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Understanding Your Liver and Its Role in Human Health
The liver is a wedge-shaped organ which is found situated under the right rib cage. The liver is approximately 3 lbs. in weight and is the largest of the body's internal organs. The liver has multiple roles that are required for us maintain our state of health. These roles include purification, synthesis, storage and transformation.
Purification
Like other organ systems, the liver is one of the mechanisms by which the human body clears itself of various poisons and toxins that are created as byproducts of daily living. The liver cleans the blood supply and breaks down certain chemicals in the blood as it passes through the liver. All medications and all food products are broken down in the digestive tract and then absorbed and metabolized in the liver into different forms. Various nutrients and purified compounds are obtained through the liver's influence on the blood. When liver disease is present, some of these bodily toxins can increase throughout the body and result in confusion and other disease states. Ammonia is a compound commonly detected by doctors in an attempt to help define if the liver is working properly with respect to eliminating toxins from the body. In certain disease states, ammonia levels will be higher than normal because they cannot be adequately cleared by the liver.
Synthesis
One of the most important roles of the liver is to make the building blocks which the body needs to carry on the activities of daily life. Synthesis produces these building blocks by absorbing nutrients from the blood stream and putting them together in the appropriate combinations so that the enzymes, hormones and other proteins, which we need to survive, are produced. Albumin is the most important protein that is produced by the liver based on nutrients absorbed from the blood stream. Doctors frequently check the albumin level in patients with liver disease to determine if the liver is making adequate amounts of necessary proteins that should normally be created. Cirrhosis usually results in lower than normal albumin levels because of a loss of the ability to synthesize these important products.
Storage
The liver is an excellent storage organ where sugars, fats and vitamins are stored until they are needed by the body. Glucose is produced from glycogen stores that are located in the liver. The liver also stores various vitamins and fats to help your daily activities.
Transformation
The liver is critical in transforming various compounds found within the body to different forms to ensure normal bodily functions. Two examples of this are the critical role the liver plays in maintaining various hormones in normal range and in maintaining cholesterol metabolism in our bodies.
Liver Disease
Liver disease is usually manifested in two ways - either by inflammation of the liver, which is known as hepatitis, or significant scarring of the liver, which is known as cirrhosis. Various diseases can lead to hepatitis and cirrhosis. These diseases can be secondary to infectious causes, such as viral hepatitis. They can be related to toxic substances, such as chronic alcohol abuse or to various inherited conditions as seen in Wilson's Disease or hemachromatosis.
Related Sites
American Liver Foundation,
http://www.liverfoundation.org Hepatitis Neighborhood, http://www.hepatitisneighborhood.com
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