How your Diet Could Hurt your Liver

It was the year 2022, yet many words from the past few years ran through Stephen’s mind as he lay on his bed, looking frail.

“Stop drinking Steve. Alcohol could harm your stomach and is injurious to your overall health.”

Some months earlier, he did some tests, and the doctors told him he had excess fat in his liver due to his alcohol consumption.

Having drunk alcohol every week for the past few years of his life, Stephen knew his liver had had enough, and it was about time he stopped drinking.

To understand the health impacts of your diet on the liver, it helps to know how the liver functions. The liver is a very important organ in the body. Its functions include: 

• Production of bile which is needed for the digestion and absorption of fats
• Storage of excess carbohydrates as glycogen
• Production of useful fat substances like cholesterol that are needed in producing hormones
• Removal of toxic chemicals and breakdown of drugs
• Production of certain proteins needed for proper body functions.

These functions put the liver as one of the most important organs in the body. Unfortunately, certain foods or drinks can hurt the liver and affect these functions.

Alcohol

Excessive consumption of alcohol can cause the following problems: 

• Fatty liver disease: As the name implies, there is a build-up of fats in the liver. Fatty liver increases other health risks, including diabetes, kidney disease, and heart disease. Fatty liver could also damage the liver.
• Acute alcoholic hepatitis: Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver. 
• Alcoholic cirrhosis: Heavy alcohol consumption scars the liver over time, replacing normal healthy tissue with scars. This impairs the function of the liver over time, leading to serious health risks. 

Fried foods

Fried foods are typically high in fats and calories. These fried foods also contain high amounts of saturated fats, which could lead to inflammation of the liver. Further, some of these foods contain lots of pro-inflammatory substances that damage liver tissue. 

Soda

Soda contains high amounts of added sugar. The excess sugar gets converted to fats which could also lead to fatty liver disease. Excess sugars are also found in foods including fruit juices, cookies, and candies. 

Red meat

Red meat contains high levels of saturated fat, which could also cause a build-up of fats in the liver. These types of fats also release pro-inflammatory chemicals that can disrupt the health of the liver cells. 

Foods seasoned with excess salt

Consuming too much salt can damage your liver and lead to excess fluid accumulation and scarification of liver tissue. When this happens, the liver loses much of its functioning, causing low production of proteins, vitamins, and some blood clot substances. 

In summary, the liver is a very delicate organ that serves a key role in the body’s daily functioning. However, there are some foods and drinks we may consume that could damage it. Red meat, added sugars, excess salt, and alcohol are potentially toxic to your liver. If consumed heavily they could release contribute to liver damage and replace its healthy tissue with scars.