Your body has three main pathways of elimination. The kidneys, skin, and liver. You liver is basically a full time, non-stop, filter. With every heartbeat, it is filtering the blood that pumps throughout your system. In this way, it is regulating your body’s many processes. For starters, it is responsible for activating and converting hormones, regulating metabolic process, regulating blood sugar, fighting infections, forming nutrients and hormones, and more. If your liver is weak, is clogged, or is not optimally functioning, you won’t feel well.
There are lots of things that can effect the functioning of the liver. These include having large levels of toxins in your body, being low in nutrients, and poor gut health, to name a few. Here are some things you can do to show some love to your liver so that you can feel your best.
Moderate Your Caffeine and Alcohol Intake
Your body breaks down alcohol into a chemical, that in abundance, can severely damage the liver. So you may want to consider limiting your intake to one or two drinks a day. Some wellness advocates go a step further and encourage people who drink hard alcohol, to drink alcohol that is colorless and has no added sugar. So vodka instead of amaretto.
Too much caffeine can be an issue as well because the caffeine speeds up the phase 1 detoxification of the liver and does nothing to the phase 2 detoxification. This means the toxins that are agitated by the phase 1 process are not moved out as quickly they would be if phase 1 and 2 were operating at the same speed.
Eat Bitters
Bitters help stomach acid and improve digestion, and many are also antimicrobial. They have a powerful taste, and a powerful effect on your liver’s function. The bitter taste itself helps bowel secretion and liver function. Examples of bitters are dandelion leaves, chicory, radicchio, arugula, kale and dill.
Minimize Use of Over the Counter and Prescription Medications
Nobody used to think much of Tylenol, Advil and other common pain relievers. But now that the statics are in, it’s clear how hard they are on your liver. Turns out that Tylenol (acetaminophen) has been found to be our nation’s leading cause of acute liver failure, according to data from an ongoing study funded by the National Institutes for Health. In addition, analysis of national mortality files shows about 450 deaths occur each year from acetaminophen-associated overdoses. And 100 of these are unintentional. Naproxen and ibuprofen are also bad. Sometimes nothing can substitute for one of these pain killers, but use them sparingly, and help your liver out with some milk thistle or dandelion tea.
Regular Elimination
If you are drinking plenty of water and getting lots of healthy fiber, having a bowel movement every day should not be a problem. Your liver will thank you for exporting the solid toxins out of your body. If you are not having daily bowel movements, then consider adding in some fiber, magnesium, and extra water. Good sources of fiber include leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cabbage, nuts and seeds, peas and pre-soaked beans, squash and potatoes, berries, apples, pears, along with figs and dates.
Quality Protein
Your liver needs plenty of essential amino acids, especially for the second phase of detoxification. Your body can not make essential amino acids, they must come from the food you eat. Foods that contain all nine essential amino acids are referred to as complete proteins. Sources of complete protein sources include meat, seafood, poultry, eggs and dairy products. Soy, quinoa and buckwheat are plant-based foods that contain all nine essential amino acids, making them complete protein sources as well.
The currently popular collagen supplements have 8 of the 9 essential amino acids. It is only missing tryptophan which can be gotten from the complete proteins listed above or in supplement form. As always, these foods should be consumed in the purist form possible, or you will be adding to the work your liver has to do.
Did this help you? If so, I’d greatly appreciate it if you commented and/or share it on social media.
Email: sharonledwards@hotmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharonledwardsbiz/