I Am Your Liver, Your Life And Mine Depend On Each Other

I am the largest and heaviest organ within the body weighing in at about 3 pounds (approx. 1.36 kilograms).

- Shri K.K.Bajaj

I appear as a spongy, reddish brown organ that lies just below the diaphragm in the abdominal cavity. Structurally, I am divided into two parts called the ‘right lobe’ and ‘left lobe’ by the “ligmentum teres” which is a cross like structure.

I am the only organ in your body that can regenerate itself.

Even if you get two thirds of me removed through trauma or surgery, I will grow back to the original size within four weeks. But this does not mean that you can afford to be careless with me.

I am the link between digestive and circulatory systems.

In order for the body to continue to live, it needs food to provide energy, repair itself, reproduce, and grow. The digestion system is designed to perform this function. Its purpose is to extract the essence from the food that we eat and discard the indigestible part as waste. Most of the food’s digestion and absorption of the essence takes place in the small intestine. The essence or nutrients of food, after being broken down, are absorbed directly into the circulatory system or blood stream. The purpose of the circulatory system is to transport the nutrients along with fresh oxygen to all the cells of the body, so that they may perform various functions for the body. However, before the blood can return to the heart, it passes through me.

Damage to me can choke almost all body systems.