Love For The Liver
I will be the first to admit that I don’t know much about the liver. I cannot tell you exactly where it is located (same for the kidneys…oof); I know it acts as a filter for our bodies but other than that I’m pretty clueless on the role of the liver.
Perhaps because the liver feels unsexy; the heart and brain are so important, and the lungs and skin, yep those are important too. But the liver? And that shape?
October is also liver awareness month which feels overshadowed by all the breast cancer awareness.
Is your liver in trouble? And what exactly does it do?
According to The Medical Medium, the liver is a storehouse, a filter, a processing center, a garbage service, and more.
In his book, The Liver Rescue, he lays out (over the course of 450 pages) the role and the responsibility and the care for the big organ.
For example, I did not know the liver did all of these things for my body:
Processes fat
Protects the pancreas (enter diabetes)
Store glucose and glycogen (the exact fuel our brains need)
Stores minerals and vitamins (important in our world of convenience eating)
Detains and disarms harmful materials (read toxins)
Screens and filters the blood
Guards you with its own immune system
Goodness, what a hero!
Given all of this, I’m on a mission to help keep this hero in ship shape with these tips and more!
REDUCE MY FAT INTAKE
Good, bad, and in between, fat is necessary but too much of it (even the good kind) has a negative effect on the liver.
Aim for a 15% (or less) of fat intake on the daily. Great sources: avocados, coconut, olives, nuts & seeds.
Fill the rest of my plate with fruits and veggies (organic where possible)! Here are some of the top foods for your liver
Broccoli (encourages production of digestive enzymes)
Spinach & arugula (neutralizes heavy metals)
Lemon (high in vitamin C, eliminates toxins)
Start the day with a glass of warm filtered water and 1 drop of lemon essential oil
Garlic (flushes out toxins)
Beets (neutralizes free radicals)
FUEL MY BODY WITH CARBS
Stay with me here! Our nervous system and our brain run on glucose (which is sugar) & mineral salts. All this confusion around carbs has made it out to be an enemy; while some carbs are not fuel for the body (like sugar and pasta and cookies), some are excellent fuel sources.
Pumpkin, sweet potatoes, potatoes, squash, zucchini, berries, and other fruit.
TAKE GUT HEALTH SERIOUSLY
There are suggestions made that the health of the liver is closely connected to the health of the gut. I would believe it! The more I learn about the gut, the more I realize that I have NOT been taking it seriously!
Beneficial bacteria in the gut can help protect your liver from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Great news - now how!
Combine healthy eating (see above for a place to start) with a good probiotic. My daily probiotic of choice is Digestion +; I mix it with one scoop of Greens Balance and one dose of Mind Health for my GREEN SHOT.
“I like it because it is good for me,” is the song I sing when downing it as it is not the most appetizing but truly I don’t care because health is worth more than wealth!
REPLACE COCKTAILS WITH MOCKTAILS
It took me a year to get to a place where I didn’t think about my daily glass(es) of wine. A year!
Little by little, day by day, I was able to distance myself from the terrible habit and dare I say, addiction. One thing that helped me was fake cocktails (also known as mocktails).
I am currently loving Pink Lady Apple Kombucha mixed with sparkling water in a champagne flute. Fancy and healthy!
DRINK TEA TO DETOX YOUR LIVER
Milk Thistle is quite possibly the best known herb for liver support. It is a powerful antioxidant that scavenges damaging free radicals all while boosting your body’s own antioxidants. It inhibits inflammation, and stimulates new liver cell production.
When I feel sluggish, I replace my morning latte with a tizzy (energy fizz stick + detox tea). The taste is amazing and I still get energy for the day while loving up on my liver at the same time!
While the liver isnt the sexiest organ in our body, it does rank up there with effectiveness and importance!
Let’s keep it running as smooth as possible so it can do it’s job!
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