So far we've covered foods that are good for the liver, how to prevent alcoholic fatty liver, and hangover foods. Today, we'll look at what happens when toxins build up in the liver, how the liver detoxifies them, and the best nutrients for liver detoxification.
Table Of Contents
Bad toxins in the liver
In the modern world, we are at risk of being exposed to all sorts of toxins. Toxins are both internally produced substances, such as free radicals and other inflammatory factors, as well as externally exposed substances. For example, everything from alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine to fast food, processed meats, food coloring, preservatives, pesticides, and even antibiotics are recognized by the body as toxins.
More recently, we've learned that particulate matter and heavy metals are also toxins. In addition, daily stress is also considered a toxin by your body, which means that these are all substances that your liver needs to detoxify.
Continued exposure to these toxins causes the body to send out a variety of signals
Signs and symptoms of toxin buildup in the liver
If you're experiencing any of the following signs, you may have a buildup of toxins in your liver and should pay close attention to your liver health.
The first sign is that your lower belly is getting out.
In other words, a bad liver can cause problems with fat metabolism. LDL, the bad cholesterol, increases, HDL, the good cholesterol, decreases, triglycerides build up, and you may develop belly fat and a fatty liver.
You should also take the development of insulin resistance as a red flag for your liver, as it increases inflammation in the body and increases abdominal fat and fatty liver, which affects the liver's detoxification metabolism.
The second sign is if you have persistent autoimmune conditions such as asthma or allergies, fibromyalgia, or are more prone to infections than others. In other words, if you have an imbalance in your immune system, various metabolites and substances from the immune response may be constantly taxing your liver's detoxification process.
If you have a third sign, such as IBS, constipation, or food allergies, it could be a sign of toxin buildup in your liver.
This is because there are a lot of different inflammatory reactions that can happen in the gut, and that can go to the liver and become a burden.
The fourth is if you have problems with the psycho-nervous system, such as depression or insomnia. Toxins specifically enter the nervous system and directly interfere with the workings of the brain and mental nervous system. In Chinese medicine, there's an old saying, "If you have a bad liver, you're angry and irritable".
Finally, the fifth sign is hormonal imbalance Estrogen is very closely related to liver metabolism. The metabolism of estrogen is all done in the liver, so if you have a bad liver, you'll see hormonal imbalances.
If you also have a very bitter taste in your mouth, an unusually dark color, or jaundice, these can be very important signals from your liver.
| Symptoms | Contents |
| My belly is getting better | Problems with fat metabolism, increased LDL cholesterol and decreased HDL cholesterol , A buildup of toxins in the liver due to insulin resistance. |
| Asthma, allergies, immune disorders, fibromyalgia | Toxin buildup in the liver due to immune imbalance |
| Irritable bowel, constipation, food allergies | Increased liver toxins |
| Depression, insomnia | Nervous system problems due to increased toxins |
| Hormonal abnormalities, bitterness, jaundice, etc. | Liver function problems, hormonal abnormalities |
All of these symptoms are caused by the liver not detoxifying toxins well enough, or creating a situation where the liver is overwhelmed.
The 3-step process of detoxifying toxins in the liver
In order to choose the right nutrients for your liver, you need to understand how the liver detoxifies toxins and know what nutrients it needs.
When toxins enter the body, the liver detoxifies them in three steps.
When phase 1 of liver detoxification begins, redox reactions occur and hydrolyze toxic substances. It neutralizes water-soluble toxins and turns fat-soluble toxins into water-soluble.
And that's where those cytochrome P450 enzymes come into play, but during this first stage of detoxification, you're going to have these intermediate metabolites that are more toxic, and you're also going to have a lot of free radicals that are bad for you.
So naturally, your body will go into a second detoxification process to quickly detoxify this intermediate metabolite.
This is the second phase of detoxification. In Phase 2, the liver uses glutathione, sulfur compounds, methyl groups, or amino acids to make toxins easier to eliminate or remove.
The liver attaches breakdown components to toxins to make them easier to eliminate.
And then finally, in the third and final step, we're going to eliminate these substances through bile, through urine, or through breathing.
What are the three stages of liver detoxification that lead to this toxin buildup?
Is taking milk thistle or UDCA a good way to detoxify the liver in the three-step process we just described?
Before we look at nutrients to help detoxify the liver, let's take a look at what causes toxins to build up.
The first is when you're constantly exposed to external toxins, meaning that the influx of toxins exceeds the liver's ability to detoxify them in Phase I. The liver builds up toxins. When toxins come in beyond its capacity, the liver naturally can't handle the load.
And only these intermediate metabolites produced in step 1, which are toxic intermediates, are continuously produced and can damage the liver.
The second is when Phase 2 doesn't do a good job of processing all the intermediate metabolites from Phase 1 that I mentioned earlier.
This means that the liver's detoxification metabolism can also drop when it lacks the substances needed for phase 2.
So liver detoxification is all about increasing your ability to do detoxification step 2, even though detoxification step 1 is important.
Third, toxins can build up when we don't have the nutrients, cofactors, and antioxidants we need for each step of the process.
And the fourth and final one is when you have kidney problems or an imbalance of gut bacteria. If your liver does a good job of detoxifying toxins, but can't excrete them and they get reabsorbed, it can be a vicious cycle.
Toxins can be reabsorbed, especially if you're constipated or have a lot of bad bacteria, so it's not only the process of detoxification that matters, but also the level of excretion. If you want a smooth detox, you need to take care of not only your liver, but also your intestines and kidneys.
To summarize
- External toxin exposure
- Ongoing external toxin exposure can lead to toxin buildup beyond the liver's ability to detoxify
- Toxin buildup can occur when the liver is unable to handle the toxin load
- Lack of Phase 2 processing
- The liver's ability to detoxify may be impaired when intermediate metabolites from Phase 1 are not processed in Phase 2.
- Detoxification metabolism may be impaired due to lack of substances needed for phase 2.
- Improving phase 2 detoxification capacity is important.
- Lack of nutrients
- Lack of necessary nutrients, cofactors, and antioxidants at each stage of life can lead to toxin buildup.
- Gut Bacteria and Excretion Issues
- The liver detoxifies toxins well, but problems can arise when it cannot excrete them or they are reabsorbed.
Toxins can be reabsorbed due to constipation or an increase in harmful bacteria.
Health of the gut and kidneys, as well as the liver, play an important role in detoxification and elimination.
- The liver detoxifies toxins well, but problems can arise when it cannot excrete them or they are reabsorbed.
How to Detox Your Liver
So far, we've covered the toxins that threaten the liver, the signals the liver sends us when they build up, and the circumstances under which they build up.
Now let's get down to business and see how to help your liver detoxify
1. empty
The idea is to empty the body so that the liver is not overloaded with toxins.
In particular, modern people eat too much, so it's a good idea to eat more vegetables for a week or two a month. You can also try intermittent fasting, which involves eating two meals in eight hours after a 16-hour fast, or whatever works for you. It's important to empty your body, but it's also good to empty your mind through meditation, so try that as well.
2. fill
This means giving your liver the nutrients it needs in a balanced way. The liver needs nutrients for each of the three stages of detoxification.
Antioxidants are especially important when converting first-pass substances into intermediate metabolites.
So the first step is to make sure you're getting enough glutathione, as well as the cofactors of the body's antioxidant enzymes SOD and catalase, which are copper, manganese, zinc .
Vitamin C, vitamin E, beta carotene alpha lipoic acid, and silymarin, a B vitamin from milk thistle are also needed.
The second step is the process of incorporating intermediate metabolites.
Glutathione incorporation, sulfation, methylation, and amino acid incorporation.
Glutathione itself, which is necessary for the glutathione incorporation process, as well as things like NAC and enanthine cysteine can help. Taurine, a sulfur compound, and folic acid, choline, methionine, and SAMe, which provide methyl groups, may also be helpful.
When the liver is not doing well, you need an adequate supply of protein. Protein is necessary for cellular repair as well as amino acid incorporation.
There are also things that balance the first and second phases. Plant-based phytochemicals, particularly curcumin in turmeric, but also cruciferous vegetables and schisandra chinensis, can help with steps one and two of liver detoxification.
There are many studies showing the hepatoprotective effects of turmeric extract and curcumin.
"Curcumin lowers liver markers such as AST and ALT and increases antioxidants such as glutathione in the body."
ALT stands for "Alanine Aminotransferase" and is an enzyme used to measure liver function. It is found primarily in liver cells and leaks into the blood when liver cells are damaged. ALT levels often indicate damage or inflammation of liver cells and are commonly used in liver function tests.
The normal range for ALT levels is considered to be 0-40 IU/L.
Curcumin is also a prominent phytochemical that enhances the liver's detoxification process through a variety of mechanisms, including increased bile production, anti-fibrosis, and anti-inflammation. And schisandra increased cytochrome P450 activity in the first phase of detoxification and accelerated hepatocyte proliferation, which is important for liver repair and regeneration, according to the study.
3. drain
Nutrients associated with phase 3 elimination include artichokes and dandelions. If you're not familiar with artichokes, they're a type of pork potato. Both increase bile production, which aids in elimination.
Artichokes help improve bile production as well as antioxidant lipid metabolism, and extracts from artichokes have been shown to help regenerate liver cells.
Finally, dandelions have long been used as a folk remedy. They contain antioxidants such as beta-carotene and are high in polyphenols, which can help with inflammation, cell damage, and oxidative stress. Studies on the antioxidant effects of dandelion leaf extract have shown that it "significantly protected liver tissue in mice exposed to toxic levels of acetaminophen," and that "the choline content of dandelion enhances bile secretion."
Summary of nutrients needed for liver detoxification
The bottom line is that there are nutrients needed for each of the three phases of liver detoxification, and they each have a role to play.
Nutrients for the Liver Detox Phase
Phase 1 Liver Detoxification Nutrients
Glutathione, SOD, copper, manganese, zinc, vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, alpha-lipoic acid, silymarin, B vitamins
▶ Phase 2 Liver Detoxification Nutrients
Glutathione, NAC, taurine, folate, choline, methionine, SMAE
▶ Phase 1 and 2 Liver Detoxification Nutrients
Phytochemicals, curcumin, cruciferous vegetables, schisandra berry
How to Combine Liver Supplements
So far, we've talked about nutrients that are good for the liver, but there are so many that it can be overwhelming, so I'll try to summarize the key ones.
First, if you have an unhealthy stomach, you're going to want to take care of that first with probiotics and enzymes to help flush out toxins.
Some products use milk thistle as a base and add artichoke or dandelion extract, turmeric powder, or even schisandra as additional ingredients. There are also some foreign products that have a combination of all of the extracts that we've talked about, and then you'll want to make sure that you're getting the most basic nutrients, the B vitamins.
And depending on the situation or the purpose of your intake, you may want to add some glutathione or alpha lipoic acid.
Now that we've covered some of the nutrients that can help with the difficult task of liver detoxification and liver health, it's important to note. The liver nutrients and botanicals we've discussed today can positively support liver health, but they are not a cure for liver disease. When it comes to a healthy liver, it's more important what you avoid than what you eat.
Limit your alcohol consumption, eat a healthy diet, and don't eat too much, so keep your liver healthy by avoiding these things and taking the right nutrients.
