The four horsemen of the apocalypse. The vision of death and destruction for humanity from the new testament is a chorus of the woes that can befall society. It evokes hazard from all directions bringing misery and the pale horse called death.
When you come to grips with the health aspects of liver disease it is a surprise to learn that our understanding of our bodies as an integrated system is so poorly appreciated. The mix of chemical processes that are done routinely by the liver cannot be duplicated by our chemists. It is estimated that over 500 functions are performed by the cells of the liver and they affect every other kind of tissue in the body. Imagine that, all of that activity in a cell about one fifth the width of a human hair.
If you believe in miracles that is one to consider. Chances are you abuse your liver constantly without even considering it. Nutritionist Victor Lindlahr coined the phrase "You are what you eat" in 1942 but we pay little attention to that as we attempt to become sugar, salt, and alcohol. Your liver fights to keep you healthy but eventually your daily attacks wear it down.
I think of it rather like an abused wife who is beaten every day but trudges on until one day she has had quite enough and decides to do a Bobbitt on you. ( For anyone not a news junkie that was a wife who cut her abusive husbands penis off ). Once your liver starts to fail it affects all other organs in your body in some way. It is the common comorbidity of a very long list of disease conditions. Keeping it healthy is probably the single most important non medical thing you can do to give yourself the best shot at a quality of life as you age.
You don't have to be a food fanatic to treat your liver kindly and thereby add years to your life. It works very hard to protect you so just a modicum of care can save you a lot of pain in the end.
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