The digestive system ensures proper digestion of foods. The digestive system consists of the oral cavity, esophagus, elementary canal, stomach, liver, and intestines. Different organs perform different functions. The liver is a primary organ that plays an important role in the digestion of food. It releases bile juice that emulsifies fats. It is performing many functions. Liver problems can disturb the digestive system. They can disturb the normal release of bile juices. Let’s discuss the different functions of the liver in food digestion.
What Is The Liver?
The liver is a large meaty organ that is present on the right side of the body. Its weight is about three pounds. Its color is reddish-brown and gives a rubbery feel on touching it. It is present beneath the rib cage, and this is the reason that you cannot feel it. It has two parts such as right and left lobes. There is a gall bladder under the liver. The liver, pancreas, and other organs work together to process, digest, and assimilate the food. The liver filters the blood that is coming from the digestive tract and then passes it to the rest of the body. Its size is equal to a football. It is the second-largest organ of the body. The liver releases bile juice that affects the process of digestion. It has an important role in the digestive system. Any difficulty in the functioning of the liver may lead to digestive disorders.
Removes Sugar From The Blood
The liver performs 500 activities to maintain healthy body conditions. The liver filters everything that humans consume regardless of the type of eatable. Foods, toxins, alcohol, or medicine all pass through the liver. When people ingest foods, the stomach and other organs digest them. Intestinal villi absorb the food constituents to blood. The end product of the digestion of carbohydrates is glucose. It is essential to keep the sugar level of blood constant. The liver converts extra glucose into glycogen and stores it for the future. In this way, it helps to maintain the level of glucose in the blood. This function helps to keep a person healthy. Extra sugar levels may lead to diabetes mellitus and other disorders.
Detoxify Poisons And Plays Critical Metabolic Functions
The liver performs an important function of detoxification. It detoxifies various chemicals, poisons, and other substances. It detoxifies almost everything that we eat. It can do this in various ways. It can break them into simpler and safer substances. It can eliminate them through bile juice or repackage them into some harmless and safer form. It can also store them to protect the rest of the body. The liver possesses sinusoid channels. It uses them to filter all kinds of toxic substances. These channels possess the lining of immune cells called Kupffer cells. These cells engulf, break down, and excrete different toxins out of the body. We call this process phagocytosis. When the liver has no idea about what to do with new materials, it simply stores and prevents them from entering the rest of the body. It plays many critical metabolic functions.
Process Bilirubin And Removes Wastes
The yellow-colored substance in the blood is known as bilirubin. Red blood cells break down in the liver and become the reason for the production of bilirubin. There must be a reasonable quantity of bilirubin in the blood. Increased quantities of bilirubin indicate the abnormal functioning of the liver. It may be due to some disease. The liver helps the body to remove bilirubin. Its production is due to the death of red blood cells in the liver. Increased levels of bilirubin may become the reason for jaundice. It leads to the yellowing of skin and eyes. Whenever someone eats something toxic or poisonous, the liver breaks it down into simpler substances and removes them from the body. In this way, the liver helps to remove the wastes from the body.
Control Immune System And The Quantity Of Glucose
We know that liver is performing many functions. We know that people become ill and they recover after taking medicines. Many substances can affect the body. Viruses, bacteria, and other organisms may cause different diseases. The body possesses a self-defense system that helps to keep the body healthy. Germs, bacteria, and other organisms can enter a body. The liver will catch them and destroy them by using various techniques. The liver possesses specialized cells. They make an immune system that works to keep the body safe. The liver also keeps the glucose level constant. It removes extra glucose utilizes to make other products. It also manages and arranges mechanisms for fixing the excess quantities of glucose. It helps a man to stay healthy.
Produces Important Substances
The liver prepares bile juice continuously. This is a chemical process that helps to convert fats into energy. The body uses this energy for other purposes. Bile is highly essential for different processes during digestion. The liver also produces albumin. This is an important blood protein. It helps to carry drugs, hormones, and fatty acids across the body. The liver also produces blood proteins that help in the clotting of blood. Similarly, the liver is performing many functions that help the body to function normally. Consider, without blood-clotting protein, how will be the control of bleeding? Hence, it shows that the liver is beneficial for the body.
Health Problems Of Liver
The liver can experience many problems. There are many diseases related to the liver. It may get a condition such as cholestasis. When the flow of bile from the liver to the stomach becomes limited or blocked, this situation happens. Certain drugs, pregnancy, and genetic factors can become the reason for cholestasis. Another condition is hepatitis. It involves the inflammation of the liver. Excessive consumption of alcohol, toxins, or drugs can cause hepatitis. Cirrhosis is another abnormal condition of the liver. It is a hardening of the liver because of scar tissue. Higher consumption of alcohol and viruses are common causes of this disorder.
How To Keep Liver Healthy
There are many ways and strategies to keep the liver healthy and fit. You should be up-to-date on your shots. You should continuously wash your hands. You must limit your exposure to toxins or poisons. You should try to keep your blood cholesterol level within a reasonable range. You should keep your sugars constant and affordable. Never let the content of sugar increase. You should never share razors, toothbrushes, and other personal accessories. Try to reduce or stop the use of cigarettes and other tobacco products. There are many other steps that you should follow to staying healthy and fit.
Liver problems can lead to the destruction of the function of the liver. The liver is highly beneficial for the digestive system. You should keep it healthy and fit. The liver can help to detoxify poisons. It can keep the toxic substances with it. It protects the whole body from all kinds of pathogens, germs, and viruses.
