condition and improve the overall health stability.