October is Liver Awareness Month. It is sponsored by several organizations devoted to raising awareness of liver disease and encouraging research into finding cures for it, including the Global Liver Institute and the American Liver Foundation. Liver Awareness Month is a time to consider the importance of a healthy liver and learn what you can do to keep yours that way.
Why is Liver Health So Important?
While all the organs in your body serve an essential purpose, the liver is as vital to your basic survival as your heart and lungs. The liver acts as a filter for your blood and removes toxins, hazardous chemicals, and other harmful contaminants from your blood. If your liver were to stop working, these contaminants would very quickly build up in your bloodstream and poison you.
The other reason to protect your liver is that an organ transplant is the only cure for liver failure. While there are medications, like, Acitgall and Urso, that can help a damaged liver, once it fails, there are no other options.
What Causes Liver Damage?
Thankfully, when treated properly, your liver will keep doing its job, freeing you from these contaminants. If the liver is exposed to high amounts of damaging substances, like alcohol, medications, and fatty foods, it can become damaged and stop working effectively.
In many circumstances, the liver canrepair the damage that is done to it if exposure to the dangerous substances stops. If the contamination continues for too long, the damage is too extensive, and the liver cannot repair itself.
Some diseases can permanently damage the liver. Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. Several viruses can cause it. When caught early, some types of hepatitis can be treated with antiviral medications like Baraclude and Viread. Still, in many cases, all that can be done is to battle the symptoms and avoid things that might do more damage to your liver.
Top Ways to Protect Your Liver
Protecting your liver is as simple as adopting a healthy lifestyle that protects your general health and wellness and remembering the motto 'everything in moderation.'
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Avoid fried and fatty foods.
- Consume alcohol in moderation or not at all.
- Carefully follow dosing information on all medications, especially over-the-counter pain medications.
- Practice safe sex. Some forms of hepatitis are transmitted through intimate contact.
- Get regular exercise.
Liver Disease Prescriptions Are Expensive; RxLess Can Help You Save
If you or a loved one has recently been prescribed liver disease medications, RxLess can help with the cost. All you have to do is enter the name of your prescription medication into the RxLess search tool, and in seconds, you will have a list of local pharmacies, including CVS, Walgreens, and Rite Aid, and the discounted prices they are offering. Choose the price you want to pay, text or download the RxLess discount card and take it with you to pick up your medications. Show the card to the pharmacist and your discounted price will automatically appear on the register.