What Does the Liver Do in the Body?

Second in organ size only to the skin, the liver performs many functions that are essential to life. It clears the blood of harmful substances, releases glucose so the body can have energy and releases bile into the small intestine so fat can be absorbed for nutrition.

Anatomy

• The liver is located in the abdominal cavity, slightly to the right and front of the abdomen. A normal liver is dark red and smooth. Attached to the liver is the gall bladder, where excess bile is collected for later delivery to the small intestine via the common biliary duct. The liver has many veins and arteries because a lot of its work is based on clearing and delivering chemicals from and to the blood.

Role in Blood Production

• During gestation, a fetus creates most of its red blood cells in the liver. This process switches to the bone marrow of long bones as the child is born and grows. Even then, the liver continues to play a role in the life of red blood cells. It takes old red blood cells and the debris from their natural destruction and recycles the iron for use in new red blood cells. A byproduct of this process is bilirubin, which is used to create bile for other functions.

Role in Digestion

• The liver creates a chemical compound called bile that is made from bilirubin, cholesterol and other compounds. Bile serves as a surfactant, meaning that it allows for fat-soluble compounds to be absorbed into the water-soluble blood circulation through the intestines. Bile is created in the liver and transferred to the small intestine through the common biliary duct. The duct delivers bile from the liver and amylase from the pancreas to aid in digestion.

Role in Detox

• The liver plays a large role in detoxifying the body from otherwise deadly chemicals. It does this because enzymes within the liver cells are able to break down chemicals into less toxic forms that are then removed from the body through the kidneys or the intestines. One example is ethyl alcohol found in many alcoholic beverages. At high concentrations, alcohol is deadly to living cells. However, the liver takes alcohol and chemically alters it to a less toxic and water-soluble form that is later excreted through the kidneys. This is not without harm to the liver because alcohol is also deadly to liver cells.

Role in Metabolism

• The liver stores large amounts of glucose (blood sugar) in the form of glycogen and releases it as necessary. The liver also takes fat circulating in the blood and transforms it into glucose. Both of these functions take place when glucagon, a hormone from the pancreas, is released in response to low blood glucose levels.