Living Well with Liver Disease

A liver disease diagnosis can feel overwhelming, but with the right care and lifestyle choices it is possible to continue living well. The liver plays a vital role in keeping the body healthy, and when it is not working as it should, you may need to make some adjustments to your daily life.

Living well with liver disease means focusing on good nutrition, regular medical support and practical help at home when needed. With the right balance of professional care, family support and self management, many people are able to maintain independence and a good quality of life.

What is liver disease?

The liver is an essential organ that performs hundreds of important functions in the body, including filtering toxins from the blood. While the liver is strong enough to handle this job, constant exposure to toxins can leave it vulnerable and overwhelmed.

Liver disease is an umbrella term for chronic conditions that progressively damage the liver over time. Common causes include toxic poisoning, viral infections and certain metabolic changes. The liver is effective at regenerating itself, but constantly working overtime takes a toll that it may struggle to keep up with.

Stages of liver disease

There are four progressive stages of liver disease:

1. Hepatitis: Inflammation of the liver tissues as a response to injury or toxins. Chronic hepatitis triggers hyperactive healing, which eventually leads to scarring. Some scarring can be reversed by the liver repairing itself, but not all.
2. Fibrosis: Thin bands of scar tissue add up from hepatitis, gradually stiffening your liver and reducing blood flow, oxygen and nutrient delivery. The liver’s vitality begins to decline.
3. Cirrhosis: Permanent scarring means fibrosis is no longer reversible, as the liver doesn’t have enough healthy cells to use for regeneration. Cirrhosis affects liver function, but the body attempts to compensate for the loss, meaning symptoms might not become apparent until later.
4. Liver failure: When the liver can no longer function adequately and the body can’t continue compensating for the loss. The liver begins to break down, triggering symptoms throughout the body. Liver failure is gradual but fatal without a liver transplant.

Knowing the symptoms of liver disease

Being able to notice symptoms and signs of a flare-up in liver disease ensures you get the correct care as soon as possible. Early treatment is essential to help the liver repair itself before irreversible damage is caused.

Signs to look out for include:

• Feeling very tired and weak all the time
• Jaundice (yellow skin and whites of the eyes)
• Digestive problems
• Weight and muscle loss
• Unpleasant breath
• Mild cognitive impairment
• Feeling or being sick
• Itchy skin without a rash

Treatments for liver disease

The type of liver disease you have determines whether there’s a viable treatment option. Certain types, such as hepatitis, can be treated with medicine when diagnosed early enough.

Healthy lifestyle changes might help with some types of liver disease, giving your liver less work to do, so it can focus its energy on regeneration and healing. For example, alcohol-related liver disease might improve with sobriety.

Liver disease that has progressed to cirrhosis and failure may only be treatable with a liver transplant. We need a liver to live, so your doctor might give you tips on managing your condition while waiting for a donor liver to become available.

Living well with liver disease

After being diagnosed with liver disease, your healthcare team will encourage you to live well and healthily while waiting for a donor liver. There are several ways to take care of yourself during this time, such as:

Eating a healthy diet

Food is the body’s fuel source, giving it energy and necessary nutrients to grow and repair itself. Finding the right balance between different foods and drinks helps your body work properly, without putting excessive strain on your liver to remove waste products.

A person with liver disease should prioritise whole foods that haven’t been overly processed. Eat good food high in fibre, protein and vitamins. Aim for five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, and limit fat, sugar and salt.

People with cirrhosis might be advised to eat more calories and protein than a healthy person. Your specialist will be able to talk you through eating well for your type and stage of liver disease.

Can I still drink alcohol?

People with alcohol-related liver disease will be directed by their specialist to stop drinking indefinitely.

If your liver disease isn’t alcohol-related, we recommend talking to your doctor about your consumption. They may advise against drinking altogether or recommend sticking to the government guidelines of less than 14 units a week. Alcohol puts extensive strain on the liver, so two to three consecutive alcohol-free days a week can give it a break to rest and regenerate.

Alcohol often contains lots of calories and can contribute to an unhealthy lifestyle. People with liver disease are often recommended against ‘empty calories’ like these, which offer no nutritional value.

Maintaining a healthy BMI

Weight is linked with the progression of liver disease. The risk of developing non-alcohol-related fatty liver disease, type 2 diabetes or heart disease is higher for people with a BMI of over 25.

BMI (Body Mass Index) is a guide used by healthcare professionals to determine whether a person is of a healthy weight. It’s measured using your age, height and weight.

• Underweight: BMI of under 18.5
• Healthy weight: BMI between 18.5 and 24.9
• Overweight: BMI between 25 and 29.9
• Obese: BMI of over 30

Too much body fat contributes to inflammation and oxidative stress on the liver, which puts excess strain on it and stalls its regeneration abilities. A higher BMI may promote scarring and prevent the liver from healing itself, leading to later-stage liver disease.

Living well with liver disease involves achieving and maintaining a healthy BMI to alleviate unnecessary pressure put on the damaged organ. Do this by eating well and exercising regularly, as per your doctor’s advice.

Avoiding alcohol, tobacco and non-prescription drugs

When living with liver disease, one of the most important things to do is not put any extra strain on the damaged organ. Introducing excess toxins to your blood leads to further inflammation, scarring and damage to the liver.

Some of the most damaging toxins for the liver are:

• Alcohol: The liver is responsible for processing alcohol, but when damaged, the introduction of this substance can overwhelm it. This leads to cell damage and a quicker progression of liver disease.
• Tobacco: Tobacco is full of toxic chemicals, contributing to oxidative stress and promoting liver fibrosis. Smoking tobacco also triggers systemic inflammation by increasing pro-inflammatory cytokines.
• Non-prescription drugs: The liver metabolises non-prescription drugs, and some are directly toxic or produce toxic by-products. Again, this overwhelms the liver and speeds up the progression of its deterioration.

Your healthcare provider will be able to direct you to helpful resources for quitting alcohol and smoking, as well as managing non-prescription drug use.

Taking medications only as directed

Medications can include toxins and produce toxic by-products, which require the liver to metabolise them and cause excess strain on the organ. Your doctor will aim to prescribe you medications that are as gentle as possible on your liver, but even these can cause oxidative stress when they’re used without necessity.

To avoid this, only take medications when absolutely necessary and as directed by your healthcare provider. Instead of over-the-counter painkillers, ask your doctor to prescribe medications that will help your symptoms without further advancing the damage.

Protecting yourself from infections

A healthy liver is effective at fighting off infections and viruses that enter the bloodstream, but a compromised one may have more difficulty dealing with the pressure this comes with. Some of the ways illnesses can progress liver disease are:

• Increasing inflammation: Infections can increase swelling and stress on the liver, leading to its accumulation of more toxins and scar tissue.
• Impairing immune response: As the liver can’t fight off infections as effectively, they can take a stronger hold and cause more damage to your internal systems.
• Accumulating toxins: When the liver is damaged, it can’t properly remove harmful toxins from the body, leading to prolonged damage to the body and liver.
• Viral and bacterial attacks: Some infections, like hepatitis viruses, specifically target the liver. Even viruses that primarily infect other parts of the body can indirectly affect the liver’s response to the virus.
• Exacerbating existing conditions: Existing liver damage, such as fibrosis or cirrhosis, makes the liver more vulnerable. Even minor infections can overwhelm the weakened liver and accelerate the progression of its damage.

To protect yourself from infections as much as possible, take the necessary precautions to avoid putting yourself in a vulnerable situation. Wash your hands regularly and carry hand sanitizer with you. Wear a mask when in public or around people who are ill, and keep your home clean. This avoids putting any extra burden on your damaged liver.

Keeping up with appointments and check-ups

Complications can progress liver damage rapidly, so it’s important to get regular screenings to catch these early. Maintaining good contact with your healthcare team ensures you’ll always get the best advice for treatments and management.

Keeping up with check-ups also gives you a better idea of how your liver disease is progressing and whether there’s cause for concern. This may help relieve some of the emotional and mental burden your condition puts on you, as you’ll get answers to all your questions and reassurance that your liver doesn’t need immediate help or attention.

How Trinity Homecare can help

At Trinity Homecare, we know how difficult managing chronic liver disease at home is – especially on your own. Our carers aim to alleviate some of this burden by offering support with meal preparation and cooking, personal care, medication management and emotional support. We’ll aim to boost quality of life and uphold dignity through treatment and beyond.

The care we provide includes:

• One-to-one support at home
• Completely bespoke live-in care that has been tailored to you
• Specialist care for a number of different circumstances
• Home carers carefully matched to your needs
• CQC rated ‘Outstanding’ care services

We’ll match you with a fully trained, compassionate carer with experience in your condition, ensuring you’re in the best care possible. Whether you need daily visits for help with medication and cooking nutritious meals or live-in care for more thorough support with daily tasks, Trinity Homecare works with you to curate an effective care plan.

Talk to us today

If your loved one requires home care, chat with one of our friendly care team today. We offer a free, no-obligation enquiry and assessment service and are happy to offer information and advice to help you find the perfect home care solution.

Call us on 020 4572 5583 in confidence for a free no obligation quotation. If enquiring outside of our opening hours, please complete our online form and we will contact you the next day.