What Is Fatty Liver Disease?
Fatty liver disease is a reversible condition marked by accumulation of large vacuoles and triglyceride fat in liver cells.
The accumulation of fat occurs as a result of stenosis. Stenosis is the term used to describe the abnormal retention of lipids within the cell.
Depending on the different causes, fatty liver disease can be classified in two types. This includes:
- Alcoholic liver disease (ALD), which in those with excessive alcohol intake
- Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a term dubbed to describe those who develop the disease and do not consume alcohol
While some fat in the liver is normal, in fatty liver disease fat makes up about five to ten percent of the liver weight.
While fatty liver inhibits liver from performing its normal function, the liver tends to repair itself my producing new liver cells when old ones are damaged. For this reason, fatty liver may be reversible.
Causes Of Fatty Liver Disease:
Fatty liver disease arises due to the inability of the body to either metabolize the fat fast enough or if the body creates too much fat.
In general, fatty liver disease may be caused by any of the following causes:
- Alcoholism
- obesity
- hyperlipidemia, or high levels of fats in the blood
- diabetes
- genetic inheritance
- side effect of certain medications, including aspirin, steroids, tamoxifen, and tetracycline
- Nutritional factors
- Malnutrition
- total parenteral nutrition
- severe weight loss
- refeeding syndrome
- jejunoileal bypass
- gastric bypass
- jejunal diverticulosis with bacterial overgrowth
- Metabolic factors
- Abetalipoproteinemia
- glycogen storage diseases
- Weber-Christian disease
- acute fatty liver of pregnancy
- lipodystrophy
Symptoms Of Fatty Liver Disease:
Fatty liver disease may cause the exhibition of the following symptoms:
- a dull or aching pain in the top right of the stomach
- fatigue
- unexplained weight loss
- weakness
- Enlargement of liver
- Abdominal discomfort
- Confusion
- Liver inflammation which may cause poor appetite
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Jaundice
Diagnosis Of Fatty Liver Disease:
Fatty liver disease can be diagnosed via:
- Physical examination of abdomen
- Blood test, which may show an abnormally high amount of liver enzymes
- Ultrasound, where the fat on the liver may appear as a white area
- Liver biopsy, to determine the exact cause of fatty liver
Treatment Of Fatty Liver Disease:
There is no such treatment for fatty liver disease. While medications may be provided to relieve symptoms, major form of treatment includes self care. This may include:
- limiting or avoiding alcoholic beverages
- managing cholesterol
- losing weight
- controlling blood sugar
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By : Natural Health News
