25/08/2018
Liver Damage Is a Growing Epidemic
STORY AT-A-GLANCE -
Globally, hepatocellular carcinoma is the second leading cause of cancer death.
Other liver-related diseases such as cirrhosis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are also becoming more prevalent, both of which raise risk of liver cancer.
The greatest increase was among those between the ages of 25 and 34, where alcoholic cirrhosis has become rampant.
Alcohol-induced cirrhosis and NAFLD can be reversed in their early stages by quitting drinking and cutting out processed fructose, respectively.
Folate, milk thistle, NAC, coffee and broccoli all help promote healthy liver function.
Globally, the liver cancer hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the second leading cause of cancer death due to the high prevalence and difficulty of treatment. Researchers warn that by 2030, the global rate of liver cancer will double, affecting upward of 1.2 million.
Other liver-related diseases such as cirrhosis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are also becoming more prevalent.
Excess Alcohol Consumption Is Driving Rising Rates of Liver Damage.
According to researchers, the rise in cirrhosis mortality is entirely driven by excess alcohol consumption by young adults. While, historically, alcohol-related liver cirrhosis has been regarded as a condition that develops after two or three decades of heavy drinking, these newer statistics reveal it doesn't have to take that long at all, as it's now occurring in (and killing) 20- and 30-year-olds.
Researchers believe financial worries and unemployment may have been significant contributing factors, causing more people to drink more heavily.
Cirrhosis (irreversible scarring of your liver) can also be caused by obesity, NAFLD and hepatitis, and can in turn lead to fatal liver failure and/or liver cancer. Men are particularly at risk, in large part because they're five times more likely to develop NAFLD than women.
Lifestyle factors such as diet, exercise, weight, smoking and alcohol consumption also play important roles in exacerbating (as well as reducing) your chances of developing some form of liver disease. People at increased risk also include those who have an autoimmune disease, chronic liver inflammation, and those whose livers have been damaged due to bouts of hepatitis B or C. The good news is that alcohol-related liver cirrhosis can be reversed if caught early enough — and provided you quit drinking.
Excess Sugar Consumption Drives Rising NAFLD Rates.
While alcohol-related cirrhosis is driving up mortality rates, rising prevalence of NAFLD is contributing to the overall burden of liver-related diseases. In the case of NAFLD, the fatty liver occurs in the absence of significant alcohol consumption, and is driven instead by excess sugar, which is why this condition is now found even in young children.
NAFLD often has no symptoms, although it may cause fatigue, jaundice, swelling in the legs and abdomen, mental confusion and more. If left untreated, it can cause your liver to swell, called nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and can lead to liver cancer or liver failure. As with alcohol-related cirrhosis, however, NAFLD can be reversed in its early stages by eating right and exercising.
Most importantly, you need to eliminate processed fructose and other added sugars from your diet. Fructose actually affects your liver in ways that are very similar to alcohol. Unlike glucose, which can be used by virtually every cell in your body, fructose can only be metabolized by your liver, as your liver is the only organ that has the transporter for it.
Since all fructose gets shuttled to your liver, if you consume high amounts of it, fructose ends up taxing and damaging your liver in the same way alcohol and other toxins do. The way your liver metabolizes fructose is also very similar to that of alcohol,as both serve as substrates for converting carbohydrates into fat, which promotes insulin resistance, dyslipidemia (abnormal fat levels in the bloodstream) and fatty liver.
Fructose also undergoes the Maillard reaction with proteins, leading to the formation of superoxide free radicals that can result in liver inflammation similar to acetaldehyde, an intermediary metabolite of ethanol. According to Dr. Robert Lustig, a neuroendocrinologist in the division of endocrinology at the University of California, fructose is a "chronic, dose-dependent liver toxin."
It is estimated when you are healthy, only about 3 percent of glucose goes through the pathway below, but at least 30 percent of glucose flows through this pathway in chronic.
