How Is Liver Malfunction Likely to Affect Digestion
How Is Liver Malfunction Likely to Affect Digestion. The human body is a complex system with many different parts, including the liver. It has several jobs to do for your digestive tract to function properly and you must know how malfunctions are likely to affect digestion. In this article, we will talk about the liver. We will also talk about what happens if it malfunctions and what you can do to avoid complications.
Anatomy
The liver is an organ in the upper right abdomen, just below your diaphragm. It is usually about three and a half inches long but can grow to be up to five inches or more depending on how much it has been stretched by fatty deposits (steatosis).
It is considered the second largest organ in the body and the largest gland weighing 1000g. Its shape is something like an upside-down tree with a trunk and four-terminal branches.
It has left, right, caudate, and quadrate lobes. The right lobe is the largest, followed by the left lobe which rests on top of it to form a “figure-eight” shape. These lobes are further divided into parts which are called lobules. The lobules are the functional unit of the liver.
Functions Bile Production
This organ produces bile, which is stored in the bile ducts. Bile breaks down fat cells so that lipase can break down fats. Lipase breaks them into smaller molecules for absorption from food. The absence of enough bile might mean that people with a bad liver cannot digest foods full of fat. But some individuals with liver malfunctions may be able to digest fat with the help of pancreatic enzymes.
Albumin Production
This organ is also responsible for producing albumin, which is the most common protein in blood plasma. Albumin is an important part of a human’s life because it prevents clots and also helps regulate fluid balance in the body.
Albumin is made from the protein synthesis process. This includes amino acid conversion and assembly. Albumin is produced in the space between the cells that line blood sinuses. These are called sinusoidal spaces.
Detoxification
Detoxification is an essential process that takes place in the liver. It filters your blood and removes toxins. You can remove a lot of these toxins by sweating or peeing them out, but some will eventually be breathed out.
During detoxification, your body uses enzymes to break down toxic substances. This makes the substance easier for your body to get rid of. Other substances are transformed into less toxic or benign ones.
If the liver cells that are supposed to be cleaning up toxins stop working, then some toxins will not be cleaned out. These toxins can build up in your body over time.
Regulates Amino Acids
It also has a significant role in the regulation of amino acids. Amino acid levels are high when we eat, but can drop dangerously low if not enough is digested or absorbed from food sources. It regulates the protein. It turns some of the protein into different amino acids. And it stores what it cannot use right away as glycogen for later energy needs.
This is great for when you need to go without food, such as while sleeping or fasting. Your body will use fat for energy when it cannot make enough of the sugar called glucose. Your liver makes ketones and fatty acids from fat. Ketones give your brain energy until your body can make more glucose.
Fights Infections
The liver takes an important role in fighting infections. Your body protects itself against viruses and bacteria with antibodies. If you don’t have enough antibodies, this can lead to infection.
Regulates Blood Clotting
Coagulants in blood clots are produced by the liver in response to injury, and these coagulants need to be able to break up blood clots. When a malfunction occurs there will not be enough of this drug released into the bloodstream so clotting becomes difficult or impossible. This can lead to a condition called prolonged bleeding (or hemostasis).
Liver: Its Function in the Digestive System
The liver’s main function in the digestive system is to regulate the production of bile, a greenish-brown fluid that aids in digestion and absorption. Bile is responsible for breaking down fats and other lipids, which are then used by the body to produce energy. One of its most important jobs is processing waste during digestion, in addition to detoxifying blood from chemicals or drugs consumed.
Bile aids in digestion through a process called emulsification: when bile enters the small intestine it mixes with food, such as fats and oils. This process breaks down the fat molecules into smaller particles that can be more easily digested by enzymes in the small intestine.
Emulsification is also important for absorption: when food is mixed with bile it becomes easier to extract nutrients from our diet.
Bile production starts before a meal and continues throughout the day, but how fast it is produced depends on what someone eats. If you eat a meal containing more fat, it will produce bile to digest those fats faster than if you were eating carbs or protein.
Liver Malfunction vs. Digestion
How is liver malfunction likely to affect digestion?
We’re going to assume you already know how this organ works. Here’s how it affects digestive health:
- It produces bile, which is released into the gallbladder and then passed back up through the intestine where it breaks down fats in the food that people eat. If there’s a malfunction, there will not be enough bile to break down the fats.
- It is a major player in Phase II detox pathways and also produces cholesterol which helps regulate fat metabolism throughout the body (most notably in your brain). If you have a dysfunctional liver, then this means that some of these processes may stop working or work less effectively.
- It also plays a crucial role in properly regulating blood sugar levels and producing hormones (including insulin) that help regulate the breakdown of sugars. If there is a malfunction, then these processes could be impaired or stop working completely which will likely lead to an increase in diabetes mellitus and other metabolic problems like weight gain.
- In some people, this organ can also be involved in regulating how much salt and water is retained. If it isn’t functioning properly, you could experience edema or chronic swelling of certain parts of your body such as your hands and feet.
- Several other consequences come with dysfunctional livers too – such as an increased risk of developing heart disease, impaired immune system function, and poor cognitive ability.
The bottom line is that a malfunction can have a huge range of consequences – some more serious than others – but all undesirable in one way or another.
Liver Diseases That Affects Digestion
Many liver diseases can interfere with how the body digests and absorbs nutrients. Here are some:
Cirrhosis
Cirrhosis is a progressive disease in which healthy cells are damaged and replaced by scar tissue. Cirrhosis can slow the digestive process because it affects how well the organ removes toxins from the blood before they enter other parts of your body.
Cirrhosis slows digestion to some degree, but this depends on how severe cirrhosis is. Generally, it will slow the digestive process more as its severity increases.
Cirrhosis can also affect how well your body absorbs nutrients from food and drink because of a lack of bile, which is made by the liver to help with digestion. Cirrhosis slows down peristalsis – waves in the intestines that move food through the digestive tract – and this can also slow down digestion.
Fatty Liver
This disease is the accumulation of fats in liver cells. The build-up can occur over time or be caused by a high intake of alcohol that overwhelms the organ’s ability to process it all out faster than it comes in.
This will result in an enlarged, fatty-looking liver. It is also seen in people who have diabetes and those who are obese.
This disease affects digestion because it is responsible for filtering out toxins and also creating bile. When it becomes too fatty, this slows down these processes and can lead to a decreased production of stomach acid which leads to nausea or vomiting, not being hungry (anorexia), abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea with greasy stools (steatorrhea), dark urine, clay-colored feces (porridge stool), and weight loss.
High triglycerides in the blood are also a common symptom of this disease.
Autoimmune Hepatitis
Autoimmune hepatitis is a liver-related condition that affects the body in different ways. The effects of autoimmune hepatitis are caused by changes to immune system cells called lymphocytes, which cause inflammation and damage to healthy tissues. This can lead to a variety of symptoms including nausea, fatigue, itchiness, jaundice (a yellowing skin), and dark urine.
Autoimmune hepatitis can be chronic or acute, and the symptoms are different for each type. Causes of autoimmune hepatitis include a virus infection like Hepatitis C or B, certain drugs such as Tylenol (acetaminophen), and environmental factors like pollutants in water that contain heavy metals. The majority of people with autoimmune hepatitis are diagnosed as being in remission after treatment, but there is a risk of flare-ups that can be life-threatening.
Autoimmune hepatitis has been linked to poor digestion and malnutrition because the organ’s ability to filter out toxins from food is compromised due to inflammation or damage caused by autoimmune hyperthyroidism. This could lead to digestive disorders like Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.
Liver Failure
This disease can have a powerful effect on how the body digests food. For digestion to occur, toxins and waste products from metabolism need to be broken down by enzymes in this organ before they can be removed via excretion through sweat or urine.
Failure leads to an accumulation of these substances inside the cells until there is too much pressure on the cells to function properly. This can lead to muscle wasting, an accumulation of fluid in the abdomen, and a reduced ability for the kidneys to remove waste products from the body efficiently.
People with this disease must eat a healthy diet low in fat so as not to worsen their condition further by clogging up more cell membranes with toxins and preventing the body from removing waste.
Preventing Liver Malfunction
Living a healthy lifestyle allows you to prevent a liver malfunction from ever happening. Some of the steps are:
Eat a Healthy Diet
Eating a healthy diet can help you maintain a healthy body. A diet rich in vegetables, fruits, and whole grains is particularly beneficial for your digestive system because these are difficult to digest without a functioning liver.
Drink a Lot of Water
This organ is responsible for filtering the toxins from your body. The more you drink, the less pressure on this organ to do its job. A well-hydrated person will also have better bowel movements and fewer digestive problems because their kidneys are working at peak performance.
Eat Probiotics
Probiotic foods such as yogurt and sauerkraut are beneficial for your digestive system because they encourage natural bacteria in the gut to grow and help with digestion.
Eat Proper Portions
Proper portion sizes will not overstress your body, which also means that it can take care of other bodily functions such as regulating hormones or blood sugar levels.
Drink Green Juices
Drinking fresh pressed juice not only helps you consume more vitamins and minerals but also aids your digestion.
It is important to maintain a healthy weight because it can help with the proper functioning of many organs including the liver.
Exercise Regularly
Regular exercise should be part of any health routine that includes eating well because it allows for better blood flow through your body, which is vital for good digestion.
Avoid Alcoholic Drinks
Avoid drinking alcohol and other substances that can harm your liver because this will only exacerbate the digestive problems caused by the impaired function of that organ.
Avoid Fatty Foods
One of the symptoms of the malfunction is fat accumulating in your stomach which can result in weight gain and contribute to other health problems.
Excessive intake of fatty foods should be avoided if you are experiencing this condition as they will only make things worse.
Conclusion
upset stomach or digestion problems, it may be time to visit your doctor. Malfunctions can cause digestive issues and other health complications if not treated promptly. When you are feeling sick for no apparent reason, remember that this is one possible symptom that needs prompt attention by medical professionals. A doctor will likely recommend dietary changes and medication to help the condition improve quickly so long as they diagnose the problem correctly.
We hope that this guide has helped you understand how your liver can cause problems with your digestive system. You should act quickly if you are experiencing any of these symptoms.
