A lot of people talk about liver cleanses and detoxing the liver in the Spring.
Why is it important to do liver cleanses or a liver detox?
Lets first talk about what the liver does for our body. The liver’s main job is to make sure that the body absorbs everything it needs and eliminates everything it doesn’t need – it is a major organ involved in digestion by emulsifying fats and assimilation, and it is vital in helping the body to eliminate toxic wastes as well break down our key reproductive hormones especially estrogen.
The liver performs over 500 known functions. That’s a lot of work for one organ to do even under the best of conditions; but unfortunately most people’s liver is not in good shape because of the stress filled world they live in, our diets and the toxins we are exposed to on a day to day basis.
Food additives, pesticides, pollution, drugs, anger, processed food – especially white flour, refined sugar, saturated, rancid and hydrogenated fats, smoked meats and alcohol are toxic to the delicate operation of liver cells. A three to seven day vegetable juice fast would help to quickly relive the body of much waste however if the other organs of detoxification are not functioning well, doing just any cleanse might be harmful for your body. Talk to you naturopath before starting any cleanses or detox. Click here for more information on detox / cleanses.
If your nourish your body well, and keeping your cleaning crew working properly and staying in a positive state of mind and let go of anger with various stress management techniques– your liver will keep you being a happy liver!
Here are a few simple suggestions you can try at home to improve the state of your liver as well, detoxify it gently:
1. Have 1/2 lime squeezed with warm water on rising
2. Mixed any fresh squeezed citrus juice – grapefruit, orange, lemon or lime – to make 300 ml (11oz) of juice (the more sour the better – as bitter tasting fruit and vegetables stimulate bile flow). This mixture can be watered to taste with distilled water. You can have this first thing in the morning before breakfast with some warm water.
3. Have more bitter vegetables such as dandelion in your salads as these help stimulate release of bile from the liver.
4. Have more liver cleansing foods such as beet roots and carrots, and avoid alcohol, caffeine and meats for the first few weeks of the Spring and the Fall.
To eliminate small gall bladder stones, use the recipe above the with the following steps:
1. Finely grate one or two cloves of fresh garlic and a small amount of fresh ginger – press to make juice – add this juice to the water and citrus juice mixture.
2. Pour 300 ml (11oz) of high-quality, cold-pressed, extra-virgin olive oil into a warm glass.
3. Every 15 minutes swallow 3 tablespoon of citrus juice mixture and 3 tablespoon of olive oil. Relax in between doses by lying down with a hot water bottle over liver area – this helps to release any sediment or small stones (gall stones)
Please talk to your naturopathic physician before attempting any cleanses or detox.
BY: SUSHMA SHAH, NATUROPATHIC DOCTOR AT THE NATURE’S INTENTIONS NATUROPATHIC CLINIC