Are these common foods like "scraping your liver with a steel wool" the same as eating one bite?

Expert of this article: Li Zhao, Chief Physician and Associate Professor of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital

The liver is an important detoxification organ in the human body.

Almost everyone knows that drinking alcohol can damage the liver. However, many people still don’t take it seriously because unreasonable eating habits can also damage the liver.

For example, some foods contain toxins that cause liver damage, and excessive intake of certain energy in food can also affect liver metabolism...

Which foods will burden the liver if eaten improperly? Are there any foods you like? To protect the liver, prevention is the key. Stay away from foods that are harmful to liver health.

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These foods you love to eat are quietly damaging your liver

The substances in the food we eat are absorbed by the intestines and then flow back to the liver with the blood, where they are metabolized, transformed, synthesized and detoxified. Similarly, the bile secreted by the liver is discharged into the intestines to help the body digest and absorb nutrients in food. It can be seen that the intestines and liver are closely connected.

The various microorganisms in the intestines affect the physiological functions of the liver, forming the so-called "gut-liver axis". Therefore, diet and liver disease are linked through the intestines.

For example, some foods are very harmful to the liver, and one bite of them can be likened to "scraping the liver with a steel wool."

Toxic soaked black fungus

If fungus is soaked for too long, it will breed Pseudomonas cocovenenans. The fumonisin toxin produced by this bacteria can cause the mitochondrial function in liver cells to disappear, resulting in the interruption of nutrient supply to liver cells and their death, leading to serious liver damage.

Moldy tea leaves, dried fruits, and grains

Moldy tea leaves, dried fruits or grains contain aflatoxin, a recognized carcinogenic poison. When people ingest large doses of aflatoxin, it can cause DNA repair errors, inhibit protein synthesis, cause gene mutations and lead to liver cancer.

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High fructose processed foods

Eating too much of foods that are not themselves toxins can also cause liver damage, including foods high in fructose and fat.

Fructose exists in many natural foods, such as honey and fruits. Fructose can only provide energy to cells after being converted by the liver. Excessive intake of fructose will increase the burden on the liver.

If you consume high-fat foods for a long time, it will lead to an increase in the triglyceride content in the blood, excessive fat accumulation in the liver, and lipid accumulation in liver cells, leading to fatty liver. Over time, it may even increase the risk of cirrhosis and liver cancer.

Pickles, smoked foods

Pickles contain high levels of sodium salt and nitrite, and smoked and roasted foods contain 3,4-benzopyrene. Eating these foods frequently not only increases the burden on the liver, but may also induce liver cell necrosis and the occurrence of liver cancer.

What are the signs of liver damage?

The liver will not actively complain of pain, and in the early stages of damage, it will not show any symptoms of discomfort, and it is difficult to detect. If liver damage persists and becomes overwhelmed, it will send out some distress signals that require our attention.

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jaundice

It is the yellowing of the skin and mucous membranes of the whole body (mainly due to the impaired ability of the liver to metabolize bilirubin). Sometimes it is difficult to judge by just looking at the skin, but it can be judged by observing the sclera of the eyes. Generally, when the bilirubin level in the blood is higher than 2mg/dl, the yellowing of the sclera can be seen, and it will also be accompanied by a deeper yellow urine color.

Edema

It may manifest as oliguria, abdominal distension, and lower limb edema (mainly due to impaired liver albumin synthesis). Typical edema is often found in the front of the tibia of the lower limb, and there will be a depression after pressing with the fingers. Edema may also lead to weight gain.

Dark complexion and other sickly appearance

Symptoms or symptoms may include dark complexion, palms of the hands, spider nevi on the chest, and male breast development (mainly due to the liver's impaired ability to metabolize hormones). Long-term liver disease can cause abnormal estrogen secretion levels, which in turn leads to capillary dilation, causing a series of liver disease-specific symptoms.

What are the key points of liver protection?

To protect the liver, we must first understand the physiological functions of the liver and common pathogenic factors, and then treat its “good” and avoid its “bad”.

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Common causative factors of liver disease are hepatitis B or C virus, alcohol, drugs and poisons. People with these causative factors should take the initiative to conduct self-screening and have regular liver examinations to achieve early detection, early diagnosis and early treatment.

People who do not have these pathogenic factors should stay away from these causes and maintain good eating habits. For example, they should eat mainly cereals, with a reasonable combination of coarse and fine grains; eat more green leafy vegetables, fruits and potatoes; eat milk, soybeans, etc. every day; eat fish, poultry, eggs and lean meat in moderation; eat less fried and grilled foods; and limit alcohol consumption.

Stay away from liver-related diseases and prevent diseases from entering the body through the mouth.

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