"Liver protection" is undoubtedly one of the key concerns of many people, and people can often be seen sharing warning signs about liver disease. Recently, a doctor saw a "mole" on a patient's family and advised him to have his liver checked, which may have liver disease.
Why are some moles and facial manifestations a sign of liver disease?
Why do doctors see such "moles" and recommend liver checks?
According to the big reference, an elderly man in Chongqing came to see a doctor because of a tumor, and out of professional habits, Dr. Xie Qichao, chief physician of the Oncology Department of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, raised his head and glanced at the accompanying family members. He found that the old man's son had three "spider moles" on the skin under his neck.
"When you have liver disease, you are prone to this kind of mole, so it is recommended to have a check-up, which is more reassuring!" Dr. Xie Qichao said that if there is no problem, it is best, and if there is a problem, then treat it in time to avoid becoming a serious illness. ①②
Oncologist Xie Qichao
Why can "spider angiomas" be a sign of liver disease?
Ding Rui, deputy chief physician of the Liver Disease Center of Beijing Ditan Hospital, introduced in an article in Health Times in 2024 that a special mole will grow on the face or body, which looks flat on the surface, with a small red spot in the middle, and the surrounding capillaries expand outward, looking like a spider lying on the skin, so it is called "spider nevus".
If you press the small red dot in the middle of the "spider nevi" with your hand, the capillaries around it will disappear for a short time, but they will appear immediately after they are released. This is most likely due to the inability to inactivate estrogen in the body in time when the liver is not functioning well, resulting in telangiectasia and new blood vessels.
Screenshot of Weibo of Professor Yang Xichuan of the Department of Dermatology
However, some normal people also have a small number of spider angiomata, especially women of childbearing age. Because there is more estrogen in the female body, but it should be noted that there are generally fewer spider angiomas in this type of population.
As the largest solid organ in the adult body, the liver plays a variety of important functions, and it is also facing a variety of potential threats such as viruses, alcohol, and drugs that damage the liver.
If there are scattered spider angiomas on the face, neck, chest, and upper arms, you should be alert to liver function problems and go to the hospital as soon as possible. ③
Whether the liver is good or not, it may really be written on the face
In clinical care, many experienced physicians can tell whether a patient has liver disease by looking at his or her face, because these patients have a typical liver disease face. And the appearance of these manifestations on the face may be a distress signal from the liver:
Red: spider angiomata
Black: Dark circles under the eyes
Yellow: Yellowing of the skin
1. Red: spider nevi
Spider angiomatas are usually caused by telangiectasia in the epidermis. Spider nevi usually have a small red blood spot in the center, around which you can see small filamentous blood vessels, if you press on the small red blood spot in the center, the whole spider nevus can be eliminated.
2. Black: Dark circles under the eyes
Wang Qian, deputy chief physician of the Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery of Henan Provincial Cancer Hospital, pointed out in an article in the Health Times in 2024 that persistent abnormal liver function will lead to hormone level disorders in the human body, thereby affecting pigment metabolism, increasing tyrosinase levels in the skin, increasing melanin content, and making the complexion dark and dull. The accumulation of melanin around the eyes is particularly noticeable, very similar to "panda eyes". ④
Of course, not all dark circles are related to liver disease, but if they are accompanied by nausea, loss of appetite, bad breath, fatigue, yellowing of the skin and under the eyes, etc., it should be taken seriously.
3. Yellow: Yellow skin
Du Lixia, a nurse from the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Fifth Hospital of Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province, published an article on the hospital's official account in 2023, introducing that jaundice indicates that the liver's secretion and excretion of bilirubin are abnormal. As long as the total bilirubin in the serum is more than twice the normal value, it can cause the skin or mucous membranes to turn yellow. At first, it is yellowing of the whites of the eyes and mucous membranes of the mouth, followed by yellowing of urine. The higher the bilirubin level, the more widespread and darker the jaundice. ⑤
Red Net Moment News Map
5 behaviors that seem to nourish the liver, but actually hurt the liver, many people often do!
1. Drink health wine to nourish the liver
Many people like to drink some health wine to maintain their health, and even use Chinese herbal medicine to make wine themselves. However, whether it is medicinal liquor or ordinary liquor, it contains a lot of alcohol, which will increase the burden on the liver, and you must not drink a lot of alcohol for a long time.
In addition, it is easy to listen to the "earthwork" and "home remedies" to brew medicinal wine by themselves, and after drinking, they will be poisoned, which will also lead to liver damage.
2. Protect the liver: Eat liver protection tablets
Wang Lili, an infectious disease doctor at the Yangtze River Shipping General Hospital, said in an interview with Jimu News in 2024 that although liver protection tablets are a liver health care product, they also need to be metabolized by the liver after entering the human body, so for people who are not good at the liver itself, if they take a large number of liver protection tablets for a long time, the ingredients contained in them may exacerbate the metabolic burden of the liver, and then aggravate the degree of liver damage. ⑥
Hu Yanmei, deputy chief physician of the Department of Infectious Diseases of the People's Hospital of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, also pointed out in an interview with Chinanews in 2024 that there are many types of liver protection tablets on the market with complex ingredients, and if they are not used in a standardized manner, they may lead to secondary damage to the liver in the process of taking them. ⑦
3. Drink alcohol and take hangover medicines
Many people believe that taking hangover relievers can largely reduce the damage that alcohol can do to the liver. But in fact, alcohol still has to be metabolized by the liver.
Shi Yi, a general medicine physician at West China Hospital of Sichuan University, introduced in an article on the West China Doctor's official account in 2023 that some so-called hangover drugs will make people feel sober and comfortable because they contain diuretic, analgesic and excitable ingredients, which can alleviate the symptoms of drunkenness to a certain extent, but cannot really "relie" alcohol. That said, hangover cures don't help the body catabolize alcohol! ⑧
Health Times Chart
4. Excessive dieting to lose weight
In the impression of many people, fat is more likely to have fatty liver, and it is healthier to be thinner. However, sometimes unscientific weight loss can also hurt the liver.
Wu Tong, deputy chief physician of the Center for Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine of Beijing Ditan Hospital, said in an article in Health Times in 2024 that rapid weight loss in the short term, excessive fasting can cause a large increase in fat decomposition in the short term, which will greatly increase malondialdehyde and lipid peroxides in the liver, thereby damaging liver cells and leading to fatty liver. Malnutrition can also lead to fatty liver. Insufficient intake or digestive dysfunction leads to malnutrition, resulting in protein deficiency and inability to synthesize apolipoproteins, which leads to the accumulation of triglycerides and the formation of fatty liver. ⑨
5. Fatty liver does not eat meat
Once found to have fatty liver, many people begin to "quit meat". But in fact, Guo Peng, chief physician of the Department of Hepatology of Xiyuan Hospital of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, reminded in an article in the Health Times in 2016 that protein has the effect of protecting liver cells and can promote the recovery and regeneration of liver cells that have been damaged. Therefore, soy products, lean meat, fish and shrimp and other protein-containing diets should be increased, and eggs and milk should not be eaten too much. ⑩
This article is synthesized from:
(1)2024-05-03@Big reference "A man accompanied his family to see a doctor and was found by a doctor with spider nevi"
(2)2024-04-29Oncologist Xie Qichao "Fortunately, I have an occupational disease!" My family can't escape my eyes."
(3)2024-05-10Health Times "There is a mole to be vigilant to liver health"
(4)2024-03-12Health Times "Pay Attention to the "Liver Disease Face""
(5)2023-10-12Shijiazhuang Fifth Hospital "Liver Lesions, Skin Prophet! Pay attention to these five major liver disease signs! 》
(6)2024-01-03Jimu News "The latest data shows that nearly half of the liver protection tablets were bought by the post-90s, and the doctor reminded: often eating liver protection tablets may hurt the liver"
(7)2024-05-10China News Network "Expert Puzzles: Is It Useful to Eat Liver Protection Tablets While Staying Up Late?" 》
(8)2023-01-23Dr. Huaxi "Still using yogurt and strong tea to relieve hangover? Dr. Huaxi: What is really reliable is..."
(9)2024-05-07Health Times
(10)2016-07-07 Health Times: Fatty liver is a reversible disease! 7 Precautions for Daily Diet》
Editor: Ren Xuan
Reviewer: Lu Yang