Want More Energy? Detox Your Liver!

A major reason we slow down as we age is that we’re carrying around a lifetime’s accumulation of toxins. When toxins coming in exceed our ability to detoxify and eliminate them, they get stored in our fat cells and in our liver.

Toxins can remain for years—often a lifetime. These stored toxins constitute a “toxic load,” stealing our energy, compromising liver and immune functions, damaging DNA, and exerting other harmful effects.

Lightening your toxic load will make you feel a lot younger, more energetic and just BETTER.

In addition, toxicity is one of the two causes of disease (the other being nutritional deficiency). So the more you detoxify, not only the better you’ll feel today, the more disease you’ll prevent in your future!

Of course, it’s best to avoid toxins as much as you can in the first place . Raymond Francis, Beyond Health’s founder, wrote at length in his books about how to avoid toxins in food, water, supplements, medications, household products, cosmetics, and even the air we breathe in our homes.

But you’ll never be able to avoid them all: the last pure air in the US disappeared from some remote mountain top many years ago. So if you plan to breathe, or participate in modern life and still be healthy, you’ve got to maximize your body’s detoxification capabilities. That means caring for your liver, your body’s main detox organ.

Toxic, overworked livers are all too common. Symptoms may include fatigue, indigestion, abdominal bloating, cellulite, irritability, depression, brain fog, skin rashes, allergies, weak immunity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, water retention, hormonal imbalances, autoimmune illness, hypoglycemia and sugar cravings.

Weight gain and finding it next to impossible to lose weight are also often related to a sluggish liver. Nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman, MS, CNS , author of the popular weight loss book, Fat Flush Plan, contends that “Probably nothing you can do to control your weight is as important as keeping your liver healthy.”

Two things you can do to support your liver are drink plenty of pure water and get enough fiber to assist toxin elimination. You can also eat lots of raw vegetables and drink vegetable juices to supply nutrients needed by liver detox pathways.

The “cruciferous vegetables” are especially detoxifying. These include arugula, beet greens, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, broccoli sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, cress, horseradish, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, radishes, rutabaga, Swiss chard, turnips and turnip greens. Sulfur, in garlic, onions and eggs, also supports detox enzymes.

A slightly alkaline pH encourages optimal liver enzyme function.

Infrared saunas and occasional water fasts are also wonderful supports for the liver. One tip for a successful water fast is to mix a half teaspoon or more of Beyond Health’s powdered vitamin C into each glass of water you drink. The vitamin C will give you energy, and you’ll also experience less hunger.

The liver is known as an extremely resilient organ that can regenerate itself from near total destruction. While that is true, the human liver has never had to take on the work livers are asked to do today; and today our livers need all the help they can get! This is especially true if you are suffering from a chronic disease or have a job that exposes you to toxins.

Beyond Health’s Liver Care was designed for ongoing care and support of our very overworked livers. It contains the liver’s best friend, milk thistle, a herb with a 2,000-year history as a renowned liver tonic and restorative. Studies support milk thistle’s safety for up to 41 months of use. It is generally well tolerated, with occasional allergic reactions reported. It may also have a mild laxative effect.

Several polyphenols in milk thistle, collectively called “silymarin,” have exceptional antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiviral activity and give milk thistle its potent healing abilities.

As always, it is imperative to obtain a high-quality milk thistle. In a 2013 study , 45 commercially available milk thistle products were analyzed. Silymarin content varied greatly and often did not match the label.

Our Liver Care tonic provides high-quality milk thistle extract that has been verified to contain 80% silymarin, along with 9 other exceptional active and synergistic liver-supporting ingredients.

Give your liver the care it deserves, and you will be amazed at how good you can feel!

References:

1. Gittleman AL. Fat Flush Plan. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2002) pp. 15, 20.
2. Rainone F. Milk Thistle. American Family Physician. October 2005;72(7):1285-1288 .
3. Abenavoli L. Milk thistle in liver diseases: past, present, future. Phytotherapy Research. October 2010;24(10):1423-1432.
4. Anthony K. Antioxidant and anti-hepatitis C vital activities of commercial milk thistle food supplements. Antioxidants. March 2013;2(1):23-36.