Signs that your liver needs attention

Liver is one of the most vital organs in the body. Any slight deviations from its normal conditions may be disastrous to its patient.

Just like every other illnesses, it is better to detect any problem with the liver at a very early stage. 

Here are some common symptoms which may indicate that the liver needs attention.

1) Skin problem

Dry, scaling skin may come and go under normal circumstances, but if it seems persistent and does not resolve, it could be a sign of liver damage. Lack of proper fluid levels due to failure of liver function can cause the skin to dry out and develop areas that are irritated, itchy, and flaky.

2) Vomiting 

Persistence vomiting or nausea is a sign of liver diseases. This is because as your liver's ability to eliminate toxins decreases, your digestive distress will likely increase. Ongoing nausea is a reaction to excess waste products in the body, and unexplained vomiting is often linked to liver problems.

3) Unexplained loss of appetite

Constant loss of appetite may be attributed to liver issue because the liver plays a key role in the digestive system, cirrhosis and cancer in the liver can both cause you to lose your appetite and you may lose weight, especially when it get to a later stage of damage.

4) Tiredness

As the body becomes more and more stressed due to the accumulations of toxins that a damaged liver is unable to remove, feelings of general weakness, fatigue and tiredness may set in. Fatigue may be accompanied by mental confusion and memory loss during the advanced stages of liver disease and eventually lead to coma as liver failure takes hold.

5) Swollen

Liver problem often lead to block in the vein that moves fluids to the liver. This will consequently lead to accumulation of this fluid leading to swollen known as Cirrhosis. Cirrhosis of the liver is a condition that will often cause a fluid build-up, and may be severe enough to actually make someone appear to be pregnant.

6) Jaundice

This is one of the most common symptoms of liver failure. Both the skin and the whites of the eyes will appear somewhat yellow, which is caused by the accumulation of a substance called bilirubin in the bloodstream due to the inability of the diseased liver to filter it out and eliminate it. Jaundice may occur if the liver can't efficiently process red blood cells as they break down. It's normal in healthy newborns and usually clears on its own. At other ages, it may signal infection or liver disease.

7) Pain

Liver pain and pain felt in its surrounding area are mostly caused as a result of problem associated with liver. The pain may take several forms, most of which develop in the right side of the abdomen and may be in the vicinity of the lower portion of the rib cage. 

Sometimes this pain is accompanied by swelling, and occasionally people feel radiating liver pain in their back or in their right shoulder blade.

8) Changes in Urine colour

Most times, liver diseases is accompanied with change in the colour of urine. Urine may become darker in color due to higher levels of bilirubin which are not filtered and eliminated normally.