On the occasion of the EASL (an international congress on liver disease) which took place this week in Paris, the pharmaceutical company Gilead revealed the results of a survey of 1,268 French people on liver disease .
And the results are worrying: we first learn that only 35% of French people know exactly what their liver is for, an organ that is nevertheless essential to life since it still fulfills nearly 500 functions in the body! Vital but misunderstood, the liver only comes in fourth position in the ranking of the “most important” organs in the eyes of the French, far behind the heart, the brain and the kidneys.
For 80% of French people, alcohol is the main cause of liver disease
Hepatitis B, hepatitis C, non-alcoholic hepatic steatosis… The liver can be affected by more than 100 types of different pathologies: only 30% of French people know this. While 29 million adults are affected by liver disease in Europe, nearly two thirds of French people do not feel “concerned” by these pathologies; 23% of respondents “never” think about the health of their liver.
Received ideas still have a bright future ahead of them: 26% of respondents believe that cirrhosis of the liver is irreversible (when in reality, it is, thanks in particular to stopping alcohol and tobacco, regular practice of physical activity and a balanced diet) and 80% of French people believe that it is mainly alcohol that causes liver disease – although it is indeed a major risk factor , diabetes, obesity and certain drug treatments are also responsible.
Source: Gilead press release.
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