As always said and highlighted as well “Drinking of alcohol is
prohibited.” Be it a movie or any drama, a declaration about alcohol
consumption is always mentioned. Well, it is stated simply because of the
adverse effects of alcohol on our body and more specifically on the liver. When
alcohol is consumed daily it can cause the formation of fat in your liver.
Thus, leading to scarring of liver tissue. This condition is also referred to
as cirrhosis. In this disease, the liver starts to give up on its functions
depending upon the amount of scarring of liver tissue. Sometimes the same
situation occurs even if you don’t consume any alcohol, this situation is known
as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). In addition to it, this can also
lead to cirrhosis. Both the alcoholic liver disease(ALD) and NAFLD are
categorised under a common umbrella called Fatty liver diseases. Technically,
it is mentioned when 5-10% of the liver weight is known to be fat.
Symptoms
Well, the concrete causes for NAFLD are not completely understood,
assumptions are made that it might be due to some connections between liver and
insulin resistance. Moreover, NAFLD shows no visible symptoms. In case symptoms
are present, they might include:
• Pain in the
abdomen
• Experiencing
fatigue
• Enlarged liver
• Swelling in the
belly
• Jaundice fever
If NAFLD leads to cirrhosis, it may indicate several signs such as:
• Bleeding(internally)
• No fluid
secretion
• Loss of liver
function
Risk factors
One of the studies revealed that NAFL has affected around 20% of the
population. The key factor is being insulin resistance. Moreover, people who
are obese are more prone to develop insulin resistance.
The best gastroenterologist in Mumbai stated few other risk
factors for NAFLD are- Type-2 diabetics, use of certain cancer medicines,
greater cholesterol levels, higher triglycerides level, usage of
corticosteroids and improper eating habits that lead to uncertain weight loss.
How it’s diagnosed
Usually, a blood test is done that may indicate levels of liver
enzymes and consequently can suggest about other liver diseases. Moreover, if
any suspicious indications are found, then ultrasound is done to detect fat
proportions. If any of the tests fail to provide conclusions then a liver
biopsy is done to draw concrete conclusions and plan a course of treatment
accordingly.
Treatment options
The top gastroenterologist in India said that for treating
NAFLS, there is no exact medication that can cure it. Hence, if you are obese
your doctor might ask to reduce weight by adopting some lifestyle changes such
as:
• Incorporating
healthy eating habits such as diet food containing multi-grains, fruits, green
vegetables etc.
• Avoid eating junk
and oily food, thus, controlling the cholesterol levels.
• Following an
exercise regime of minimum 30 minutes daily.
• Avoiding alcohol
Can non-alcoholic fatty liver disease cause complications?
In mild NAFL cases, there may not be any severe complications. All
you need is early diagnosis and adopting a few lifestyle changes for preserving
your liver. However, in severe cases, the best gastrointestinal surgeon asserted that the highest risk is of cirrhosis, it can harness the
functionality of the liver, hence, preventing the liver from doing its job. In
extreme cases it might limit:
• Gynaecology doctors in Mumbai say that it will restrict in production of bile, that
helps in eliminating excess waste from the body.
• Maintaining fluid levels in the body by protein
production
• Haemoglobin
breakdown and iron secretion
• Converting
ammonia in your blood to harmless urea for excretion
• Maintaining
supply and release of glucose for energy retaining
• producing
cholesterol, which is necessary for cellular health
• Eliminating
bacteria from blood
• The production of
immune factors to fight infections
• Preventing blood
clotting
In severe cases, Cirrhosis can damage the liver or cause liver cancer.
In such cases, medications along with liver transplantation surgery are
required.
No comments:
Post a Comment