There are a number of steps you can take to help the liver recover, such as regularly getting blood tests and staying hydrated. Incorporating healthy eating habits that include minimal fat consumption while limiting processed food into your diet.
Signs that your liver is healing include: regulation in weight and energy levels, improved immune health, increased appetite, less confusion or brain fog and reduced yellowing of skin and eyes.
Signs Your Liver is Healing
1. Increased Energy
Your liver is responsible for detoxification in your body. It removes toxic substances like alcohol and drugs from the blood, eliminating them through bile or urine excretion.
Your liver is the second-largest organ in your body and sits just under your ribcage on the right side. It acts as an organ that separates nutrients and waste as they pass through your digestive tract, produces substances to aid in digestion, and serves many other crucial purposes.
After suffering serious damage, scar tissue can form, inhibiting its proper function and leading to cirrhosis or liver failure. However, the liver is one of the few organs which has the ability to heal itself; so seeking appropriate medical treatments as well as practicing healthy lifestyle choices may help restore proper liver functioning and reverse any damage done to it.
2. Decreased Yellowness of the Skin and Eyes
Yellowing of skin and eyes occurs when bilirubin accumulates in the bloodstream, an indicator of red blood cell breakdown. Under normal circumstances, liver filters out this bilirubin through urine and stool elimination processes; if your liver fails to do its job effectively however, bilirubin builds up within your system leading to jaundice symptoms.
Many forms of liver disease can be reversed through lifestyle modifications. If you abstain from alcohol and follow a nutritious diet, this can help your liver heal itself and you may notice changes to your digestion, skin appearance, and energy levels.
3. Decreased Pain
A healthy liver can remove toxins from the blood and reduce inflammation, helping the body feel more energetic. As it heals, fatigue should lessen, while regular weight may also begin to return as its functions return to normal.
To combat fatigue and pain from damaged livers, avoid fatty, fried and sweet foods as well as drinking plenty of water; avoid medications containing Acetaminophen; such as over-the-counter cold and flu remedies which contain this medication; use only when absolutely necessary and at their lowest dosage possible.
Controlling your alcohol use is one of the key ways you can protect your liver from cirrhosis, but don’t despair as your liver has the capability to heal itself after alcoholism.
4. Stabilized Stools
Stool regularity can be taken as one indicator that your liver is healing. Your liver produces substances to fight infections, clot blood, filter toxins from the bloodstream, digest fats, and more – so any change to these functions indicates that something has changed with regards to healing the liver.
Waste products like dead blood cells and excess cholesterol are collected into bile acids that work with the digestive system to absorb and recycle them.
Cirrhosis disrupts this process by creating scar tissue strands around islands of healthy liver cells known as nodules, leading to high pressures in your blood vessels that lead to fluid retention resulting in yellowing skin and eyes (jaundice) as a symptom. Treatment can help slow its progress while relieving symptoms.
5. Improved Blood Tests
Although liver disease may present with many different symptoms, there are medical tests which provide important feedback as your liver heals. Blood tests that show improved results could indicate that healing has begun.
Liver function tests help measure whether or not the liver is making proteins that assist with blood clotting when bleeding occurs and clearing away waste products such as alcohol and drugs from your system. An MRI scan may also be performed to assess liver functionality as well as an angiogram which involves injecting dye into blood vessels while taking x-ray images.
Low levels of albumin, a protein which nourishes tissues, indicate that the liver isn’t working effectively. A high bilirubin level – produced as waste from red blood cells that’s normally processed by liver – could indicate either cirrhosis or hepatitis.
How Long Does It Take for the Liver to Heal Itself?
The liver possesses remarkable resilience, allowing it to self-repair following damage sustained over time. As per University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, damaged tissue can be replaced by new cells in the liver. The duration for the liver to mend itself is contingent upon the severity of the harm incurred.
In cases of extreme nature, such as a Tylenol overdose, within three to four days, approximately 50 to 60 percent of liver cells might succumb. Nevertheless, if no complications arise, the liver shall be fully restored after a span of 30 days.
Regarding liver damage due to alcohol, the process of healing can initiate within a matter of days to weeks once abstinence from alcohol is observed. It is important to consider the individual’s history of alcohol abuse and the extent of liver damage as these factors significantly impact the timeline.
By promptly ceasing alcohol consumption during the early stages of the disease, certain instances of alcohol-related liver damage can be reversed.
It is essential to acknowledge that not all liver damage is reversible. The duration for complete recuperation can span weeks or even months, contingent upon the severity of the harm. In certain circumstances, the damage may prove irreparable.
If concerns regarding liver health arise, it is advisable to seek consultation from a medical professional. Remember, prevention is the optimal approach in combating liver disease, whenever feasible. Upholding a healthy weight, practicing a well-balanced diet, engaging in regular exercise, avoiding exposure to toxins, consuming alcohol responsibly, and refraining from illicit drug usage are among the measures that can safeguard liver health.
Furthermore, incorporating certain foods and beverages such as coffee, oatmeal, green tea, garlic, berries, grapes, grapefruit, and prickly pear into one’s diet can contribute to liver protection.
