Is your liver slowing down your metabolism? Know its effects from expert

Is your liver impacting your metabolism? Learn from experts how liver health affects weight management and overall well-being. Know tips to support liver function and boost metabolism.

New Delhi:

Metabolism is not all about diet or exercise; your liver plays a significant role too. The liver enables the digestion of food you eat and processes it into energy the body can utilise. When your liver is not functioning well, everything comes to a halt, and you feel lethargic, gain weight effortlessly, or cannot lose fat.

According to Dr. Giriraj Bora, Chief, Liver Transplant and Senior Consultant – GI & HPB Surgery, Artemis Hospitals, the liver assists in flushing out toxins, storing valuable nutrients such as iron and vitamins, and producing bile to help digest fats. It aids in maintaining your blood sugar levels and helps in maintaining the balance of your hormones. When the liver is overloaded with processed food, alcohol, or excessive sugar, it gets clogged and can’t function optimally. This impacts the efficiency of your body in burning calories.

How does liver health affect metabolism?

If your liver is overloaded or not functioning efficiently, several things can happen.

• Slower Fat Breakdown: Another responsibility of the liver is to break down fat and transform it into energy. If the liver is slow, fats can begin to accumulate in your body rather than being utilised, resulting in weight gain.
• Toxin Buildup: When your liver is not functioning properly, it is not able to eliminate toxins from your body. This accumulation may impair other organs and drain your energy, making you tired.
• Hormonal Imbalance: The liver controls important hormones that govern metabolism. When liver function is disrupted, this hormonal balance is lost, and you have a lower calorie-burning rate and may gain weight.
• Blood Sugar Swings: When your liver is having trouble controlling blood sugar, it can cause energy crashes, ongoing fatigue, and strong cravings for sugary or unhealthy foods to rapidly increase your energy.

The link between liver health and energy levels

Your liver regulates blood sugar levels by storing and releasing glucose when your body requires energy. If your liver is not working properly, this process is impaired, and you experience energy slumps and fatigue. A tired liver also struggles to remove toxins, which can build up and leave you feeling sluggish and unwell.

Liver and weight regulation

A healthy liver controls lipid metabolism by oxidising fatty acids and secreting bile for fat digestion. In hepatic steatosis, hepatocytes accumulate excess triglycerides, which impede the liver’s function in metabolising and exporting fat. When the liver fails to function, fat accumulates in the wrong places within the body, particularly around the abdomen. This increases difficulty for weight loss and can cause issues such as high blood sugar, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease in the long run.

Your liver plays a crucial role in food digestion and energy production. Slowing down your liver slows down metabolism, resulting in fatigue and weight gain. A healthy liver increases energy, supports weight retention, and boosts overall health.

Disclaimer: (Tips and suggestions mentioned in the article are for general information only and should not be construed as professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor or a dietician before starting any fitness programme or making any changes to your diet.)

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