7 Reasons You May Need To Detox Your Liver

There are several reasons why supporting your liver to detox more efficiently may be a good idea. Here are our top 7 reasons to consider doing a liver detox of some sort:

1. Eating a Diet Rich In Saturated and Processed Fats: If you are eating a lot of processed foods that contain processed fats (think margarine, canola oil, corn oil and peanut oil), fried foods, or lots of non-organic animal foods your liver will be working overtime. That is because these foods all need to be processed by the liver and they are hard to break down and digest. They also produce lots of toxic byproducts when being digested.

2. Eating A Diet Rich In Processed Carbohydrates: In the same way that processed fats can overtax the liver, processed carbohydrate foods like white bread, white pasta, sugary drinks and candies all demand extra effort from your liver to keep your blood sugar levels stable as well as to remove the toxic substances these foods contain. Eating a processed carbohydrate-rich diet will mean your liver is working overtime.

3. Drinking Alcohol or Taking Prescription Medication: The liver has to filter every single substance you ingest, and alcohol and drugs are some of the hardest for it to filter. Consuming too many of these substances over a period of time can lead to liver damage, and even fatty liver or cirrhosis of the liver. These substances can actually inhibit the proper functioning of your liver, making them extra toxic.

4. Breathing Polluted Air: The air you breath can be amazing and pure, or stagnant and full of pollutants. If you are living in a city and are exposed to car exhaust, air conditioner, cleaning products, second-hand smoke (or first-hand smoke), and other industrial byproducts your liver may need a boost. All of the toxins you breathe in through your lungs must run through your liver to be processed. This means that toxic air can lead to an overloaded liver.

5. Not Getting Enough Sleep and Rest: In order for the liver to perform optimally, you need to be getting enough sleep. The liver is most active between the hours of 1 and 3 am. If you are consistently not getting to bed early enough so that you are in a deep sleep by the time the liver kicks in it is possible that it is not getting the time and space it needs to do its job properly. Adequate rest is essential for a healthy, optimally functioning liver.

6. Over Exercising: This one may surprise you, but did you know that working out causes the production of free radicals? Now, this is not to say that you should not work out in order to avoid free radical production. On the contrary, getting adequate activity is essential for pumping your blood and your lymph so that they move through the liver more efficiently which supports the detox process. However, when you are overworking yourself you will start to overproduce free radicals that the liver may not have the resources to properly deal within a timely matter. If you have been overtraining it is possible that you need to take a break and give a little love to your liver.

7. Eating A Nutrient Poor Diet Overall: As mentioned in the description of the liver above, both phases of liver detox reply upon essential nutrients to facilitate their function. For example phase one relies upon a steady supply of Vitamin C, folic acid, Vitamin B3 and B6 and Vitamin E, just to name a few. Phase two requires that you are ingesting plenty of sources of essential amino acids like Glycine and Taurine, as well as Calcium. If you have been eating a diet that is low in nutrition (ie a diet rich in processed foods, or a diet that is just not providing you with adequate food and calories overall) you may need to detox your liver because there is a chance that it will be overrun with toxins that it was not able to deal with due to the lack of nutrients.

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