After taking liver protection tablets, staying up late is safer? Drug-induced hepatitis is more likely to happen to you

Drinking alcohol hurts the liver, getting angry hurts the liver, staying up late hurts the liver...the liver is probably the organ most easily "injured".

However, the liver, which is easily "injured", plays a very important role in our life activities. The liver is not only the largest digestive gland in our body, but also the center of human metabolism. According to statistics, more than 500 biochemical reactions occur in the liver, and the title of "human chemical factory" is well deserved. Studies have found that after the liver is completely removed, animals can only survive for a maximum of 50 hours even if they are given adequate treatment. The importance of the liver to life is evident. However, the bad eating and resting habits of modern people make liver diseases more and more common in our daily lives. Therefore, many young people embarked on their own "liver protection journey".

There are so many health products on the market that protect the liver. After taking the medicine, can you drink and stay up late with peace of mind? In fact, improper use of medicine will not only fail to achieve the ideal liver protection effect, but may even have the opposite effect.

01 What is drug-induced hepatitis?

Drug-induced hepatitis, also known as drug-induced liver injury (DILI), refers to liver damage caused by drugs or their metabolites after the use of one or more drugs.

Biochemical mechanisms of drug-induced hepatitis, source: onlinelibrary.wiley

The mechanism of drug-induced hepatitis is not fully understood, and it may be related to abnormal drug metabolism, mitochondrial damage, immune damage and genetic factors . The cytochrome P450 enzyme system (CYP450) is an essential enzyme in the process of drug metabolism in the liver. It has a dual effect on drugs, with both detoxification function and the possibility of increasing drug toxicity. When the activity of CYP450 enzymes decreases or disappears completely, a large amount of unmetabolized drugs accumulate in the body, destroying cell membranes or other cell components, or the drugs produce toxic metabolites after catalysis by CYP450 enzymes, leading to liver cell necrosis. At the same time, drugs or their metabolites may also cause liver cell necrosis or apoptosis by destroying mitochondria in liver cells. After liver cell necrosis, the innate immune cells in the liver may be activated, releasing a large amount of inflammatory mediators and causing liver damage. In addition, genetic gene polymorphism leads to individual differences in drug metabolism, so the occurrence of most drug-induced hepatitis is unpredictable. Drug-induced hepatitis is divided into acute and chronic types. The course of acute drug-induced hepatitis is shorter, usually less than 3 months, while the course of chronic drug-induced hepatitis is longer and is easily ignored in life, and may even lead to serious consequences such as cirrhosis and tumors.

02 Can the liver protection tablets you take really protect your liver?

Since general drugs can damage the liver, can the "liver protection health products" that are regarded by many as "liver protection magic" really "repair" the injured liver as people think? In fact, many people have misunderstandings about liver protection health products. Liver protection drugs should not be taken casually, and improper use may even cause damage to the liver.

A popular health product on the market that focuses on "liver protection" function. Source: Screenshot of an e-commerce platform

Taking the common liver protection health products on the market as an example, the active ingredient is generally silybin , a flavonoid lignan compound extracted from the seed coat of the medicinal plant Silybum marianum (also known as "milk thistle") of the Asteraceae family. It can exert varying degrees of protection and therapeutic effects on liver damage caused by a variety of liver toxins, and is often used in various prescription drugs with liver protection effects.

However, "liver protection drugs" and "liver care drugs" generally only promote the repair of damaged livers, and cannot prevent the occurrence of liver disease. It is meaningless for normal people to take them when their liver function is normal. They may even increase the metabolic burden of the liver and cause drug-induced hepatitis. The difference between health products with silybin as the main ingredient and similar prescription drugs may only be that the content of silybin is lower, but the price is often much higher.

** Silybum marianum, also known as milk thistle, source: China Natural Specimen Museum Another common "liver protection drug" is actually the common "enzyme-lowering drug" in clinical practice **. As we all know, elevated transaminase is a common indicator of abnormal liver function. Many people will choose to take enzyme-lowering drugs immediately to restore the transaminase index in the blood to normal levels. However, enzyme reduction cannot be equated with liver protection. This type of drug only temporarily restores the index to normal by inhibiting the activity of transaminase, and does not really repair liver damage. If professional treatment is not received in time, after stopping the drug, the transaminase index that had "returned to normal" will "revive". What's worse is that taking enzyme-lowering drugs on your own may result in changes in the condition that cannot be discovered in time , affecting the doctor's judgment and treatment, and causing more serious consequences.

03 Liver protection: a simple life is the real life

Long-term use of liver protection drugs not only fails to protect the liver as expected, but may even backfire and cause more serious damage to the liver. So, what exactly can be considered true liver protection?

In fact, there are no "secrets" or "shortcuts" to protect the liver. In daily life, not drinking alcohol, eating less greasy food, keeping a regular schedule, staying up late less, refusing to abuse drugs, and reducing the burden on the liver are the greatest protection for it. For those friends who have liver health problems, don't be afraid to see a doctor, and don't take medicine indiscriminately. You must follow the doctor's advice to have regular check-ups and scientific treatment to achieve the best prognosis. In short, the most important thing to protect the liver is to develop healthy and good living habits, and don't put all your hopes on drugs and health products! Don't stay up late while taking liver protection tablets~