How to know if you need a liver detox diet

Someday you may notice that your body is so out of sync. You tire easily, have digestion problems, get bloated, struggle to lose weight, and feel your metabolism is practically at a stand still. These may all be signs that the liver is in trouble and needs detoxification or even medical attention.

The liver is the largest organ in the body and has numerous functions. In fact, it is the liver that manages the entire immune system and regulates metabolism, fats and proteins. The liver also acts as a manufacturing plant. When it works properly, the liver turns glucose (sugar) into another form glycogen for storage. It can release glucose when needed to maintain sugar levels in the blood. In addition, the liver acts as a storehouse for vital nutrients, iron, vitamin A, vitamin B, and B complex vitamins. The liver also creates more carbohydrates from fats and proteins.

As a detoxifying machine the liver works hard to rid toxins that attack and cause damage to the liver and other organs. Foods that are no longer fresh contain toxins and so do leftover foods from a previous meal.

You need to heed the signals the liver is putting out. You may have a fatty liver, developing liver failure, or simply have a sluggish liver that needs cleansing. There are many causes of a sluggish liver, liver disease and liver failure. You probably know that the most common cause is alcoholism. Other causes are overeating, diets rich in fats and sugars, analgesics and acetaminophen, some prescription drugs, household cleansers, pesticides, toxic chemicals in the workplace, and infections from hepatitis A, B and C.

If you are having some symptoms of poor liver function and want to reverse the damage, you can detox the liver with an alcohol-free liver tonic. Liver tonics are available at health food stores and pharmacies. You may also want to incorporate some of these suggestions into your daily lifestyle.

1. Limit or avoid alcohol, foods with preservatives, candies, pastries, ice cream, chips, creamy sauces and gravies, fried foods. If your diet contains these, you may end up with a fatty liver which can lead to even more serious diseases of the liver.

2. Avoid eating when you are not hungry. Instead eat a light snack.

3. Avoid getting dehydrated. Drink at least eight glasses of water, preferably filtered water since tap water may contain harmful sediments from the pipes.

4. Avoid sugars. The liver converts sugar into fat. Too much sugar will cause you to get fat and will damage your liver, heart and kidneys.

5. Limit eating meat to two or three times a week. Substitute beans and proteinrich food.

6. Avoid fats, especially saturated fats.

7. Eat carrot, beats, alfalfa and parsley to protect the liver from toxins.

You can find extensive information to cleanse the liver in the book, “The Liver Cleansing Diet.” This book includes an eight-week plan complete with easy recipes to follow. If you need to lose weight, you will probably lose a few pounds with the plan.

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Source:

Cabot, Sandra, M.D. The Liver Cleansing Diet. 1996.

Scottsdale, Arizona, S.C.B. International. 1997.

Internet site: www.whas.com.au.

The liver in our body is an essential organ in the process of detoxification of the human body. Its most important task is to aid our body to get rid of toxic substances that were ingested through food. It facilitates in getting rid of the toxic remainders of the foods we ingest, and cleanses the human system.

Liver creates bile in the polygonal liver cells from cholesterol and bile salts. When the biliary system is functioning well, it cleanses the accumulated waste and toxins that have been absorbed from the blood, intended to be discarded as waste from the body. But if waste is not ejected, it will accumulate and harm all other organs of the body.

Body detoxification or frequently known as body detox is the method of eliminating toxins from the body, which is normally discarded by the body’s natural detoxification organs, liver and kidneys. Detoxifying these organs is critical because while our body has a very effective natural detoxification system, the body is repeatedly exposed to too many toxic elements that can build up in the liver and kidneys and may cause a wide range of illnesses.

There are numerous methods to detox the liver and kidney but the most popular way is to go on a liver detox diet. When on a liver detox diet, certain forms of foods are removed from consumption while some specific kinds of foods are combined to produce the effect of motivating the waste purging process of the body. Fasting or refraining from food is another well accepted way to purify the body. When you are fasting, you are actually allowing the body to get rid of toxins while preventing the intake of new toxic substances. While fasting, you only take in liquids like water or natural juice. Fasting can be done over a period of 1 to 2 days or more depending on the diet.

While on a liver detox diet, it’s advisable to drink a lot of water as water helps to cleanse the body of toxins and also help the liver to function properly. It’s paramount to keep away from processed foods as most processed foods include refined sugars, chemicals and preservatives. Your diet ought to comprise of wholesome foods such as fresh fruits, whole grains and hormone free animal products in your diet as these foods help to keep your liver in good condition and functioning properly.

A liver detox diet is also recognized as diet that is able to amplify the energy level in your body. The reason is because once you removed the quantity of accumulated toxins in your body, your liver will not use up huge amount of energy trying to eliminate these toxins and thus providing you with extra energy for your everyday activities. A healthy lifestyle gives you a healthy body.

You could bring back hormonal balance if you detox liver with the help of dandelion. The reason is because the liver metabolizes hormones. Making sure your liver is in good condition will help you with symptoms of menopause, PMS, and irregular menstrual cycles.

Liver cleansing detox diet has been known to help treat skin disorders like acne. The explanation is that it is because whatever we eat will go through the liver first and because of that, most toxic substances will build up in the liver and if the liver is not well, it will become congested and unable to function correctly and this lead to unhealthy skin.

Liver cleansing detox diet is a fine method to lose surplus body weight. This is because getting rid of the accumulated toxins also means reducing the total amount of fats in your body. A healthy diet also means that you may have to cook your foods at home and avoid eating at the junk food outlets, the end result that you get will be worth the effort that you take now. Have a question about body detox? Ask your question in a detox forum.