Foods That Help To Cleanse Your Liver

Contributed by – Healthians Team

Our liver is the house guard of our body, scrutinising everything that enters the body. It performs over 400 essential functions in our body. Anything that enters our body goes through the liver for audit. It uses what it can and gets rid of what it can’t. The fact is that keeping our liver toxin-free as much as possible will lend many health favours. When the liver gets burdened, it is unable to process the toxins and fat in an efficient way. It gets dazed with the burden to constantly remove instead of use, resulting in:

• Tiredness
• Lethargic
• Weight gain
• Headaches
• Digestion problems
• Acid reflux
• Overheating of the body and excessive palpitation
• Acne, or blotchy skin
• Pain in the right side
• At times skin discoloration

This makes cleansing the liver from time to time very crucial. Incorporating few foods and drinks in the diet can keep the liver healthy. There is a variety of food good for liver repair. They can help in cleansing the liver naturally by stimulating its natural ability to expel toxic waste from the body.

Foods that are good for the liver

GARLIC
Adding a small amount of this pungent white food in your diet will have a positive effect on the liver. Garlic has the ability to activate the liver enzymes, which will in turn help in flushing out the body toxins. Garlic also holds high amounts of allicin and selenium. These are the two natural compounds that aid in liver cleansing.

GREEN LEAFY VEGETABLES
Green leafy vegetables are one of the most powerful cronies in cleansing the liver. These are extremely high in chlorophyll and they take up the environmental toxins from the blood stream. They have distinct ability to neutralise heavy metals, chemicals, and pesticides.

Incorporate leafy greens such as bitter gourd, arugula, dandelion greens, spinach, mustard greens, and chicory into your diet. This will increase the formation and flow of bile (the substance that removes waste from the organs and blood). These liver cleansing juices of green leafy vegetables offer a powerful protective mechanism for the liver.

LEMONS AND LIMES
These citrus fruits are high in Vitamin C. They help the body in synthesising toxic materials into substances that can be absorbed by water. Drinking freshly-squeezed lemon or lime juice in the morning stimulates the liver. They are believed to be the most effective liver cleansing drinks.

BEETS AND CARROTS
Both of them are extremely high in plant-flavonoids and beta-carotene. Adding them to your diet can stimulate and support the overall functioning of the liver.

AVOCADOS
Avocados are the nutrient-dense super food. They help the body to produce glutathione, a compound that is necessary for the liver to cleanse harmful toxins.

APPLES
Apples are high in pectin and hold chemical constituents which are necessary for the body to cleanse and release toxins from the digestive tract. This, in turn, makes it easier for the liver to handle the toxic load during the cleansing process.

GRAPEFRUIT
These are high in both vitamin C and antioxidants. Citrus fruits like grapefruit, oranges, limes, and lemons support the natural cleansing abilities of the liver.

OLIVE OIL
Organic oils like olive, hemp, and flaxseed are great for the liver when they are used in moderation. They help the body by providing a lipid base that can absorb the harmful toxins in the body. In this way, they reduce some of the liver burdens.

WALNUTS
Walnuts are high in amino acid arginine, glutathione and omega-3 fatty acids. They aid liver cleansing and also support the liver in detoxifying ammonia.

TURMERIC
Turmeric is the liver’s favorite spice. It boosts liver detoxification process by assisting enzymes that can actively flush out the dietary toxins.

GREEN TEA
Green tea is full of plant antioxidants known as catechins. This is a compound which is known to assist the liver functions.

Tips to Cleanse the Liver

Liver cleansing is designed to detoxify, flush and purge the liver of deposits, toxins, and stones. Most of the liver cleansing programs target the gallbladder to help it eliminate the toxins. Cleansing your liver at least twice a year eliminates any foreign substances that may be trapped in your liver. For this

• Avoid alcohol
• Increase water intake
• Add food to your diet that can aid in liver repair
• Eat the right fat
• Avoid foods bad for liver like processed foods, simple carbohydrates, sugar, red meat, limit eggs and dairy products.

For a detoxed, cleaner and healthier liver; few natural, simple lifestyle and dietary changes have to be initiated. Your choice of food plays a major role as good nutrition prevents almost 95 percent of all diseases.