The modernity of our lives has spared us so much pleasure and fun, why not? With so much pleasure, we unconsciously have cultured habits that could be detrimental in any aspect of our life, the liver. Since it is a primary need for survival, with the emerging fads in food and drinks, we indulge in them that unknowingly contain lots of toxins in our body. Tolerance, that’s what it is and just because our tongue felt savory while feeling ecstatic to try new tastes, we thought that’s cool. Blame it to our taste buds, then! We consume so much that we fail to look deeper into our food and drink intake. Below we will share 10 Foods That cleanse the liver.

Worst case scenario, we’ve gotten some common and a little bit serious health problems you can imagine. First attack goes to our digestive system, namely- diarrhea, constipation, bloating, nausea and vomiting, etc. If further tolerated, worst may extend to become worse! Over time, minor becomes major.

Our body is such a wonder creation because it has countless ways to fend away those agents of diseases. We have our own immune system which does most of the job, but little do we know that other organ in our body can actually also help fight through cleansing or detoxifying toxic chemicals that we intake daily through our food and drinks.

This one is not just a whole systematically working, but just one organ, multitasking, but still makes a very well-done job in cleaning chemicals just unnecessary for our body, like cleanse the liver. Being renowned as the largest gland and among the four organs that excrete wastes such as the kidneys, intestines, and skin, the liver has multiple roles in sustaining the body’s overall wellness like synthesis and storage. Setting them aside, one of liver’s main functions is detoxifying.

How does it detoxify? First, when intestines finish digesting our food and as products flow through the blood, blood rushes to the liver then takes over in filtering that blood out. It takes 4 liters of blood every minute for the detox which eventually goes to the heart to be distributed every part of our body.

How Does the Liver Detoxify?

Whatever we eat contains chemicals that are either helpful or harmful to our body. The liver does the aftercare for cleansing out harmful chemicals, especially from food additives, food coloring, preservatives, flavor enhancers, sweeteners, agricultural chemicals in the foods we purchase in the markets, alcohol and medications. Surprisingly, it also detoxifies fumes, air pollution, drugs and many other factors.

All the sources of toxins mentioned can only be dissolved with fats, the liver then converts them into something easily dissolved with water to be easily excreted out of the body. There are two phases in detoxification. Phase 1 neutralizes toxins for phase 2. Phase 2 converts it into less toxic materials. During these two phases, antioxidants like glutathione, and substances like cysteine, glycine or sulfur help counteract toxins to be harmless. Consequently, they become water-soluble then become incorporated to the bile (which makes the color of the feces) or urine.

There are a hundred other antioxidants and chemicals that help neutralize these toxins. Now that we know how toxins are washed away by these friendly chemicals, let’s look at the top 10 high sources of detoxifiers.

10 Foods That Cleanse The Liver

1. Garlic

Garlic is rich in allusion and selenium- the two richest sources of nutrients for the liver, which activate enzymes that cleanse the blood during detoxification. Ellison can drive off invaders of the immune system that lighten up its load. Not just that, garlic can also help lower cholesterol and triglycerides that, like the heart, it destructed with such faults may impede normal functioning.

Use garlic cloves in your dishes if possible, preferably raw and not processed.

2. Beets and Carrots

Both are fully-loaded with beta-carotene and plant flavonoids that boost liver function at full blast! Carrots are rich in glutathione, which is helpful in detoxifier as mentioned while beets are rich in antioxidants, fiber, and more which are blood purifier from toxins.

Make a salad that includes these two as you mix it with olive or coconut oil and lemon juice.

3. Apple

It is high in pectin, known to wash away toxins in the digestive tract, making liver worry less when it purifies blood. It also contains malic acid, which is good at removing carcinogens and other toxins out of the blood. Simply munching on apples is already a good way to indulge in its nutrients and taste. However, make sure that they are organic otherwise they might have come from commercialized farms. Thus, they use harmful pesticides.

4. Avocados

Not only are good source of healthy oils, but they also contain high levels of glutathione, which as discussed, is a neutralizer of toxins for the proper functioning and for a lesser damage to the liver.

Eating 1-2 avocados a week may help reduce liver damage.

5. Lemon and Limes

Lemons are widely known to be rich in Vitamin C and that is true! In fact, its role in liver-cleansing is to boost mineral absorption by the liver. They are also rich in antioxidants such ass D-Limonene. Moreover, despite its acidity, it can also neutralize toxins or wastes as a head start for the whole digestion.

Simple lemonade can be your daily detoxifier by adding 1 lemon to a liter of water. Chopped lemon and/or honey can be added.

6. Leafy Green

Leafy and green veggies like spinach, lettuce, arugula, chicory, mustard greens, kale, and etc. possess chlorophylls that give a hand to the liver in neutralizing toxic chemicals like pesticides and heavy metals. Including them in your diet will increase bile production- the substance that aid removing waste from organs to blood.

Just add any of these veggies in your salad or meal. Also make sure that they are organic or, if any chance, produced from your own backyard because market sources could be at risk from chemicals.

7. Turmeric

The spice is known to have various health benefits including the liver through producing more bile. It also detoxifies by activating enzymes that continually eliminate carcinogens we might intake in our diet.

There is powdered turmeric available in the market. Mixing it with hot water added with honey is already good to enjoy your cup.

8. Healthy Fats

Healthy fat sources like avocados, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, almonds along with Chia seeds, flax seeds, olives and coconut are great for enlarging bile production. Prevent moist oils as they can make your liver function less. Cold-pressed organic oils like the olive and flax seeds are good lipid bases that anchor absorption of toxins.

The mentioned nuts can just be eaten raw or along with a salad as well as olive or coconut oils.

9. Green Tea

They are rich in antioxidants called catechins that improve liver function. Catechins also help in breaking down lipids in the liver and especially crucial for those with the accumulation of fats in their liver. Lastly, green tea is also a good purifier for alcohol.

Drinking 2-3 cups a day is satisfying enough. Honey can be added if desired.

10. Alternative Grains

If your diet is gluten-rich grains such as wheat or rye, it actually escalates your liver’s detox workload and enzyme production. It is better to make his job a little bit less hard, isn’t it? Other alternative grains like quinoa, millet and buckwheat sure make his job a little bit easier.

A gradual switch to these kinds of grains like eating them once or twice a week while surrendering or lessening intake of wheat and the likes would give a difference in your liver health.

There you have it! There is a handful other food sources which could be just a hand-reach to you. Generally speaking, for your overall health, it is just wise to take more care of your liver. Consuming foods that are rich in fiber, antioxidants, glutathione, and healthy oils are what gives joy to your liver. It’s also good to remember to choose wisely of these kinds of food, for instance, that they should be organic. Loving liver is a lifer.

Jennifer Moran

Jennifer Moran is the author and the social media manager at HealthandFitnessVitality.com. She has been working and passionate with writing for over four years. When she isn’t glued to a laptop screen, she spends time playing tennis, practicing yoga, and trying very hard not to sleep in the meditation. You can reach her at jennifer (at) healthandfitnessvitality (dot) com. HealthandFitnessVitality.