Top 10 Foods and Other Home Remedies for Liver Detox: Complete Guide

Health is wealth no matter how cliché it may seem. We fail to understand its essence when we are young because our body is at its peak. Over time, our body begins to degenerate from the years of misuse, disuse, and abuse. Other factors also speed up aging like free-radicals, stress, pollution, junk, vices, bad habits, and even gravity, so to speak.

Every single part of our body has a purpose to fulfill. Life is harder when one body part no longer does its job. Over time, it takes its toll and either leads to disease or even a painful death. How gloomy is that?

Now, when you say life is what you make it, the state of your liver also reflects the kind of life you are leading. How healthy your liver is, depends on you.

What is the Liver?

(1) The liver is one of the major glandular organs in the body. It performs different metabolic functions. The liver is found just below the diaphragm, on the upper right of the abdomen. It’s divided into lobes which anchor the organ to the gallbladder and it receives blood from the portal vein and hepatic artery. The liver weighs three pounds on average.

The liver is a gland because it secretes bile, a substance needed for fat digestion. Fat is broken down into smaller pieces by bile salts to allow for better digestion in the small intestine.

It converts the nutrients in the food we eat into substances used daily by the body, where some are later stored for future use to be supplied to the cells when the need arises. Another important function of the liver is that it converts toxic substances into a less harmful substance or gets rids of them completely.

Functions of the Liver

The liver has different functions to ensure we stay healthy:

• (2) Produces bile
• Regulates blood clotting and composition
• Detoxifies the blood and excretes harmful substances like drugs and alcohol
• Stores iron and some vitamins
• Stores glucose· Metabolizes drugs and alcohol in the blood
• Once the blood sugar level in the body goes dangerously low, the liver converts stored sugar to functional sugar.
• Clears bilirubin
• Destroys old RBCs or red blood cells
• Breaks down hemoglobin, insulin, and some other hormones
• Converts harmful ammonia into urea that is necessary for metabolism

What can Damage the Liver?

Conditions that can result in liver damage include:

• Infections and disease
• Cancer
• Alcohol damage
• Drugs like acetaminophen that are damaging to the liver
• Genetically modified foods (GMOs)
• High fructose corn syrup
• Hydrogenated oils and trans-fats
• Processed and fast food

Different Liver Conditions

Stool and urine discoloration indicate potential liver problems. Signs such as jaundice or yellowing of the skin occur because of bilirubin build up, a normal waste product of hemoglobin breakdown. The following are common liver conditions when the liver fails to work properly, or stops working:

• Fatty liver
• Hepatitis
• Cirrhosis
• Ascites
• Gallstones
• Primary Biliary Cirrhosis
• Hemochromatosis
• Liver failure
• Liver cancer

Symptoms of Liver Disease

• Heartburn and acid reflux
• Bloating and gas
• Constipation
• Jaundice
• Inability to lose weight
• Dark urine
• High blood pressure
• Anxiousness, moodiness or depression
• Chronic fatigue
• Rosacea
• Bruise easily
• Excessive sweating
• Poor appetite

How to Flush the Liver

There are different ways to flush the liver. It is essential for the liver to stay clean, healthy, and functioning properly since it cleanses the body of toxins. A body free of toxic build-up can work efficiently without much effort. The work of the liver is constant, so we need it to be in tip-top shape.

The best way to detox the liver is to minimize or stop introducing toxins into the body. Change your diet and start eating healthy. Include herbs like organic turmeric, peppermint leaf, and chicory root to promote liver detoxification. Also, kick the booze habit and drink lots of water. If possible, drink lemon water for the added health benefits it provides the liver. Most importantly, change your diet by eating fresher, organic foods that will not only provide your body the energy it needs, but important nutrients as well.

Six Simple Steps to Detox the Liver

• Eliminate toxic foods from your daily diet.
• Drink raw and vegetable juice.
• Increase intake of foods rich in potassium.
• Increase hydration.
• Take turmeric, dandelion, and milk thistle supplements.
• Eat real beef liver or take liver supplements.

Top Ten Superfoods to Cleanse the Liver

Eat more of these superfoods for a healthy and fat-free liver:

1. Garlic
2. Turmeric
3. Green Tea
4. Grapefruit
5. Walnut
6. Apple
7. Beetroot
8. Avocado
9. Broccoli
10. Lemon

Home Remedies for a Liver Detox

A liver detox is crucial to ensure the liver is healthy. Just remember to consult your doctor first. Try the following liver detox tips:

• Increase the intake of water and foods that boost and detoxify the liver.
• (3) Exercise regularly to stimulate digestion and increase sweating to flush out toxins through the pores and reduce the workload of the liver.
• Avoid alcohol consumption, smoking, coffee, and refined sugar.
• Use natural personal care and cleaning products.
• Eat dark chocolate for its antioxidant properties.
• Eat walnuts and avocados. They are rich in glutathione which is helpful to cleanse away toxins and prevent oxidative damage to the cells.
• Drink lemon water daily to detoxify and alkalize the blood.
• Consume lots of green leafy vegetables to stimulate bile flow.
• Increase the intake of veggies with thiols, a sulfur-containing organic compound found in vegetables like asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, garlic, and onions which give them their trademark pungent odor. They bind to toxic metal ions flushing them out of the body through the urinary tract and bowel movements.

Home Remedies to Repair Liver Damage

A liver that is already damaged needs more than just simple home remedies, although diet and lifestyle modifications can help save what’s left of the liver.

There are different home remedies for liver damage you can try or take besides consuming the top liver superfoods mentioned earlier. They include:

• Vitamin E supplement
• Grapefruit
• Soy proteins
• Goldenseal
• Milk thistle
• Dandelion
• Green tea
• Barberry
• Papaya seeds
• Yogurt
• Figs
• Radish

Home Remedies for Fatty Liver (Steatosis Hepatitis)

Fatty liver is a condition when fat makes up five to ten percent of the liver’s weight. (4) When we speak of fatty liver disease, it often refers to a disease that is mainly characterized by big droplet steatosis or mixed small and large droplet steatosis. Steatosis is defined as fat infiltration on the liver cells usually related to a metabolic disturbance such as malnutrition, alcoholism or drug therapy.

Having a fatty liver is the first stage of any liver disease. Diagnosis should alert the individual to start caring for their liver. It is becoming more common nowadays because a fatty liver is a disease caused by a person’s unhealthy diet and lifestyle. If the condition is not treated right away, it can result in more serious liver conditions such as liver cirrhosis and cancer.

Try the following home remedies to cure a fatty liver before it leads to more health troubles:

• Avoid bad carbohydrates that get converted into triglycerides, and build up in the liver. Increase the intake of healthy carbs like unprocessed whole grains, fruits, veggies, and beans.
• Avoid saturated fats and trans-fats and eat more foods that are rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.
• Use less salt and sugar in food. Add vinegar or lemon water to taste instead.
• Use healthy spices like cumin and turmeric.
• Limit alcohol intake.
• Exercise regularly and lose weight.
• Stop taking drugs that can damage the liver.

Natural Remedies for Hepatitis (inflamed liver)

(5) Hepatitis is a liver condition characterized by liver inflammation. It can be a self-limiting condition, but can progress to scarring or fibrosis, cirrhosis, or even cancer of the liver. It can be caused by certain drugs, alcohol, or autoimmune diseases. It has five main types: A, B, C, D, and E. Hepatitis A and E are caused by contaminated water or food while Hepatitis B, C, and D are caused by contaminated body fluid through parenteral contact. Some cases may be acute while others cause symptoms like jaundice, extreme fatigue, dark urine, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting.

There are still home remedies for hepatitis you can try to control the disease and manage its symptoms like eating garlic or taking a garlic supplement, licorice honey, and carom or cumin seed remedy.

Garlic Remedy

Garlic is a powerful superfood that both detoxifies the blood and gets rid of toxins in the body.
Take one to two garlic cloves. Upon awakening in the morning and on an empty stomach, peel and chew them. You can also add crushed garlic in your dishes every day.

Licorice Honey Remedy

Licorice contains glycyrrhizin, a component helpful in treating hepatitis as well as its complications.
You’ll need two teaspoons of honey and one tablespoon of licorice powder. Add them together and mix well. Consume this mix daily for hepatitis relief.

Carom Cumin Seed Remedy

Carom contains thymol, a germicide and antiseptic that is helpful to prevent hepatitis of any form. Cumin seeds act as a pain reliever, aid in proper digestion, and kill intestinal parasites.
You need a teaspoon each of carom and cumin seeds and a pinch of rock salt. Next, dry roast and grind the carom and cumin seeds to make a fine powder. Mix them well and add just a pinch of rock salt. Take this mix twice a day and drink lots of water.

Milk thistle is also an excellent home remedy for liver disease. Other alternatives not yet mentioned are apple cider vinegar, papaya, flax seeds, carrots, and spinach juice.

Other Liver Damage Remedies

If you want to cure your liver naturally, there are other remedies you can try without spending too much or using too many ingredients:

• Drink fluoride-free water daily to cleanse your system.
• Eat artichokes regularly to boost liver functions, especially during hepatitis treatment.
• Eat raw fruits and/or veggies.
• Never eat stale or moldy bread because the fungus in it is carcinogenic and can cause liver disease.
• Take liver extract doses of 500 to 1000 mg. daily
• Take colloidal, iron, and zinc supplements.
• Do yoga. The breathing exercise provides benefits to patients with liver conditions.

Conclusion

It helps to be aware of and practice most, if not all of these home remedies for liver detox. Aim for natural remedies whenever possible, but remember to consult a doctor for more serious conditions. Together with your doctor’s treatment plan and any of these natural remedies, you can be relieved of your symptoms, improve the quality of your life and even stop disease progression.

You can always try as many of these remedies as you can to and find out which one works best for you best and makes you feel better in the long run. You don’t have to look too far when doing a liver detox. Some of the things you need may already be in your pantry or kitchen. A simple diet and lifestyle change can be the key to liver repair and eventually your good health.

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