A healthy liver is a secret to good health and an unhealthy one can result in many life changing health issues. How to Keep Your Liver Healthy? For that we must understand about the functions, diseases, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment for liver problems.

Don't Wait, Nurture a Healthy Liver. Your Liver is for Life, Not for Illness!!

Liver is the largest solid organ in the body performs over 500 vital functions. It helps to remove toxins from the body’s blood supply, maintains healthy blood sugar levels, regulates blood clotting, and performs hundreds of other vital functions. It is located in the right upper part of the abdomen, beneath the diaphragm.

  • Liver filters the blood and breaks down all the poisonous substances from the body.
  • Liver produces a fluid called bile, which helps to digest foods and carry away all the waste materials.
  • Liver consists of 4 lobes [the larger right lobe, left lobe, the smaller caudate lobe & quadrate lobe], these lobes are made up of 8 sections and thousands of small lobes.

Functions of the Liver:

  • Albumin Protein: Albumin is a major protein that prevents fluids from leaking out of the blood vessels into surrounding tissues.
  • Filters Blood: Blood leaving from the stomach and intestines passes through the liver, here it removes toxins, by products, and other harmful substances.
  • Regulates Amino Acids: Amino acids are transferred to the liver during digestion and most of the body's protein is combined here. If there is excess protein, amino acids can be converted into fat and stored in fat depots. The liver makes sure that the amino acid levels in the bloodstream remain healthy.
  • Regulates Blood Clotting: Vitamin K can be absorbed with the help of bile. It plays a vital role in blood coagulation, which is the process by which the body forms clots to stop bleeding.
  • Resists Infections: The liver also removes bacteria from the bloodstream.
  • Bile: Bile is a fluid that is secreted by the liver cells. It performs two main functions. To carry away wastes and To break down the fats during digestion process.
  • Processes Glucose: The liver removes all the excess glucose [i.e. Sugar] from the bloodstreams and stores it as glycogen. According to need, it can also convert glycogen back into glucose.

How common is liver disease?

About 10% Americans (30 million in total) have some type of liver disease. About 5.5 million people in the U.S. have chronic liver disease or cirrhosis. Liver disease result from different causes which includes Viral infections, problems with immune system, Inherited diseases, Cancer, Consuming too many toxins, etc..

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Symptoms of Liver Disease and Liver Failure

The early symptoms of liver failure include:

  • Nausea
  • Loss of appetite
  • Fatigue
  • Diarrhea

But when the liver failure progresses, the symptoms may become more serious. These symptoms include:

  • Jaundice
  • Bleeding
  • Swollen belly
  • Mental confusion (known as hepatic encephalopathy)
  • Sleepiness.

How to Maintain a Healthy Liver?

To maintain the liver healthy, must follow this tips.

Diagnosis & Treatment

To accurately diagnose and find the cause of liver disease, one or more tests are recommended. It includes:

  • Blood tests
  • Imaging tests
  • Liver biopsy

Liver diseases can be treated based on the type of liver disease. Some common treatment includes:

  • Lifestyle Changes
  • Medications
  • Liver transplant