10 Habits That Can Damage Your Liver

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what can damage your liver

The liver is one of the important organs in our body. It has many functions, some of which are digestion, metabolism, elimination of toxins, and storing nutrients. If the liver is damaged, then the body will definitely have problems. Therefore, do not let us do things that can endanger the health of the heart for a healthy future. To maintain a healthy liver, of course we must know what habits can worsen liver health so that we can avoid it. Here are some of the bad habits that can damage your liver:

1. Eat Too Much Sugar

One other bad habit that can damage liver health is sugar. Sugar can be found in sweet foods as well as coffee’s best friend. The more sugar consumed, the liver will be disturbed. Keep in mind that sugar is addictive, consuming too much can directly affect the liver.

Sugar is just as deadly as alcohol and addictive. Even refined sugar can be much more dangerous than natural sugar. In the liver, this sugar can be converted into fat. When accumulated, this fat can cause liver disease. If you want to eat sweet foods, switch to fruits, vegetables, and coconut. The liver can process sugar from these foods.

2. Eating Schedule

Inconsistent eating patterns not only cause weight up and down. This habit is also the cause of liver damage. Skipping breakfast, eating too much during the day and night, snacking, and eating fast food can make skyrocketing weight gain, obesity, and liver disorders.

 

Fixing meal times and what foods to eat can help to maintain a healthy liver. Try to get up early and have breakfast. Because if you skip breakfast, your will be hungry, lack energy, and have difficulty concentrating. During the day tend to eat in large portions as a substitute for forgetting breakfast. Stop the habit of snacking at night can also be harmful to health.

3. Fast Food

It’s hard to resist the temptation of fast food. There are now many fast food restaurants, they are everywhere, and open 24 hours. Those who are super busy and have irregular meal times can look for food to fast food restaurants. The food is fast and tastes delicious too. But everyone also knows that fast food is not healthy food.

Fast food is processed using oil and contains high trans fats. High trans fat is unacceptable to the liver. As a result, trans fats or bad fats will make blood sugar rise and accumulate fat in the liver. Coupled with rarely exercising it will cause many problems not only in the heart but also the heart.

4. Stay Up Late

Do any of you often stay up late at night? Usually the reasons used are insomnia, a lot of work, studying, and some staying up late to play games. This habit of staying up late is a bad habit because it can interfere with the health of the body, especially the liver. Even though the liver has an important function to remove toxins, but because of this habit of staying up late, the liver does not work as it should.

When someone decides to stay up late, the body’s organs will be disturbed by their biological clock. Should have rested but was forced to stay active at work. This biological clock is used to regulate metabolic processes during sleep. When sleeping, the body will reduce its work to a minimum to be able to rest a little.

 

5. Lack of Water Consumption

It turns out that not drinking enough water can not only bring problems to the kidneys but also the liver. Those of you who are lazy to drink water or who forget, better think carefully. It turns out that water also plays a major role in maintaining liver function.

Water helps remove substances that are not needed in the body. This can prevent the accumulation of toxins in the body and damage the liver. Drinking enough water can make it easier for the liver to filter the blood and get rid of toxins. Drink enough water before eating, after eating, before going to bed, and after waking up.

Related: 10 Bad Habits Before Bed That Can Affect Your Sleep Quality

6. Consuming Too Much Medicine and Vitamins

When we are sick, the pain is still mild such as headache, flu, and stomachache, then we will take medicine to relieve the pain. Meanwhile, vitamins are needed as a complement or addition. Both drugs and vitamins can indeed be consumed without a doctor’s prescription, but you still have to be careful.

Indiscriminate taking of drugs and vitamins can be at risk of making the liver damaged. So to be safer, it is better to consult a doctor first about which drugs and vitamins should be consumed. Especially if we receive drugs and vitamins from other people. Maybe the medicine and vitamins are good for him, but not necessarily good for us. Indiscriminately taking medicine and vitamins, there is a possibility that the liver cannot process them and actually damage them.

 

7. Salt

Indeed a food will be more delicious when added with salt. Without salt, food will taste plain and so there is no appetite. Apart from being added to food, salt can also be found in many snacks. We don’t even know how much salt was used. While in the cooking itself, we can determine how much salt is desired.

Not controlling salt consumption can be fatal for the liver. Consumption of too much salt can cause increased blood pressure in the main arteries of the liver. In the end, it can lead to chronic liver disease. Limit salt consumption if you still want to have a healthy liver. Try not to exceed 1 teaspoon of salt or the equivalent of 2300 mg per day.

8. Soda

Sugar alone already has addictive properties that make it difficult for people to get away from sugar. Soda drinks can be so delicious and also addictive because of the sugar and other substances they are made of. The more often you drink drinks that contain soda, the more bad it will be for the liver.

From the results of the study, those who frequently drink soft drinks are more susceptible to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Fat accumulation in the liver is associated with those who are obese, high cholesterol, and people with type 2 diabetes. If you want something sweet, it’s better not to drink soda but consume fruit or coconut water.

9. Alcohol

If you can’t drink too much of a drink containing soda alone because it can interfere with liver function, then alcoholic drinks are the same. The problem is, many people like drinks containing alcohol. The relaxing effect of alcohol is what some people are looking for.

 

Those who like to drink alcoholic beverages, whether it’s just as a social drinker or until they get drunk, need to know that the liver can convert alcohol into a less toxic substance but if it is done continuously, the liver cannot perform other functions. Alcohol that cannot be processed by the liver will turn into formaldehyde which can cause liver inflammation, liver cell death, and liver disease.

10. Lazy to Move

As much as possible to go out of the house once in a while to maintain health. Too lazy and prefer to stay at home can bring health problems. Those who are too lazy to leave the house and don’t get enough sunlight are likely to experience heart problems.

Sunlight can trigger the body to produce vitamin D. From several studies, sufficient vitamin D can help to prevent liver disease. For those who do not get enough sunlight, you can try taking vitamin D. Of course, you must first consult a doctor.