Learn about pancreatic steatosis.

Today I bring you medical information about fat in the pancreas. Have you heard about pancreatic steatosis? It’s a pathology on the pancreas. But first I want you to know something about what it is and what the pancreas is for.

The pancreas is an organ located behind the stomach. It’s in charge of producing a triple function in the organism.

One of its functions produces pancreatic juices that then pass into the intestinal tract through the duodenum to transform the acid produced there as a result of food consumption and thus produce the alkalinity of the environment.

It also produces hormones such as insulin, which is responsible for breaking down the sugars we consume in the diet.

And it produces enzymes that intervene in the degradation of the food we consume to transform it into energy or fat deposits.

So now we know that the pancreas produces enzymes, hormones and fluids. Its proper functioning is synergistic with other organs of the body. The alteration of the balance of the pancreas when generating some of its products leads, as a consequence, to the creation of known pathologies such as diabetes, by not producing insulin or producing too little, or by decreasing the production of its juices or enzymes for other pathologies.

Fat in the pancreas can occur due to an inadequate intake of fats, carbohydrates, sugars and others.

The ultrasound study is very sensitive to detect if the pancreas is overloading its structure, its parenchyma, with excess fat. Because first the fat accumulates on the body surface as a deposit and then by maintaining a persistent bad eating habit the fat accumulates inside the pancreas and also in the blood vessels.

So fat in the pancreas can be detected primarily through abdominal ultrasound before blood levels can report increased cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood.

In many cases the levels of cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood are normal and when a control ultrasound is performed, the presence of fat in the pancreas is found as a casual finding.

In the ultrasound, the examining physician can observe how the image in gray scale of the organ under study has a more condensed gray level. A pancreas that presents a color that tends to be whiter than gray is observed. And, as the deposit increases it becomes whiter and whiter.

This is a pathology that is reversible. In other words, the patient must follow a diet very similar to weight loss diets. Since that is exactly what may be causing the fat to accumulate in your pancreas.

You can combine the diet with some physical activity and this way the fat accumulated in your pancreas will go down quickly.

Walking for half an hour is recommended for older adults. Walking for half an hour in airy places, in a relaxed but constant way will make the treatment with diet and medication more effective and faster.

Pancreatic steatosis or fat in the pancreas is currently being considered and given more relevance than it had in the past, especially with the fact that previously it was not relevant or treated when blood levels did not report any increase.

By now it's known that ultrasounds can detect the deposition of fat in an early way and we can act quickly to avoid altering the blood levels in time.

I hope that this information, that I have tried to give in the most understandable way possible, is of your pleasant reception.