The largest organ of the body by mass is the liver. It is an organ that we often take for granted but it is extremely hard working 24 hours per day, every day. The liver is the only visceral organ that can regenerate itself. It is important to take care of your liver, so it works efficiently your entire life.
The ancient world considered the liver the repository of life and the seat of inner emotion; and in Chinese medicine, cleansing the liver directly correlates with the balance of nature and seasonal rhythms. We often spring clean our homes, but our bodies could use some spring cleaning, and spring is a perfect time to support your liver’s detoxification process.
Let’s look at the functions of the liver:
- Carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism (yes, everything we eat).
- Formation and storage of vitamins and minerals.
- Disassembles unwanted chemical compounds which can include drugs, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, herbicides, and toxins from the GI tract.
- Impacts normal human growth and development, fertility, cardiovascular maintenance, and bone integrity.
- Filters the blood coming in from the GI tract.
- Makes and secretes bile which serves as a carrier of many toxic compounds out of the body.
The liver is a very hard-working organ; unfortunately, it is often the most abused organ in the body.
With the liver being a detoxifier of the body and our environment becoming more toxic, let’s look at some ways to support our livers:
Improve Elimination of Toxins
- Have 1 -2 bowel movements per day (get those toxins out!).
- Drink half your weight in ounces every day of water.
- Sweat regularly through exercise and saunas.
- Regular exercise, yoga, or lymphatic massage can help flush out toxins. Dry brushing can be great for your lymphatic system; check out this post.
Increase Fiber Intake – beans, whole grains, vegetables, fruit, nuts, and seeds. It is best that all of these be properly prepared. A great book for properly preparing foods is Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. You can also check out a post on properly preparing nuts and seeds.
Feed Your Gut Healthy Bacteria – probiotic foods and probiotic supplements can be helpful.
Yes, you can do a “cleanse” to spring clean your body, but daily helping your liver detox through food can be beneficial as well.
Let’s look at foods that can daily help you detoxify and “spring clean” your body.
Organic Foods – choosing organic foods reduces the amount of pesticides and herbicides that your body needs to eliminate; therefore, the liver doesn’t need to work so hard. Check out this post on organic foods.
Sulphur-containing proteins such as eggs and whey protein. Sulphur is required for the detoxification pathways of the liver.
Cleansing Vegetables:
- Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and kale can aid in enzyme production in the liver which can flush out carcinogens and other toxins. A great goal would be 1 cup of cruciferous vegetables every day.
- Sulphur-containing alliums such as garlic, onions, and shallots. A small amount each day activates liver enzymes to help flush out toxins.
- Dandelion greens help with liver detoxification, improve bile function, and increase urine flow. Check out this recent post on dandelions.
- Fresh vegetable juice, including carrots, celery, cilantro, beets, parsley, and ginger are great options. Beets and carrots improve overall liver function.
- Dark leafy greens are a powerful ally in cleansing the liver. Greens suck up environmental toxins from the blood system; they neutralize heavy metals, chemicals and pesticides making them a powerful mechanism for the liver. Greens are one of the first crops from spring gardens so nature may be telling us it is time to clean house!
Cleansing Fruits:
- Grapefruit increases the natural cleansing processes of the liver.
- Lemons and Limes are high in vitamin C which aids in the synthesizing of toxic material; drinking freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice in the morning will help stimulate the liver.
- Avocados are nutrient dense and help the body produce glutathione which is necessary for the liver to cleanse harmful toxins.
- Grapes, berries, and citrus fruits contain bioflavonoids which protect the liver against free radical damage.
Herbs:
- Teas that can be detoxifying include dandelion, ginger root, licorice root, cardamom seed, cinnamon bark, and green tea.
- Cilantro may help remove toxic metals.
- Rosemary contains carnosol which boosts detoxification enzymes.
Have you used a “cleanse” product in the past? How did it work for you? Do you think you could add many of these foods to encourage detoxification through your liver?
Be blessed and be a blessing,
Heather
- Bauman, E., M.Ed. and Friedlander, J., NC. (2015). Therapeutic nutrition, part 1. Nutrition Consultant Program. Bauman College, Penngrove, CA.
- Treadway, S, Ph.D. (1998). An ayurvedic herbal approach to a healthy liver. Clinical Nutrition Insights Vol. 6, No. 16. Advanced Nutrition Publications, Inc.
- http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/liver-cleanse-foods/
- https://sagehealthonline.com/spring-the-ideal-time-of-year-for-cleansing/