Learn more about your liver
KNOWING YOUR LIVER IS KEY!
- Your liver isn’t just any organ! Located on the right side of your abdomen, beneath the ribcage, this large organ weighs about 1,200–1,500 grams and performs more than 500 complex functions to keep you healthy.
- It is made up of eight segments and thousands of lobules.
- It is capable of regenerating itself with just 25% of healthy liver tissue.
- You cannot live without your liver.
- The liver acts as a filter for nutrients, sugars, proteins, and fats from your meals.
- It transforms these nutrients into energy and growth components for your body.
- It regulates blood sugar and lipid levels, ensuring your body runs smoothly.
- Your liver produces essential proteins and helps eliminate waste products from your body.
- Plus, it produces bile, a fluid stored in your gallbladder, which aids in digesting fats and removing toxins.
- Liver diseases can go unnoticed because the liver doesn’t have any pain sensors.
- This silence can delay the diagnosis of chronic liver diseases.
- Despite its silent nature, the liver plays a vital role in your overall health and wellbeing.
IF YOU DON’T TAKE CARE OF YOUR LIVER,
IT DOESN’T TAKE CARE OF YOU
2 million
Lives are lost each year to liver disease.
1.5 billion
Suffer from chronic liver disease.
90%
of cases are preventable. Policy and lifestyle changes are possible, and the liver can heal itself.
OVER 100 DISEASES CAN AFFECT YOUR LIVER
- They can affect ANYONE regardless of age, sex, ethnicity, or socioeconomic background.
- The most common cause of chronic liver disease is steatotic liver disease (previously known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease), accounting for 59% of cases.
- HBV (hepatitis B) and HCV (hepatitis C) account for the majority of chronic liver disease-related deaths globally.
Know the risk factors!
Being aware is crucial for prevention and early detection.
- Alcohol consumption
- Excess consumption of high sugar, high saturated fat foods and sugar sweetened drinks
- Sedentary lifestyle
- Misuse of medications (e.g. paracetamol)
- Unsafe sex practices
- Injection-based drug use
- Remaining unvaccinated for hepatitis A and B
Family history of liver disease
Metabolic disorders & overactive immune system
Explore our comprehensive collection of factsheets on liver diseases!
Each factsheet provides valuable insights into the specific disease, covering its explanation, epidemiology, symptoms, and treatment options. Whether you’re looking to learn more about hepatitis, steatotic liver disease, or other liver conditions, our factsheets offer essential information to increase awareness and understanding.
10 tips for liver health!
These simple yet powerful recommendations help you safeguard your liver and optimise your overall well-being.
Exercise
Exercising helps reduce fat buildup in the liver, improves blood flow, and enhances overall metabolic function, which can prevent liver diseases.
Get vaccinated
Vaccines can prevent viral infections such as hepatitis A which is a cause for acute liver inflammation, and hepatitis B, which is a major cause of cirrhosis, and liver cancer.
Eat healthy
Eating healthy supports proper liver function, reduces the risk of fatty liver disease and advanced liver disease, and promotes overall well-being.
Wash your hands
Washing hands is important for liver health as it helps prevent the transmission of viruses like hepatitis A and E, which can cause acute liver disease.
Get regular checks
Regular checks enable early detection and treatment of potential issues like hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver cancer, improving prognosis.
Follow medical instructions
Following medical recommendations ensures proper management of liver conditions, minimises risks of complications, and maximises the effectiveness of treatments.
Avoid exposure to environmental pollutants
Environmental pollutants can cause inflammation, damage liver cells, impair liver function, and lead to serious health issues such as liver disease or failure.
Know your history
Knowing your history enables healthcare providers to assess your risk factors for liver diseases, tailor preventive measures and screenings accordingly, and provide personalised care, promoting early detection and effective management.
Avoid alcohol
Alcohol consumption can lead to liver inflammation, steatotic liver disease, liver cancer, cirrhosis, and liver failure. There is no safe level of alcohol consumption.
Practice safe Sex
Using protection reduces the risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as hepatitis B and C, which can lead to chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, and liver cancer.
LIVING WITH LIVER DISEASE
Hear from real people navigating life with liver disease...
These inspiring testimonials shed light on the challenges, triumphs, and resilience of those affected by liver conditions. From diagnosis journeys to treatment experiences, these firsthand accounts provide valuable insights and support to others facing similar struggles.
Join us in honouring their stories and raising awareness for liver health!
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our patient organisations partners Dutch Liver Patients Association, Fatty Liver Alliance, European Haemophilia Consortium, and International Thalassemia Federation for their invaluable support in sharing patient stories.
LEARN MORE: RESOURCES
EASL Policy Dialogues - World Liver Day – Join Us in Celebrating Liver Health on a Global Scale
- EASL-Lancet Commission
- World Liver Day Campaign materials
- The global burden of liver diseases (2023) Available at: https://www.cghjournal.org/article/S1542-3565(23)00315-4/fulltext
- Healthy Livers Healthy Lives Coalition
- World Health Organization Guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis, care and treatment for people with chronic hepatitis B infection (2024)
- World Health Organization Factsheet on Physical Activity
- Canadian Liver Foundation. (2023). Available at: https://www.liver.ca/ (Accessed: 27 March 2023)
- Johns Hopkins Medicine. (n.d.). Liver: Anatomy and Functions. Available at: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/liver-anatomy-and-functions (Accessed: 27 March 2023)
- The Hepatitis C Trust. (n.d.). Functions of the Liver. Available at: http://hepctrust.org.uk/information/liver/functions-liver (Accessed: 27 March 2023)
- American Society of Clinical Oncology. (n.d.). Liver Cancer: Statistics. Available at: https://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/liver-cancer/statistics (Accessed: 27 March 2023)
- Coalition to Eradicate Viral Hepatitis in Asia Pacific. (n.d.). Fast Facts. Available at: https://www.cevhap.org/index.php/about-viral-hepatitis/fast-facts (Accessed: 27 March 2023)
- Alcorn, K. (2019) Only 11 countries on target to eliminate hepatitis C by 2030. Available at: http://www.infohep.org/Only-11-countries-on-target-to-eliminate-hepatitis-C-by-2030/page/3550961/ (Accessed: 27 March 2023)
- EASL Policy Statements: EASL Policy Statements. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://easl.eu/publications/easl-policy-statements/
- World NTD Day Website: World NTD Day Website: https://worldntdday.org/
- NAFLD/NASH Patient Guidelines: EASL. (2019). EASL NAFLD/NASH Patient Guidelines Short Version. Retrieved from https://easl.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/EASL-NAFLD-NASH-Patient-Guidelines-Short-version-English.pdf
- The Liver and its Functions. Columbia Surgery. Retrieved from https://columbiasurgery.org/liver/liver-and-its-functions
- Marcellin, P. and Kutala, B. K. (2017) Liver diseases: A major, neglected global public health problem requiring urgent actions and large-scale screening. Wiley Liver International.
- Ferenci, P. (2017) Hepatic encephalopathy. Gastroenterol Rep (Oxf), 5(2), pp.138-147.
- Kumar, G., Taneja, A., and Kandiah, P. A. (2017) Brain and the Liver: Cerebral Edema, Hepatic Encephalopathy and Beyond. Hepatic Critical Care, pp. 83-103.
- Cheemerla, S. and Balakrishnan, M. (2021) Global Epidemiology of Chronic Liver Disease. Clinical Liver Disease, 17(5), pp. 365-370.
World Liver Day – Eliminating Hepatitis C: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK-P4ah0Tf8
World Liver Day – Reducing the burden of Alcohol Related Liver Disease: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOoa-W3Ur28
World Liver Day 2023 EASL Policy Dialogue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mD_vyGPju1Y