What is Fatty Liver Disease?
Fatty liver, from alcohol or lifestyle, leads to severe issues; prevention involves healthy habits and weight control.
Fatty Liver, you all must have heard this term. The fatty liver has become a very common disease amongst Indians. A study conducted by AIIMS – All India Institute of Medical Science in July 2023, states that over one-third or 38% of Indians have fatty liver or non-alcoholic fatty liver. The fatty liver is not restricted to adults but affects 35% of Indian children too as per a study published in the Journal of Clinical & Experimental Hepatology in June 2022. While the main reason for AFL – Alcoholic Fatty Liver is high consumption of alcohol, NAFL- – Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver can be caused due to obesity, diabetes & hypertension. The health of the human liver is largely dependent on the liver’s fat percentage. When the liver is unable to process and break down this extra fat, it leads to fat accumulation. If this fat accumulation gets more than 10% of the liver’s weight, then the condition is called fatty liver and may cause some serious complications. Our liver is an extremely vital organ. It is the largest internal organ of the human body and is located on the upper-right side of the abdomen. The job of our liver is to remove toxins & convert food nutrients into energy. The blood from our digestive system gets filtered by our liver before traveling to another body part. Fatty liver disease is sometimes called silent liver disease too because it shows no or mild symptoms like fatigue & pain or discomfort in the upper belly area during its early stages. The second stage of fatty liver is called Steatohepatitis. This stage causes inflammation of the liver, itchy skin, abdominal swelling, shortness of breath, swelling of legs, visible spider-like blood vessels and the yellowing of skin & eyes. When the disease further advances, it is called Cirrhosis. During Cirrhosis liver gets hardened & develops patches on the outer surface. Since the initial stage of fatty liver shows no or mild symptoms, it can only be detected through routine doctor check-ups. There are no medical & surgical treatments for a fatty liver’s initial stage, but there are some measures that can prevent you from getting a fatty liver or reverse some of the damage. If you have fatty liver, you must lose weight, control your blood pressure, avoid alcohol, eat a healthy diet & increase physical activities.
