The liver as the most important detoxification organ is constantly in use.
The wrong lifestyle promotes cirrhosis of the liver.
Which symptoms to take seriously.
Alcohol, medication and toxins in food: the liver is responsible in the body for breaking down substances that are harmful to health.
If the liver falls ill and can therefore no longer perform its function, serious consequences threaten.
The most common liver disease is fatty liver: every third adult is said to already suffer from the pathological change in the organ - and every third overweight child.
If the fatty liver is not treated in time, it can lead to shrink liver.
Doctors speak of cirrhosis of the liver: This results in scarring of the liver tissue.
This not only affects detoxification, as the German liver aid informs.
Cirrhosis of the liver can also impair digestion and blood clotting.
Life-threatening consequences such as organ failure and liver cancer threaten.
The information on the frequency of liver cirrhosis differs depending on the source.
Deutsche Leberhilfe assumes that around 500,000 people in Germany suffer from cirrhosis of the liver.
Every year over 20,000 people die as a result of liver disease, it said.
The
liver cirrhosis
portal,
on the other hand, cites a study that
assumes
around 1,000,000 liver cirrhosis patients
in Germany.
Common causes of liver cirrhosis, according to the German liver aid:
Alcohol: In cirrhosis of the liver, excessive alcohol consumption is the cause in over 50 percent of all cases, according to the German Liver Foundation.
chronic viral hepatitis
Substance abuse
Metabolic and autoimmune diseases
alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver
Also read
: Liver cancer: These warning signs should be taken seriously.
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A man is standing on a street in Leipzig in the middle of the day with a schnapps bottle in hand: Alcohol kills millions of people worldwide every year.
Most of them die from alcohol-related accidents, but many also from cancer, cardiovascular diseases or cirrhosis of the liver.
© Hendrik Schmidt / dpa
Cirrhosis of the liver: These symptoms speak for the shrink liver
The liver usually only becomes noticeable when the disease is well advanced.
The following symptoms can indicate liver cirrhosis,
as the portal
Apotheken Umschau
and Deutsche Leberhilfe inform:
Changes in the skin (e.g. yellowing of the skin, liver asterisks (star-shaped neoplasms in the blood vessels), reddened palms or soles of the feet)
Susceptibility to infection
Fatigue, tiredness
Weight loss
dark urine
increased sweating
psychological upset
itching
Whitening of the fingernails
Sensation of pressure or pain in the upper abdomen
in women: menstrual disorders or lack of menstrual bleeding
Water belly (ascites)
confusion
In the worst case, it comes to a
coma triggered by a liver-brain disorder
(hepatic encephalopathy) - also a possible consequence of liver cirrhosis.
Preventing cirrhosis of the liver: How to protect your liver
To keep the liver healthy, you should drink as little alcohol as possible and eat a balanced diet.
Healthy people should also get vaccinated against hepatitis B, so the German liver aid.
In general, a healthy lifestyle with lots of exercise and few stimulants such as cigarettes, sugar and high-fat foods helps to keep the body healthy.
Regular check-ups by the doctor should also not be missing.
If a liver disease is diagnosed, it should always be observed and treated by a doctor.
(jg)
Alcohol Consumption Survey
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List of rubric lists: © Hendrik Schmidt