So MarketWatch ran a story on Sunday, December, 10, 2017, on the increase in liver disease among middle-aged Americans. And it starts off harmless enough with a headline and then an explanation of what functions the liver performs.
Liver disease is on the rise among middle-aged Americans, but many don’t know they have it—or that they could develop it.
The liver performs critical jobs, including cleaning toxins from the blood, storing energy and nutrients, digesting fats and processing medications, alcohol and food.
And then it goes into shock mode, as if it were waking up the dead from the dead, where people will be running to their doctor's office screaming at them indicting them, "Why didn't you tell me that my liver was shot after all those quarts of Jack Daniels over the last two months!"
But a host of ills and abuses can wreak havoc on the liver, from heavy drinking and infection with hepatitis B or C to a scourge known as fatty-liver disease linked to diabetes and obesity. Over time, the liver can become fibrous and scarred, eventually developing cirrhosis, the replacement of normal tissue with hard tissue. The damage that occurs increases the risk for liver cancer.
And if having a fibrous liver isn't horrible enough, imagine what happens when liver tissue hardens into cirrhosis and can no longer work? If your liver don't work, you won't be able to heal. You can't store vitamin D or C or any vitamin. You're done. At least according to this article. But you do have remedies which I point you to at the end of this review.
“Patients who are now respectable citizens may not want to tell their doctors, ‘I was a crazy teen back in the ’60s,’ ”Dr. Anna S. Lok, director of hepatology at the University of Michigan
What does that have to do with anything? If you're sick, you're sick. If you think that your doctor is the cure or his magic bag of tricks, then talk with him, share with her the biological details of your life. I am sure that it is bad, that liver disease is on the rise.
A September report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that death rates for chronic liver disease and cirrhosis rose 31% among those age 45 to 64 between 2000 and 2015. And cases of liver cancer rose more than 20% in the U.S. between 1990 and 2015.
Yet liver diseases often have no
symptoms until they are far advanced, making it all the more important to
identify and test those at risk.
Yes, it's true. This reminds me of when people tell me "I didn't expect to live past 40." That's because they never thought about their biology, and they found a rhythm and that rhythm has worked for them to help keep them alive. It reminds me too of functional drunks, people who show up to work irritable and hung over but charming enough to keep the office staff none the wiser or at least rationalize their suspicions or worries.
“With baby boomers, we may focus on heart disease, dementia and cancer, and don’t always think about the liver,” says Dr. Anna S. Lok, director of hepatology at the University of Michigan and president of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.
Ah, yes, new drugs to the rescue. Or do they . . . rescue I mean?
There are new drugs that cure hepatitis C, and a number of treatments are in development for advanced fatty-liver disease. Getting and staying sober can reverse liver damage caused by alcohol, and losing weight can reverse damage caused by nonalcoholic liver disease.
This is true, and this is my point. People don't take adequate care of themselves, in part, because they don't perceive how things, meaning their biology, is broken. And that is in part thanks to our homeostasis that keeps us from being conscious of pain.
“The liver is very forgiving and can bounce back even in early stages of cirrhosis,” says Lok. Once cirrhosis is advanced, however, the only option is a liver transplant, which can be hard to come by. There are new treatments for liver cancer if diagnosed early, so screening cirrhosis patients for liver cancer is important, she says.
TESTING BARRIERS
Remember back in the 70s and 80s how all doctors were recommending surgery? I mean the medical profession seemed like they were staffed with a bunch of drunks. Seriously. The attention to your concerns were next to nil. I consulted 3 separate doctors once on a knee problem. Each one recommended surgery, like they were part of a some profitable cabal. They all thought alike. Not one paused. Surgery was recommended as much as aspirin was. Today we know that a lot of surgeries are either totally unnecessary or completely botched. They don't know what they're doing. Yes, they're following a protocol, but so do dentists. Would you accept every recommendation made to you by your dentist? Ouch. How do you think Hepatitis was transmitted? Bingo! Surgery.
According to a study published last month in JAMA Oncology, the rise in liver cancer in the U.S. is partially due to hepatitis C infection in baby boomers. An estimated 1 in 30 have been infected with the virus, the second-leading cause of cirrhosis. Hepatitis C was often transmitted during medical treatment before infection-control procedures were widely adopted, or from blood transfusions before 1992, when screening for the virus virtually eliminated such risks. It also is spread among intravenous-drug users, even with just one use, and from unsteril[ized] tools at tattoo parlors.
This is true enough.
In 2012, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended a one-time hepatitis C test for all adults born between 1945 and 1965. But fewer than 30% have actually been tested, according to estimates. Doctors may fail to ask patients about past medical procedures or drug-use history, and patients may either be unaware of possible medical exposures or be hesitant to mention risky behavior such as intravenous-drug use.
So it's clear what this is implying. Nice how the author is attacking baby boomers. Why not? The millennials get hit with degrading reports on a daily basis. Perhaps the two should unite!
“Patients who are now respectable citizens may not want to tell their doctors, ‘I was a crazy teen back in the ’60s,’ ” Lok says.
Okay, so far we're more than half way through the article and not a word about nutritional or food therapies and only a hint at some new treatments. But wait, here it comes, you know, the agenda behind the article. And what is that agenda? Electronic tracking of health records. Yes. That's it!!! That's the answer to the increase in liver disease. For people, according to the between the lines statements, are too clueless to track their own health. That's it!!!
To eliminate such barriers, Lok and colleagues have designed an electronic-health-record alert that prompts primary-care physicians to perform such screenings if patients who are baby boomers haven’t yet been diagnosed or tested. In a study published in the journal Hepatology in September, the team said hepatitis C testing rates increased fivefold, to 72% among those born between 1945 and 1965, in the year after the electronic alerts were launched. Of 53 newly diagnosed patients, 11 had advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis, 20 started treatment and so far nine have been cured.
Oh, I see, so if you've got other diseases, then you may be at risk for liver disease as well. And since liver disease conveniently doesn't present symptoms, why, you're really SOL.
If you are overweight or have Type 2 diabetes, you may be at risk of fatty liver disease.
Can't doctors detect liver disease through an annual or bi-annual blood test? It appears so.
The first sign of liver disease may be elevated liver enzymes in a blood test. Dr. Elliot Tapper, an assistant professor at University of Michigan who treats patients at its clinics and at the Ann Arbor VA hospital, says issues related to alcohol, obesity and diabetes are the most likely cause, followed by hepatitis B or C. Tests for such conditions should be used first, including an ultrasound of the liver to look for fatty-liver disease. If patients disclose they drink excessively or use intravenous drugs, or are taking a drug or dietary supplement that can cause liver damage, the need for more invasive tests such as liver biopsies to test for rarer conditions falls sharply, Tapper says.FATTY LIVER . . . IS TREATABLE
I love how dishonest and scary these reports are written, ". . . affects as many as 100 million Americans . . . but also strikes children and young adults." Isn't that about everybody? Who's left?
Fatty-liver disease, a buildup of fat in the liver, affects as many as 100 million Americans, especially those in their 40s and 50s, but also strikes children and young adults. The disease can lead to a progressive form known as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH, which can cause scarring that leads to cirrhosis and increases the risk of heart disease, Tapper says. Genetic variations may make some people more vulnerable.
Love how these articles scare the bejesus out of adults and parents. And what is the solution? Biopsies!!! Yes, of course, give us your tissues!!!
While liver biopsies are still used to definitively diagnose liver diseases and determine their stage, noninvasive tests using different types of scans and imaging technology such as MRI are becoming more widely used. A 2015 study of 100 patients, using such technology, showed that almost two-thirds with Type 2 diabetes have evidence of nonalcoholic fatty-liver disease, while more than 7% have advanced fibrosis. Study author Dr. Rohit Loomba, director of hepatology and a research center devoted to nonalcoholic fatty-liver disease at the University of California, San Diego, says follow-up studies aim to determine whether such technology is cost-effective for wide use.
Wow. As a diabetic, if you're not frightened into a stressful state by now, then there must be something wrong with you. Note that magnesium is critical for diabetics. What doesn't the article point that out!?!?!?
Until such screening methods are
better established, he says, doctors should assess their patients with classic
risk factors for fatty-liver disease—those in their 40s and 50s at high risk of
heart disease because of obesity and diabetes. Fatty-liver disease is also
closely linked to metabolic syndrome, a group of abnormalities that include
increased belly fat, high blood pressure and high blood levels of triglycerides,
a type of fat.
Why does the article refuse to mention any nutritional therapies if, in fact, the condition is so bad? Because they want to cause you to run into your doctor's office frantic clamoring for a fatty liver test. "Give it to me! Give it to me now!!" As if on cue . . .
“If you are overweight or obese and have Type 2 diabetes and are 50 or older, you need to ask your primary-care doctor if you might have fatty-liver disease,” Loomba advises.
Wow! What's with the optimism. Hilarious, Groucho.
For patients in midlife who have already piled on extra pounds, or are gaining a few pounds each year, even moderate weight loss can reduce risk and help reverse harm to the liver, he adds.
Laura
Landro is a former Wall Street Journal assistant managing editor. Email her
at reports@wsj.com.
The story
“The Hidden Disease Of The
Middle-Aged” first appeared in The Wall Street Journal.
________________________________________________________________________
Okay, now for some truth, some answers. Jeeze.
 |
| Chart courtesy of Bill Sardi @ KnowledgeofHealth |
Choline treats fatty liver disease. Eggs are an excellent source of choline. Got it? So what is the message? Eat eggs to keep your liver healthy. .
The
Single Nutrient That Eradicates Fatty Liver Disease
That’s quite a
headline. Wait until you see the list of
citations proving that fact. The incredible headlines simply multiply. There's this
In 1934 researchers in Liverpool, England reported that choline abolishes fatty liver.
You read that right, “abolishes.” Fairly strong language I would say. Then this
Humans eating low choline diets develop fatty liver and liver damage.
Just incredible.
Other investigators found that a B-vitamin class nutrient called choline cured fatty liver.
Did you read that, “cured”?
Choline exercises a controlling influence over the amount of fat in the liver. Impressive.
And this
In humans, choline levels are closely related to the severity of liver disease.
And this
Higher dietary choline intake is associated with lower risk for fatty liver disease in humans.
And this
In 1949 researchers showed that table surgar (sucrose from can sugar) and alcohol had equal potential to cause fatty liver disease and that choline could completely protect against this effect.
Okay, okay, you
almost don’t believe how good choline is in protecting liver, what, with all we’ve
heard and been led to believe about alcohol and cirrhosis of the liver and
whatnot. But there it is in plain
English, “abolishes,” “cures,” “protects.”
And there’s more.
An experiment reported on in 1935 showed that among 20 young animals placed on a fatty diet low in choline versus another equal sized group of animals given supplemental choline, fat was deposited in the liver of the choline deficient animals while the choline-fortified diet results in only slight fat deposition in the liver. Strikingly, five of the animals who did not receive choline died within 2 months. In a subsequent experiment, 30% of laboratory mice on a low-choline diet died whereas no lab animals given supplemental choline died.
The takeaway? Supplemental choline works better than choline in the diet. This is almost too good, and yet there is more. Read the rest for yourself. It will blow your hair back.
Lecithin is an excellent source of choline. WholeHealthChicago explains
Lecithin is considered an excellent source of choline, one of the B vitamins. Once in the body, a key component of lecithin–phosphatidylcholine–breaks down into choline. Now available in dietary supplement form, phosphatidylcholine (PC) might be thought of as a purified extract of lecithin. It is commonly recommended for treating liver, nerve, and a variety of other conditions, including multiple sclerosis and memory loss.You see. This is better than a scare piece. Simply find the nutrient in supplemental form that addresses your situation. And I can think of no person out there who is reading, reviewing, examining the facts and reporting on them for the benefit of so many than Bill Sardi.
