The Liver Works Hard for You: How to Protect The Liver

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How to care for your liver and protect yourself from Hepatitis.

What is Hepatitis?

Hepatitis is a disease characterised by inflammation of the liver.

Hepatitis can be a viral or non-viral infection. Depending on the type, it is transmitted through contact with infected blood, bodily fluid or contaminated food.

There are five types of viral hepatitis named according to the alphabet – A, B, C, D and E

Non-viral Hepatitis can be gotten from excessive alcohol intake, and abuse or misuse of drugs like paracetamol.

Hepatitis B and C are the major causes of life-long (chronic) liver disease which can significantly damage the liver and lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer.

How can you tell that it is Hepatitis?

Symptoms of hepatitis can include jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes), fatigue, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, and fever.

Here are four things you can do to care for your liver and protect yourself from Hepatitis.

1. Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
  1. Eat a balanced diet of fruits and vegetables, whole grains like oats, lean proteins like chicken, fish, beans, and legumes and healthy fats like avocados, nuts, seeds, and olive oil.
  2. Avoid toxins and don’t overuse drugs like paracetamol.
  3. Exercise regularly and engage in only safe sex practices.
  4. Drink plenty of water throughout the day to help the liver function optimally and flush out toxins from your body.
2. Limit Alcohol Intake

If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation. For women, this means up to one drink per day, and for men, up to two drinks per day. Excessive alcohol consumption can lead to liver damage, including fatty liver, hepatitis, and cirrhosis.

Use this guide to quantify your drinks.

Guidance to determining what makes up one drink.341mL of 5% alcohol like beer, 142mL of 12% alcohol like wine, 43mL of 40% alcohol like rum, gin, vodka etc.

Based on the Canadian Guidance on Alcohol and Health.

3. Get Vaccinated

Protect yourself from Hepatitis A and B by getting vaccinated. These infections can cause serious liver damage- cirrhosis and liver cancer.

4. Carry Out Regular Health Checks

Schedule regular check-ups with your healthcare provider to monitor the liver’s health and catch any potential issues early. If you have risk factors for liver disease, such as a family history or chronic conditions, discuss appropriate screenings with your doctor.

Your liver is vital to your health. By making these small, manageable changes, you can protect yourself from hepatitis and support your liver’s health.

Share this information with family and friends to spread awareness about the importance of liver health.

Get tested, get vaccinated, and if you already live with hepatitis, explore our comprehensive myHealth plan to support and manage your life with hepatitis.

Click here to get started.

The Silent Threat of Typhoid Fever

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The silent threat of typhoid fever

WHAT IS TYPHOID FEVER?

Contrary to popular belief, typhoid is not malaria or caused by the same organism. It is caused by a bacteria called “Salmonella typhii”, which usually causes severe sickness if not detected and treated well enough.

 

HOW IS TYPHOID FEVER TRANSMITTED?

It is easily gotten from eating or drinking contaminated food or water.

You might think that you’re certain of whatever source or process the food you buy comes from or passed through, or that as the saying goes, “dirty no Dey kill African man” and so nothing will happen, but that isn’t always the case.

 

  • Contaminated food: undoubtedly, most of us are used to eating from local restaurants and bukas, tasting fruit or something as simple as groundnut before buying it without washing it or ensuring the source is sanitary enough. It is possible that the hands of the seller or even yours have been contaminated with the bacteria responsible for typhoid, so you contaminate the food with your hands and then eat it.

 

  • Contaminated water: Sachet water (pure water) could pass as a staple in this country, and most of us are guilty of taking it, but there’s no means of identifying the source from which the water came. Some persons use untreated water from an unsanitary tank that is barely washed to make these things safe for people to ingest, making them unsafe and untrustworthy.

 

Those are essentially the two methods to get infected, but the primary agents are our hands. They easily and steadily get contaminated with any and everything. Hence, we must wash/ sanitize our hands as often as we remember and when we use the toilet.

Also, avoid leaving foods uncovered and washing fruits before eating them or buying whole fruits rather than those cut in pieces.

 

HOW TO FIND OUT YOUR TYPHOID STATUS

Essentially, when you begin to feel ill and you don’t understand your symptoms, it is advised that you do a test to help confirm and narrow your symptoms down to a particular cause.

A stool, blood or bone marrow culture is needed to confirm your typhoid status.

 

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF TYPHOID?

When infected, this bacteria can remain in the body for a while and multiply until it is enough to wear you down.

Symptoms of typhoid are often mistaken for that of malaria, but there is a significant difference between the two, and it mostly lies in severity. These symptoms include:

  • High fever: you would experience a burning rise in temperature between 39-40°C.
  • Severe headache: your head feels heavy and there is a severe pounding sensation that doesn’t seem to resolve even with painkillers.
  • Excessive vomiting: this could be confused with malaria, but they share a similarity.
  • Severe abdominal pain: the pain feels crushing and discomforting in the upper part of the abdomen.
  • Weakness.
  • Anaemia, or blood loss.
  • Low heart rate.
  • Diarrhea or constipation.
  • Loss of appetite.

Not everyone would experience all of this at the same time, but at least two or more of these symptoms would present.

 

ARE THERE OTHER CONDITIONS THAT CAN RESULT FROM TYPHOID?

Yes, typhoid can lead to several other complications that could be life-threatening. When the infection sets in, it could take a while before it eventually causes a problem. Here are some complications that could result if typhoid is not treated properly:

  • Intestinal perforation: This means that your intestines are damaged due to the bacteria destroying the walls of the small intestine, thereby causing severe pain.
  • Gastrointestinal haemorrhage: Also known as bleeding in the abdomen, precisely the Intestine.
  • Anaemia: Your body becomes pale as it fails to produce enough blood since the infection can spread to the colon, the liver, and other parts to cause even more large-scale damage.
  • Death, if improperly treated and neglected, but this is rare.

 

HOW TO PREVENT TYPHOID INFECTION

The typhoid vaccine is currently the cheapest and safest way to prevent typhoid fever. It is effective and protects against typhoid infection for up to three years.

However, there are other means to help reduce the risk of infection, which are:

  • Washing of hands frequently
  • Avoiding sticking fingers in the mouth
  • Washing of fruits and vegetables before consumption
  • Drinking clean portable water
  • Minimising the amount of food consumed at local restaurants.

 

Protect yourself today by getting vaccinated.

Click here to book your vaccination now.