Health Tip: If You Have Cirrhosis

Here's how it could impair your liver

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(HealthDay News) -- Cirrhosis is the medical term used to describe the slow deterioration of the liver as a result of chronic injury to the organ.

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The U.S. National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse says cirrhosis causes scarring of the liver, which can impair its ability to:

• Fight off infection.
• Eliminate toxins and bacteria from the blood.
• Process medications, hormones and nutrients from food.
• Create the proteins that help the blood clot.
• Make bile to help absorb fats, including cholesterol.

-- Diana Kohnle