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Is your liver healthy?
The liver plays a very crucial role in keeping us healthy. It is like a factory that receives, filters, restores and transports the substances for the body’s use. It is a vital organ for maintaining proper digestive functions.
The liver detoxifies the harmful toxins in 2 ways:1.Detoxification occurs by breaking down the toxic substances into a water-soluble product for easy elimination. It should work efficiently as the free radicals in the toxins, can cause damage to liver cells.
2.When exposed to high fat and carbohydrate food, alcohol, smoking and environmental chemicals like pesticides, preservatives), the liver becomes sluggish and slow and delays its function resulting in a high toxin build-up in the body. It needs constant detoxification and inclusion of antioxidants in the diet to stay healthy.
- A feeling of tiredness, fatigue, and sluggishness
- Lack of energy
- White or yellow coloured coated tongue
- Bad breath
- Weight gain especially around the stomach region
- Cravings for sweet food
- Headaches
- Indigestion/Poor digestion
- Feeling of nausea or heaviness after fatty meals
- Itchy skin/acne or breakouts/rashes
- Hyperpigmentation of face
- Lack of concentration
We need a minimum of seven to eight hours of sleep each night due to the following reasons:
1.The brain needs rest:
Stressful and demanding work in the office takes a toll on our brain function. Our brains are functioning throughout the day, starting from the time we wake up in the morning, till the time we go to bed, and fall asleep. If the brain does not get enough time to arrange the information methodically, it leads to confusion and forgetfulness. In such cases, memory recall doesn’t work and we can’t recollect past events accurately. Henceforth, it is imperative to give our brains sufficient time to store important details, which can be registered correctly, to become a part of our short term memory. Sleep deprived individuals face frustration at home, and at the workplace, due to their inability to recall recent events and dates, which do not get properly registered in their brains and cause lack of orientation and memory loss.
2. Our physiological functioning gets altered:
Hormonal imbalance occurs in persons who do not get a minimum of 7-8 hours of sleep every day. Cortisol levels get elevated which indicate that the body is going through a stressful phase. In young women, it can cause missed periods or menstrual irregularities.
3. Lack of sleep causes chronic diseases and weight gain:
Inadequate sleep can make you more prone to develop chronic diseases such as glucose intolerance or insulin resistance and if you have a sedentary lifestyle, it can cause diabetes at a young age. You may also find it very difficult to lose weight and shed a few kilos of weight might sound like a nightmare if you do not get enough sleep. Sleeping problems are linked to higher rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Some research studies point towards a greater risk of stroke and heart disease in sleep-deprived individuals. This might be due to unhealthy eating behaviours observed in persons staying awake at night which make them prone to indulge in eating comfort foods, such as, chocolates, chips, namkeen etc. This contributes to excessive intake of calories and leads to fat deposition in the body and increases the risk of developing diseases..
4. Mental health deteriorates:
Not getting sufficient sleep can worsen your mental health status and can exacerbate your anxiety levels and can raise your susceptibility of depression. You may lose the ability to deal with simple situations and may get irritated by anything that you find unusual or unexpected. Your stress coping mechanisms are lowered and you become more vulnerable to experience panic attacks under certain challenging circumstances. In a nutshell, your mental health suffers tremendously and makes you a less likeable person.
5.Work efficiency suffers:
Lack of sufficient sleep adversely affects our performance in office tasks and lowers our overall work output and quality. This can lead to constant reminders from your boss or supervisor and can lower your ratings in comparison to that of other employees. Your chances of getting promoted are diminished and appraisals take a backseat.
6.Family and friends get disappointed:
Not giving enough time to loved ones can lead to relationship issues and misunderstandings. It can complicate your relationship with your spouse and can create communication deficits. Friends feel sidelined and neglected and may not understand that you are sleep deprived, and hence unable to spend quality time with them. You may lose your trusted friends if you are unable to maintain a balance between your personal and professional life. Spending sufficient time with friends and family members is crucial for the maintenance of your social and emotional support system.