The Functions and

Diseases of the Liver

The liver, located behind the lower ribs on the right side of your abdomen, weighs about 3 pounds and is roughly the size of a football. This vital organ performs many complex functions.

Some of these are:

· To convert food into chemicals necessary for life and growth;

· To manufacture and export important substances used by the rest of the body;

· To process drugs absorbed from the digestive tract into forms that are easier for the body to use; and

· To detoxify and excrete substances that otherwise would be poisonous.

Your liver plays a key role in converting food into essential chemicals of life. All of the blood that leaves the stomach and intestines must pass through the liver before reaching the rest of the body. The liver is thus strategically placed to process nutrients and drugs absorbed from the digestive tract into forms that are easier for the rest of the body to use. In essence, the liver can be thought of as the body's refinery.
Furthermore, your liver plays a principal role in removing from the blood ingested and internally produced toxic substances. The liver converts them to substances that can be easily eliminated from the body. It also makes bile, a greenish-brown fluid which is essential for digestion. Bile is stored in the gallbladder which, after eating, contracts and discharges bile into the intestine, where it aids digestion.

Many drugs taken to treat diseases are also chemically modified by the liver. These changes govern the drug's activity in the body. Your liver helps you by:

· Producing quick energy when it is needed;

· Manufacturing new body proteins;

· Preventing shortages in body fuel by storing certain vitamins, minerals, and sugars;

· Regulating transport of fat stores;

· Regulating blood clotting;

· Aiding in the digestive process by producing bile;

· Controlling the production and excretion of cholesterol;

· Neutralizing and destroying poisonous substances;

· Metabolizing alcohol;

· Monitoring and maintaining the proper level of many chemicals and drugs in the blood;

· Cleansing the blood and discharging waste products into the bile;

· Maintaining hormone balance;

· Serving as the main organ of blood formation before birth;

· Helping the body resist infection by producing immune factors and by removing bacteria from the bloodstream;

· Regenerating its own damaged tissue; and

· Storing iron.

There are many types of liver diseases, but among the most important are:

· Viral hepatitis;

· Cirrhosis;

· Liver disorders in children;

· Gallstones;

· Alcohol related liver disorders; and

· Cancer of the liver

Liver diseases appear to be on the increase. Part of this increase may be due to our frequent contact with chemicals andenvironmental pollutants. Certain medications may also be hazardous to the liver in some individuals.
The liver, the detoxifying factory in the body, has become an increasingly overworked organ. The

present investment inliver research is scant in relation to the magnitude, severity and destructiveness of these diseases.
Liver diseases are poorly understood. An adequate investment in effective liver research has the potential of saving billions of dollars and preventing untold human suffering. Experts estimate that more than half of all liver diseases could be prevented if people acted upon the knowledge we already have.
Each year more than 25 million Americans are afflicted with liver and gallbladder diseases and more than 51,532 die of liver and gallbladder diseases each year. There are few effective treatments for most life-threatening liver diseases, except for liver transplants. Research has recently opened up exciting new paths for investigation, but much more remains to be done to find cures for more than 100 different liver diseases.

Meanwhile, patients and their families must cope with medical, financial and emotional problems.

There are several symptoms and signs of liver disease, some of which are:

· Abnormally yellow discoloration of the skin and eyes. This is called jaundice, which is often the first and sometimes the only sign of liver disease.

· Dark urine.

· Gray, yellow, or light-colored stools.

· Nausea, vomiting and/or loss of appetite.

· Vomiting of blood, bloody or black stools. Intestinal bleeding can occur when liver diseases obstruct blood flow through the liver. The bleeding may result in vomiting of blood or bloody stools.

· Abdominal swelling. Liver disease may cause ascites, an accumulation of fluid in the abdominal cavity.

· Prolonged, generalized itching.

· Unusual change of weight. An increase or decrease of more than 5% within two months.

· Abdominal pain.

· Sleep disturbances, mental confusion, and coma are present in severe liver disease. These result from an accumulation of toxic substances in the body which impair brain function.

· Fatigue or loss of stamina.

· Loss of sexual drive or performance.

If any of these signs or symptoms appear, consult your physician immediately.

SOURCE: American Liver Foundation