The Liver: The Ultimate Eliminator

The Liver is really the unsung hero when it comes to our overall health. This organ is so hearty, that you can actually live a very healthy life with only half of a liver. It’s also one of the few organs we have with a robust regenerative capacity, meaning that it can replace cells very quickly and is somewhat resistant to damage. Think of the person who’s been drinking heavily for 20+ years, but they are only starting to have issues with their liver now! Mind you that is not an invitation to abuse your liver.

Why do we care about Liver Health?
One of the most important functions of the liver is to detoxify our bodies. With the popularity of detox diets these days many people worry about the liver’s ability to detoxify, but in fact there’s no need to worry because unless your liver is in the final stages of failure then it’s going to detoxify your body all on its own. Without getting too in depth with the physiology, the liver breaks everything down in two phases, the fat- soluble and water- soluble toxins.

Phase 1 Detox (Fat Soluble toxins) 

• CYP 450 Enzymes do the initial breakdown and processing of: carbs, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals
  
• First pass effect: all drugs and chemicals entering the body pass through on the way to the rest of the digestive tract
  

Phase 2 Detox (Water Soluble toxins)

• Conjugation Pathways (refinery)
  
• Refines and filters: some particulates are recycled into the body and others are filtered out of the body into urine, feces and bile

 All this means is that everything needs to be broken down in stages, so it can be effectively recycled or shuttled out of the body in the form of waste (namely urine or stool). If these functions aren’t done properly, this can have profound effects on just about every other system in the body. If the liver isn’t functioning properly then overall digestion, metabolism, hormonal balance and the immune system don’t function well.
 
The Liver performs the following vital functions:

• Balances cholesterol and blood sugar
• Creates bile to aid in digestion
• Produces clotting factors and various blood transport mechanisms
• Breaks down old blood cells, bacteria, alcohol, and hormones

 
Essentially, without the liver it would not be possible to survive very long.
 
We are living in a Toxic world
We are exposed to all kinds of toxins every day of our lives. From the moment we are conceived, we are exposed to toxins through our mother.  At present, there are over 80,000 chemicals registered by the Environmental Protection Agency.  3,800 are ‘high-use’ chemicals and less than ½ have been assessed for toxic effects in humans.  Less than 9% of these chemicals have been assessed for toxic effects on children. If we don’t take care of our liver’s health, we won’t be able to function in our toxic laden environment.
 
How do we know we’re experiencing symptoms of toxicity?
Well that in and of itself is part of the problem. The overall symptoms of toxicity are quite general, and can easily be mistaken as part of another problem. Some of the symptoms include: fatigue, headaches, muscle and joint pain, mood changes, cognitive impairment and possibly neurological problems.

Are you susceptible to toxicity?
Multiple factors affect how your body deals with toxic burden.

• Genetics
  
• Diet and nutritional status
  
• Lifestyle and individual exposures
  
• History of antibiotic or drug use
  
• Emotional well-being.
  

To better understand what toxicity looks like in the body, the analogy I like to use is a bucket.

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We all have different buckets, some are short and fill very quickly, or have a spout that doesn’t drain effectively, or perhaps an average size bucket with a decently emptying spout. However your bucket functions, determines how quickly it will fill (accumulate toxins) or empty (eliminate toxins). Unfortunately, those of us with shorter buckets/poorly draining spouts are more likely to build up toxins quickly and/or not eliminate them quickly enough to avoid symptoms of toxicity.

What Can We Do?

Work with a medical professional to help correct problems

• Naturopathic Doctors can recommend herbs, nutrients, and various other substances as appropriate to optimize routes of elimination. For example, most bitter dark leafy greens that are among the first to come up in the spring (Eg. dandelions and wild lettuces) are great liver cleansers. Adding some of these greens to a salad makes for a happy functioning liver.
  

Regularly optimize routes of elimination

• Once to twice a year use easy focused strategies to optimize function of the liver and other organs of elimination (eg. kidneys) to prevent toxic overload. One such strategy I often suggest is a glass of room temperature to slightly warm water with lemon slices first thing in the morning. This helps to get the liver primed and ready to work optimally during the day.
  

Minimize exposure to toxins everyday

• Check labels on foods, cleaning products and personal hygiene products. Choose products with low/no chemicals. The majority of pre-packaged food products have some sort of preservative in them to help keep them 'fresh' on the shelf for longer, increasing your daily toxin exposure.
  

Note: Talk to your Naturopathic Doctor today about getting assessed and treated if needed, and as always talk to your health care provider before beginning any new medication or supplement. This information is not meant to replace the advice/guidance of a medical professional, nor should it be acted upon by individuals unsupervised by the appropriate healthcare provider.