One in five young people unknowingly lives with a “silent but deadly” disease – are you one of them?

ONE in five young adults has evidence of fatty liver disease, scientists say.

The disease is characterized by an accumulation of fat in the liver caused by alcohol or obesity, generally affecting people over 40 years of age.

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But health research carried out by the University of Bristol has found that a large number of people in their 20s are affected.

O 90s kids The project followed tens of thousands of children born in Bristol between 1991 and 1992, assessing their health at age 17, 24 and now at age 30.

The researchers found that 20% of them had evidence of fatty liver disease at just 24 years of age.

Meanwhile, one in 40 – about 2.5 percent – ​​had more advanced liver disease with scarring.

Now the research team is appealing to more adults to come forward for follow-up testing in order to get to the root of the problem, the BBC reported.

This comes after studies sounded the alarm about deadly cases of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) rising over the past three decades.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is the term for a series of conditions caused by the accumulation of fat in the liver, often seen in people who are overweight or obese.

Early-stage NAFLD usually doesn’t cause any harm, but it can cause serious liver damage, including cirrhosis, if it gets worse.

Having high levels of fat in the liver is also associated with an increased risk of serious health problems, such as diabetes, high blood pressure and kidney disease.

According to British Liver Trustone in five people in the UK affected by NAFLD.

He said the rising rates are linked to rising obesity levels, as most cases are linked to being overweight.

But you can still develop the disease if you are at a healthy weight.

Participants in the Children of the 90s study had liver ultrasounds, which revealed that one in 40 (2.5%) had evidence of fatty liver disease by age 17.

This number increased to one in five by the time they were 24, with one in 40 suffering from more severe liver fibrosis.

Inflammation and fibrosis – scarring – of liver tissue can cause cirrhosis or liver failure and lead to cancer if diagnosed late or left untreated.

It found that by age 17, one in 40 participants (2.5%) had evidence of fatty liver disease.

By age 24, one in five (just over 20%) had evidence of fatty liver disease and one in 40 had more severe liver fibrosis.

Kushala Abeysekera, clinical professor at the National Institute for Health and Care Research at the University of Bristol, said there was a long phase in which people with early stages of NAFLD had no symptoms, providing a window to intervene and reverse liver damage.

“When people develop disease, it is usually after years of silent disease as the liver becomes more and more scarred,” he said.

“When the liver begins to fail Unfortunately, patients can develop fluid in the abdomen, can become a little confused, and are at risk for serious and potentially fatal intestinal bleeding.”

It’s not an old person’s disease

NAFLD is often referred to as “silent” as most people don’t realize they have it in its early stages.

Freddie Draper, 31, was one of thousands who signed up for the Children of the 90s study and recently returned for an ultrasound to check his liver.

“I just assumed it affected older, unhealthy people,” he said of NAFLD.

“What I found most surprising was that the percentage of people in my age group suffering from the disease was so high.

“Any illness without symptoms is pretty scary, to be honest.”

Researchers collected data from 4,021 24-year-olds in 2016 and 2017.

The team is now evaluating participants when they reach the age of 30 and hope to complete the same number of liver tests to better understand the factors that are causing some people to develop liver disease earlier.

More than 7,500 people have participated in the @30 Clinic study so far, and the team hopes to attract 2,000 more before this ends. summer.

Professor Nic Timpson, principal investigator at Children of the 90s, said: “The health data collected at this clinic will enable life-changing research and have a huge impact on many areas of life. Science.”

Who is most at risk for NAFLD?

According to The British Liver TrustThe following factors may increase the risk of NAFLD:

• Being overweight or obese
• Have a high waist measurement
• Having type 2 diabetes
• A diet with lots of unhealthy foods and drinks
• Low levels of physical activity or spending a lot of time sitting
• Having high levels of blood lipids, such as cholesterol
• Have high blood pressure
• Other conditions linked to insulin resistance, e.g. polycystic ovary syndrome