How to improve the health of your Liver!
5 steps to cleanse the liver
5 superfoods to support the liver
What to avoid
Why should you care about cleansing your liver? Well, did you know the liver is one of the most important organs in the body. It filters and detoxifies all toxins, waste, foreign chemicals and products in the body. The liver works with the kidneys and the lymphatic system to eliminate these products from our bodies. Just as a note, I am not telling you to do everything in this post it is just a recommendation. Also, I always recommend to do a parasite cleanse and a kidney cleanse BEFORE a liver cleanse. As human's we filters and detox 24/7, 365 days of the year. There is no such things as a 1 week detox, but in that time you are supporting and building the liver back up to a healthy state! Our bodies will do what it can to keep up with the physical and chemical demand but after a while, we will hit a point of fatigue and toxic overload. With all of the pollution, environmental toxins, food preservatives and additives we are exposed to daily, our liver is SCREAMING for support!!
The Liver:
Removes toxins in the blood stream and body Breaks down alcohol and medications Destroys old red blood cells Helps regulate blood composition Processes nutrients so they are better absorbed into the blood stream Stores certain minerals and vitamins like Iron and Vitamin A
Our liver detoxifies in 2 separate PHASES. I can get pretty deep into the discussion of these 2 phases, but it would probably extremely bore some of you, haha. So let me give you a quick break down! PHASE I Simply, this pathway converts toxic harmful chemicals into a less harmful chemical. This happens by the help of antioxidants and several chemical reactions! PHASE II This pathway is where liver cells will add one of their molecules to harmful chemical substance, toxin or drug and make it less harmful. These phases happen all day and each phase requires certain supporting nutrients to properly function. Pretty neat huh? The liver is a extremely powerful organ that needs daily support. I created this post to increase your knowledge about the liver and how to properly support the detox process!
Poor Functioning Liver:
Yellowish tint to skin or eyes Bloating, gas and constipation Inability to lose weight Dark urine Chronic fatigue and exhaustion Excessive sweating Poor appetite
5 Steps to Cleanse the Liver:
1. Decrease Toxic Overload
The toxic overload determines how toxic you are! Eating processed foods, having a stressed and angry mind, living in a toxic environment etc. are all things that will increase your toxic load and put your liver at risk. Eventually living this lifestyle you will hit a point of toxic overload, going the opposite way down the river of health. The liver is the main organ that processes all of these toxic products, it can hit an overload. Decreasing your toxic load is the first step to cleansing the liver. Start by decreasing the amount of processed foods you eat. Including processed meats (deli meats), flours (white bread), sugar (white sugar) and fats. When these foods are processed it is depleting their nutrient value and content, making it non-valuable in nutrition. With no nutrients your body will not be satisfied when you eat it. Chemicals, hydrogenated oils and refined sugar are all added into the convenience food we have learned to love. Companies add ingredients like chemicals to make the food last longer, stop any bacteria growth and will preserve the artificial color. Crazy right? All of these chemicals and additives are going to be processed by your liver and overtime it will continue to be damaged. The key is to finding alternatives for these convenience foods!
2. Drink Raw Veggie Juice
Drinking raw vegetable juice is probably one of the best things you can do for your liver. Vegetables are nutrient dense (containing specific nutrients that are very beneficial for the liver), fueling and filling, cleansing and delicious! Most humans are not getting the amount of vegetables they should be every day, so having 1 glass of vegetable juice per day can be an excellent way to boost you liver daily. By juicing the vegetables it will make them easier to digest and the nutrients will be better absorbed. There are certain vegetables that are best for juicing like apples, beets, carrots, celery, kale and cucumber! All vegetables are nutrient dense, will reduce acid levels in the body creating a healthier pH balance and have a high fiber content which will help with the elimination of toxins. Fresh, organic vegetables are one of the most purest things on the planet and will help bring your liver back into a healthy state.
3. Take Supplements
As much as I wish eating right did it all, unfortunately it does not. Like I said earlier our bodies are exposed to toxins everyday, basically everywhere we go and our soils are depleted so the nutrient value that should be in our foods is just not there anymore. So that's why I am such a firm believer in supplementation. Now when I say this I don't mean popping natural pills all day, but learning about supplements can really open to your eyes to how it to can support our body and organs. You can get very overwhelmed in a supplement store, not knowing which way to go or where to look first. Haha a couple of years ago that was me, and there are so many different supplements out there you may feel like you don't know what to chose. Well there are many supplements that support the liver, but I want to share a couple with you that are proven to have beneficial effects on the liver! MILK THISTLE One of the best detoxifying herbs which helps to eliminate the buildup of chemicals, heavy metals, toxins, pollutants and alcohol. Also helps to reduce the negative side effects that happens to the liver after chemo and radiation treatments by keeping the liver cell walls healthy. TURMERIC I use turmeric daily! One contains some of the strongest anti-inflammatory compounds found on earth. The medicinal component in turmeric is curcuma (curcumin) which has powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Inflammation can be caused by so many different factors and overtime this will put damage on the liver. Turmeric helps reduce joint pain, supports digestion, blood sugar balance and healthy liver tissue and metabolism. Such an amazing and powerful plant! Please get your hands on some turmeric. I take up 1 tsp. in water and drink that every morning.
4. Bitter for the Liver What do I mean by that? Have you ever tasted something so bitter that it made you sort of gag? Well those types of foods and herbs (specifically herbs) are best for your liver and digestive system! Bitter herbs are stimulating to the liver and digestive system overall boosting their function. Taking bitter herbs in a capsule will have more of an effect on the liver and less effect on the digestive system. To get the stimulating effect in the digestive system is it best to take these herbs as a liquid directly into your mouth! There are many different bitters out there, but some of the strongest are Milk Thistle, Dandelion, Barberry, Wormwood, Gentian Root, Golden Seal and White Horehound.
5. Hydration
Hydration is key to everything in the body! When we are dehydrated it can lead to a number of things like fatigue, headaches, dry skin and hair, improper functioning of our orangs and so much more. It is very important to stay hydrated all day, everyday. Every organ and cell in our body needs water to function properly and think about it if you are trying to support and cleanse your liver, you need the flow of water to eliminate all the toxins you are cleansing yourself from!Water will carry out the toxins, chemicals and inflammatory products you are cleansing from the liver. Only pure natural water will do this! No herbal tea, no vegetable juice.. just pure water! Make sure you are getting 3+ L of water everyday to hydrate your liver, organs and cells.
5 Superfoods to Support the Liver
1. Chlorella - first-class detoxifying agent. Removes alcohol, heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides and PCB's from the liver. Can also absorb toxins from digestive tract and is able to help proliferate healthy bacteria flora. 2. Goji Berries - several phytonutrients enhance the liver's ability to detoxify and protects the organ from damage. 3. Beets - contain many different phytonutrients, antioxidants and fiber. Beets are most beneficial in juice, while raw they still contain betaine - this nutrient encourages the liver cells to get rid of toxins. 4. Cruciferous Vegetables - naturally contains sulphur. Sulphur compounds enhance the Phase II detoxification process. (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussel sprouts etc.) 5. Grapefruit - high in vitamin C, glutathione and increases cleansing in the liver. Glutathione boosts production of liver detox enzymes!
What to Avoid when Supporting the Liver
Like I have said many times in this post... environmental toxins, chemicals, pollutants etc. all have a negative effect on our liver which will overtime cause damage. These are the things to avoid when trying to cleanse the liver. Sometimes it can be impossible to get away from things like environmental toxins, but if you choose to decrease your toxic load in other ways you will be achieving ultimate health! AVOID - Cigarette smoke - Food preservatives and additives (nitrates, sulphites, BPA) - Hydrogenated oils - Processed meats and dairy - Chemicals in beauty products and food (parabens, sulphates, EDTA) - Fragrance, air fresheners and detergents (over 30 chemicals make up a single fragrance) - Stressful living