A Longer Life Starts with a Healthy Liver
The liver—it’s something most of us don’t think about. Yet the liver function is affected by everything we eat and drink. Living an unhealthy lifestyle makes the liver work twice as hard to keep the body clean.
The second largest organ in our body; it’s the organ that processes and purifies our blood, metabolizes proteins and stores essential minerals and vitamins. It removes harmful bacteria found in our bloodstream. If there’s a problem with the liver then the other organs are impacted as well.
While you may not have your liver function tested until you see a problem, there are ways to tell if your liver is working properly. Dark circles under your eyes & sallow skin means the liver is not working at its peak. Stick out your tongue. Is there a yellowish coating on it? Are you arthritic or irritable? Are you having trouble digesting fatty foods? These may be signs that your liver needs some attention.
When your liver isn’t healthy, you may have an increased risk for obesity, cardiovascular disease, digestive problems, allergies, chronic fatigue, headaches, & even some PMS symptoms.
There are several detox remedies that can help clean the liver but you can do it naturally by adding certain foods to your diet.
Here are a few foods that will naturally clean your liver.
- Grapefruit: It helps flush the liver of carcinogens and toxins. The vitamin C and antioxidant properties of grapefruit can also help boost the immune system. Slice it, peel it or drink it, it doesn’t matter how you do it, consider adding grapefruit to your weekly meal plan.
- Garlic: Allicin and selenium aid in cleansing the liver and are naturally found in garlic. In addition, garlic helps the liver flush toxins by activating certain enzymes. Try adding a clove of garlic to chili, spaghetti sauce, and casseroles.
- Green Tea: It not only tastes good, green tea contains antioxidants that improve liver function. Consider having a glass or two a day to help boost your liver function.
- Beets & Carrots: Packed with beta-carotene and plant-flavonoids, they help stimulate liver function. It doesn’t take much to make a difference so add a few extras to a salad, soup or other favorite dish.
- Leafy Greens: Great in salads, chicory, spinach, dandelion greens, and other greens help neutralize the metals, pesticides, and chemicals found in some foods. These leafy greens are great on sandwiches, in pitas, on pizza and so much more.
- Avocado: In order for the liver to work properly, it needs glutathione – a compound that avocados can help the body produce. Make fresh guacamole, add slices of avocado to a salad, or sandwich to give your liver a boost.
- Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower and other cruciferous vegetables: These delicious vegetables help create natural enzymes that aid in flushing out toxins and carcinogens in the body. Steamed veggies, coleslaw, sauerkraut, and soups are great ways to add these veggies to your diet.
- Citrus Fruits: Lemons, limes and other citrus fruits contain a bounty of Vitamin C which helps break down toxins and aids in digestion. Kick start your liver each morning by drinking a glass of cold water and eating a piece of citrus fruit.
- Tumeric This little spice helps stimulate the production of bile and other enzymes that jump start the liver. Add a bit of turmeric to your next batch of soup, stew, casserole, chili or any side dish.
- Walnuts: Packed with arginine, glutathione and omega-3 fatty acids walnuts aid the liver in removing ammonia from the body. Eat them plain; add them to salads and other side dishes for a wallop of goodness.
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In addition to eating the above foods, there are many other things you can do to improve the health of your liver. Let’s take a look at a few.
- Avoid consuming large quantities of alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, sugar and sugar substitutes, as well as salt. These are hard on the liver.
- Add some low-impact exercise to your daily routine. These can be as simple as taking the stairs instead of an elevator or walking the dog once or twice a day.
- Drink plenty of water, at least 2 liters a day. Reduce the amount of tea, soda and other sugary drinks you consume.
- Eat plenty of whole foods including cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and soy bean products. Herbs like Echinacea, milk thistle or dandelion root are good at cleaning the blood.
- Antibiotics and antacids should be avoided except when absolutely necessary.
Relax, laugh & have fun! Consider adding relaxation & meditation exercises to your day. Which might just relieve your stress & anxiety.
Taking care of our liver isn’t something we think about every day. But by living a healthy, natural lifestyle we can help keep it working at its peak. A healthy liver can mean a longer, more fulfilling life.