Liver Maintenance is a thing, really!

Your liver is incredible, take a moment to just understand what it does and you will be amazed.
Firstly, it has more jobs to do in the body than all other organs apart from the brain.

It usually weighs about 3 pounds (1.36kg) and is responsible for processes which deal with all food/substances that enter your body and substances filtered, stored and excreted.

The liver regulates most chemical levels in the blood and excretes a product called bile (a substance the liver produces a liter of each day), which helps to break down fats, preparing them for further digestion and absorption. As well as being used for binding to toxins and damaged cells and being employed in repair and defense.

All the blood leaving the stomach and intestines passes through the liver. The liver processes this blood and breaks down the nutrients and drugs in the blood, into forms that are easier to use for the rest of the body. Huge job!

The liver’s highly specialized tissues regulate a wide variety of high-volume biochemical reactions, including the synthesis and breakdown of small and molecules, many of which are necessary for your normal vitals. When the liver has broken down harmful substances, they are excreted into the bile or blood.

Bile by-products enter the intestine and leave the body in the feces. Blood by-products are filtered out by the kidneys and leave the body in the form of urine. Every month the liver replaces itself using the foods ingested. Yet another reason to choose food carefully. If it is not provided with the correct nutrients or if it is overworked by you eating too many chemicals or altered forms of nutrient, it will begin to malfunction. This can cause raised cholesterol levels (an Intelligent protective production), digestion problems,  damaged skin, nails, and hair.

If you have any of the above symptoms and choose not to clean up, over-toxicity can lead to liver damage, cirrhosis, and jaundice.

The liver has more than 500 vital functions!

Including the following:

  1. Production of bile (1liter per day), which helps carry away waste and break down fats in the small intestine during digestion absorption of vitamin K
  2. Production of certain proteins for blood plasma
  3. Production of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), a polypeptide protein hormone
  4. Production of thrombopoietin is a glycoprotein hormone that regulates the production of platelets by the bone marrow
  5. Hormone production
  6. Synthesis of glucose from certain amino acids, lactate, or glycerol
  7. Conversion of glycogen into glucose
  8. Formation of glycogen from glucose (this glycogen can later be converted back to glucose for energy)
  9. Production of triglycerides (fats)
  10. Production of cholesterol and special proteins to help carry fats through the body for repair / toxin binding and more
  11. Collecting LDL cholesterol from the blood and storing ready for excretion

We share some recipes for organ support under various listings of juicing, soups, salads on our mother website of Doctors Beyond Medicine which you can browse at your leisure.

Symptoms of Liver Damage

  1. Pale stools
  2. Dark urine occurs when bilirubin mixes with urine
  3. Jaundice (yellow skin and/or whites of the eyes) This is where bilirubin deposits in skin, causing an intense itch. Itching is the most common complaint by people who have liver failure. Often drugs cannot relieve this itch.
  4. Swelling of the abdomen, ankles and feet occurs because the liver fails to make albumin.
  5. Excessive fatigue occurs from a generalized loss of nutrients, minerals, and vitamins.
  6. Bruising and easy bleeding are other features of liver disease. The liver makes substances which help prevent bleeding. When liver damage occurs, these substances are no longer present and severe bleeding can occur.

Cleansing your bile ducts and gallbladder is one of the most important and most invaluable services you can give your body to improving your overall health.

Here are some things that are good to know about Your Liver

  • Gallstones are most common in overweight adults of 35 to 55 years of age and affect more women than men
  • Each year there are nearly a million new cases of gallstone disease and the most common treatment is surgical removal of the gallbladder
  • Pharmacological drug reactions cause 80% of all cases of liver toxicity
  • 6,000 – 10,000 liver transplants are performed yearly in the United States
  • A poor diet is a major contributor to most liver problems and toxic build-up
  • 90% to 100% of heavy alcohol drinkers develop fatty liver disease

Some food for thought: You need your liver! And it needs you to be conscious of what you eat, and when you eat it. Check labels (if you are not eating whole foods). Apples, for example don’t need labels! Buy from people you know.
Help your liver serve you for a lifetime long – the base of the noun is after all LIVE!