Liver disease rates soaring in Canada
New statistics show that more and more Canadians are dealing with some form of liver disease throughout their life.
According to the Canadian Liver Foundation, one in four Canadians will have to combat some form of liver disease in their lifetime. That number has increased from one in 10 in 2013.
Mohit Arora was diagnosed with biliary atresia, a deadly condition, in 1993 when he was just a baby.
“It’s a difficult thing, because I spent the majority of my childhood in the hospital,” Arora said.
While his outlook wasn’t promising, on his 11th birthday he received a gift of life: a liver transplant. That was 30 years ago.
“Everyone on the health care team … have been a real big help over the years and also just the fact that I’ve been taking care of myself,” he said.
Holly Nyenkamp from the Canadian Liver Foundation, said people may suffer from liver disease and not know it.
“Symptoms aren’t always clear and really by the time your liver has sustained some significant damage, you’re in that further progressed stage of liver disease,” Nyenkamp said.
March is Liver Health Month and a local dietitian told CTV News there are ways people can get on top of their liver health before it becomes an issue.
“Keep track using a food journal and sometimes even a symptom log if they’re experiencing issues to see if there’s a correlation between sometimes what they eat and then some of their symptoms,” said Paula Ross, a registered dietitian in Sudbury.
Experts agree keeping active and limiting sugar and fat in your diet is the best way to stay healthy.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.