Loading...
All organs of the human body can be divided into vital and auxiliary. The liver clearly belongs to the first group- to the vital organs. It is impossible to overestimate the importance for the viability of the organism. Also it is a powerful parenchymal organ. It combines the functions of the digestive gland and a kind of biochemical laboratory.
All the central biochemical reactions and processes responsible for maintaining life are in the liver. It is naturally, that liver is vulnerable. Because it has a complex structure and the high loads. The number of liver disease continues to grow steadily turning into liver failure. And it happens despite the excellent regenerative and regenerative abilities of the liver.
Can you imagine such picture? A very scrupulous housekeeper cleans in your house everyday. She works daily to maintain order. She washes everything around and cleans up scattered things. Cleanliness and sanitary standards are observed in every corner in general. But one day she falls ill. She does not go to work and your whole usual way of life collapses. There is nobody to replace her. The house is gradually plunging into chaos. The dirty and dust appear in every corner, unwashed dishes exude an unpleasant smell, “uninvited guests” start up.
Functions Of The Liver In The Human Body
As many functions as the liver performs, no any other organ in the human body provides.
They include:
- Detoxification of the body.
- Neutralization of all toxic compounds. They enter to the bloodstream from the environment (alcohol, toxins, medicines).
- Removal and inactivation of toxic metabolic products.
- Usually they formed in the body during the life.
- These include protein breakdown products, phenol, ketone compounds and acetone.
- Participation in vitamin and mineral metabolism.
- Deposition of water-soluble vitamins of groups B, C, PP, as well as fat-soluble D, E, K, trace elements of iron, copper and cobalt.
- Participation in the synthesis of immunoglobulins, antibodies and other important proteins of the immune system.
- Regulation of carbohydrate metabolism.
- Deposition and distribution of energy substrates in the body. They are glucose and glycogen. The liver performs through the processes of glycogenolysis, gluconeogenesis, glycolysis.
- Participation in lipid metabolism. Metabolism of cholesterol, phospholipids, fatty acids, lipoproteins.
- Implementation of the central processes of protein metabolism. Implementation of the central processes of protein metabolism. Synthesis of protein components for cell membranes. It is also responsible for proteins transport and redistribution of amino acids.
- Synthesis of plasma coagulation factors and anticoagulant blood system.
- The function of hematopoiesis, especially in the prenatal and childhood period.
- Synthesis of bile and enzymes that are involved in the processes of digestion. Their main role is the breakdown of fats.
- The implementation of bilirubin metabolism and its neutralization by conjugation with glucuronic acid.
- Deposition of blood, which allows redistributing it in case of need. The ejection of blood into the vessels in case of its deficiency during blood loss or concentration in case of congestive heart failure.
Top 7 Signs That Your Liver Needs To Detox Quick
The liver is such a “housekeeper” in the body. And when she decides to “take sick leave”, every “corner” of the body notices that.
What symptoms are signals that it’s time to help the liver.
You Suddenly And Sharply Gained Weight
The elimination of fats from the body is one of the main roles of the liver. Liver work directly affects on fats harmony. Toxins can interfere with the absorption of fats and removing them from the body. As the result the weight crawls up even with a moderate diet. Shortness of breath and problems with the cardiovascular system are other unpleasant “satellites” of the weight gain.
Feel Fatigue And Depression Even After The Rest
The metabolic processes are violated because the liver is overloaded. It cannot fully performs its work well. You feel fatigue and depression almost throughout the day. Fatal fatigue can be a harbinger of the development more serious processes.
It could be, for example, non -alcoholic fatty disease. It is necessary to consult a doctor with protracted weakness.
You Began To Sweat More And The Smell Of The Body Has Changed
Increased sweating and unpleasant body smell can also be evidence of liver problems. The body seems to be involved into the race in the fight against the accumulated toxins. It is in the last gasp and experiences overheating trying to cool itself. Also, the substances distinguished by the body change their composition. You can feel something like the smell of boiled cabbage.
Noticed a deterioration in the condition of the skin and hair
Problems With The Skin
The appearance of painful acne and other inflamed foci on the skin can talk about the accumulation of toxins. The body tries to remove them, as a result the skin ceases to look healthy. Almost all problems with the liver also lead to hormonal imbalance. It affects on the skin and hair, which may begin to drop intensely.
Allergic Reactions Have Become Your Constant Companions
The liver does not cope with the regulation of the level of incoming antigens. The immune system has to release its “army” for a showdown with the enemy. The production of histamine increases. As a result skin rashes, itching, peeling, swelling, headaches and runny nose appear.
Tormenting Heartburn
Disorders in the liver lead to a change in blood pH and the appearance of excess acidity in the stomach. It annoys stomach walls and prevents the normal operation of the sphincter. As a result, the acid is thrown into the esophagus. You can also feel bitterness in your mouth and notice a yellow coating in the tongue.
Breathing Has Lost Freshness
Not only the smell of the body changes, but also the smell of breathing. Blood is filtered poorly. The stomach copes poorly with its function, harmful bacteria multiply more actively. An unpleasant aftertaste. For example, you can feel metallic taste. It indicates excessive accumulation in the body of metals. The breathing can resemble a hangover despite the fact you have not consumed alcohol.
9 Symptoms of Liver Disease You Shouldn’t Ignore
A variety of symptoms will help to identify the problem on time. But, some diseases in the early stages are almost asymptomatic. Gastroenterologists and hepatologists recommend to pay attention to some points. It will help to cut the risk of developing the liver disease and to diagnose in time. Problems with liver function can may appear with one symptom or with several of them. It depends on the specific disease and the presence of complications.
Pain And Discomfort
Pain is usually concentrated in the right hypochondrium. Sometimes, pain could be in the area between the shoulder blades or separately to the right shoulder blade. The liver damage can be assessed based on the type and intensity of pain. Slight discomfort with aching pain and the feeling of heaviness, may say about the presence of an inflammatory process. The pain can be caused by the toxins. It is very hard for the patient to clearly show the place where the pain is concentrated.
Intense and severe pain in the hypochondrium are characteristics of inflammation. It is present with stones in the bile ducts and liver injuries. Painful sensations are also characteristic of hepatic colic. They lead to the movement of stones in the bile ducts.
There are pathologies that do not manifest themselves as unpleasant sensations. These are sluggish processes, such as hepatitis C or cirrhosis of the liver. The patient does not notice them for a long time. That is why liver diagnosis and treatment may be delayed. Often these diseases are detected already in the later stages of development.
Vomiting And Nausea
Nausea and vomiting are quite common in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. If the problem involves the liver, these symptoms will be more prominent.
Problems with appetite begin with the nausea. It dulls or disappears completely. There is an aversion to specific foods. Usually people refuse from products high in fat. In some cases, an attack of nausea ends with vomiting. The admixture of bile in the vomit indicates about problems with the liver.
The Appearance Of Symptoms In The Oral Cavity
A yellow coating on the tongue is a specific symptom. The intensity and color depends on the disease. For example, slight jaundice near the tip of the tongue may say about early stage of hepatitis. An yellow green plaque can be a characteristic of problems with the digestive tract, biliary tract or liver. Stagnation of bile appears in the form of a plaque of a rich yellow hue. Blood tests may be prescribed to check the gastrointestinal tract with such symptoms.
An unpleasant bitterness can occur sometimes. It happens when bile enters the esophagus. The bitterness can be a symptom of viral hepatitis, tumor or cirrhosis, gastrointestinal disease or gallbladder. Sometimes bitterness is caused by severe stress after taking certain medications. To determine the disease, doctors prescribe a comprehensive diagnosis of the patient’s body.
In addition to bitterness, a sweetish or “fishy” aroma may appear in the mouth. Usually it is accompanied by constipation or diarrhea, bloating, and vomiting. This symptom indicates problems with the digestive system. It can be provoked by problems with the liver.
Increased Body Temperature
A symptom indicates the presence of a disease-causing agent that the body is fighting. Cirrhosis or hepatitis can be with an increase in temperature up to 38°C and its fluctuations in the range of 37-37.5°C
The temperature is around 39 ° C and above in diseases of the biliary tract. In this case, the patient has twitching of facial and skeletal muscles.
Change In Color Of Urine And Stool
The urine acquires a dark tint due to the increased volume of bilirubin. It could be a characteristic of hepatitis or cirrhosis. A rich yellow foam appears in it while shaking.
Some diseases are characterized by discoloration of feces. Sometimes it is accompanied by fever, vomiting and discomfort in the right hypochondrium.
Discoloration Of The Skin And Mucous Membranes
The color of the mucous membranes and skin changes due to the accumulation of bile pigments in the tissues. This may indicate the presence of cirrhosis of the liver or hepatitis. Especially if there is a presence of dark urine and light stool at the same time. Yellowness of the skin is a characteristic of the cholelithiasis. To clarify the diagnosis, the doctor may prescribe extra laboratory and blood tests.
Separation bile problems appear as brown pigment spots on the skin. They could be of different degrees of intensity. They usually occur in the groin, armpits, or palms.
Other Skin Manifestations
Spider veins is an extra symptom in liver pathologies. They usually appear on the back or cheeks. It happens because of metabolic problems and increased fragility of capillary walls. At an advanced stage, the patient immediately bruises with a slight pressure on the skin.
Allergic rashes and inflammation could be symptoms of autoimmune diseases and hepatitis. Atopic dermatitis and psoriasis may appear at the next stage.
“Liver palms” is a characteristic symptom. Red spots appear on the feet and palms. They become paler when pressed. When the pressure stops, their color turns red again.
Hormonal Changes
Hormonal imbalance occurs in chronic liver disease. In this case, patients experience hair loss on the pubis and in the armpits. Men suffer from testicular atrophy and enlargement of the mammary glands. It happens because of excess of female hormones. Women experience the increased volume of estrogen. It causes a rash all over the body, very pronounced PMS and irregular menstrual cycle.
Body Intoxication
Liver damage interferes the cleansing functions. Because the liver handles with the filtering and removing toxins from the body. There is a pronounced intoxication with its accompanying symptoms. People experience discomfort in the muscles and joints, problems with appetite, fatigue, and weight loss.
How Does Your Liver Hurt? What Does Pain Look Like?
Pain in liver can be of a different nature. You can interpret them next way:
- Slight pain is in the right hypochondrium. The nature of the pain can be in the form of aching pain, bursting and heaviness. They characterize a sluggish pathological process of inflammatory toxic or other origin. This type of pain in the liver is most likely due to an increase in the size of the organ and overstretching of the liver capsule. Patients cannot clearly indicate one pain point.
- Intense widespread pain is in the right hypochondrium. Painful sensations are rare. They testifies about a pronounced inflammatory, purulent or traumatic pathological process. Pain also may indicate a lesion of the bile ducts with stones.
- Severe local point pain is in the liver. It is not typical for liver damage. It is associated with the pathology of the gallbladder and extrahepatic bile ducts.
- Complete absence of pain is in the liver. It is very often found in sluggish liver diseases. Liver disease go unnoticed for a long time. They can be determined only at the stage of liver failure or cirrhosis of the liver.
