First of all, it's got to be said: I am not a doctor or a medical professional. Whatever you read in this post and on this blog is my OPINION, which in no way substitutes for the advice of a qualified medical practitioner. 'kay?
When we think of our livers, we think of alcohol, right? Like the above picture. We have some vague idea maybe that our liver detoxes alcohol from our blood. But most of us have really no idea how many tasks our livers handle and how really important it is to our overall health and well-being.
So I'll tell you...
The liver is the body’s largest internal organ. It weighs about 3 lbs (1.36kgs), is reddish-brown in color and is located on the right side of the body under your ribcage. The liver is the body's master laboratory, carrying out more than 100 known functions from the digestion of fats, to control of thyroid hormone levels, to the conversion of glucose to glycogen, to production of cholesterol and urea and certain amino acids and many, many more. It also filters harmful substances from the blood, such as alcohol and toxins, and regulates blood sugar levels. We literally cannot live without it.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, Spring is the season to nourish the Liver and Gallbladder. (The gallbladder sits right below the liver and stores and secretes bile for digestion, especially the breakdown of fats.)
A lifestyle of over-eating and over-drinking, can lead to an enlarged, over-worked liver that is less able to detoxify the blood, leaving poisons in your system. And an abused gallbladder can get clogged up with gallstones.
So throughtout my Spring cleanse, I have been focusing on nourishing and supporting my liver and gallbladder by:
-Drinking warm lemon water each morning
-Eating lots of apples and drinking fresh pressed apple juice to help soften gallstones for removal.
-Eating and juicing lots of chlorophyll-rich greens
-Drinking lots of sage and dandelion tea
-And performing a mini liver-flush in the mornings. This involves drinking warm water with lemon juice, olive oil and garlic followed by fennel seed tea and then breakfast. (email if you want the exact recipe)
I am toying with the idea of doing a real honest-to-goodness liver flush which involves actually drinking things like epsom salts and olive oil, ack. Not sure about that yet.
This is a whole liter of Beet Juice Cocktail. The recipe was in Karen Knowler's last newsletter:
1 beet
4 carrots
3 oranges
6 apples
1 bunch parsley
4 strawberries
I drank about 2 glasses of it today and will have the rest tomorrow. It's yummy!
Also pink but totally different - a Banana-Cherry-Red Cabbage Smoothie
It's better than it sounds.
Must confess I am NOT happy with this new blenders ability to get my smoothies smooth.
Still sad.
Just wondering... why you put so much stuff in your juice if you are detoxing?
ReplyDeleteI heard that carrot juice was the best for cleansing the liver.
What about wheat grass juice? I like drinking wheat grass juice first thing in the morning because it is alkalizing, but the lemon water works well for that too, right?
Hi Tamara, thanks for visiting. I don't see any reason not to put so many things into my juices when I'm detoxing. They taste good, they're filling and I feel great. I never heard that about carrot juice. I'm not a huge fan of wheat grass juice personally. I just like to do my own thing I guess!
ReplyDeletebest,
emily
Em - Thanks for the great info. on the liver. Had no idea it was so multi-functional. So sorry you're still sad about the blender. Can you return it? Have you thought about investing in a BlendTec or Vitamix?
ReplyDelete