Give Your Liver Some Love: Ten Foods That Protect Your Liver
Prior to the 21st century, the only reason anyone worried about their liver was after a night of too many martinis. Nowadays there’s a new liver-killer in town: the unhealthy American diet.
Due to a combination of unhealthy food choices, obesity, and a sedentary lifestyle, liver problems are skyrocketing in the western population and no one is more at risk than those over age 50.
The good news is that a healthy diet can go a long way to protecting your liver. The first step is to avoid low-quality foods that cause you to overeat, such as junk foods (candy, chips), refined carbohydrates (bread, pasta, crackers), and sugar (soda, ice cream, most processed foods).
Second, you want to plan meals around high-quality foods that help you manage appetite and maintain a healthy body composition. Here are 10 foods to include in your diet for a healthier liver:
#1: Blueberries
Blueberries contain powerful antioxidant compounds that convey numerous health benefits including assisting in the elimination of free radicals that damage the liver.
#2: Broccoli & Cauliflower
Broccoli and cauliflower belong to the cruciferous vegetable family that has robust anti-cancer effects, while improving the levels of enzymes involved in liver detoxification.
#3: Garlic & Onion
These babies are completely affordable “superfoods,” containing powerful antioxidants that protect your liver from developing inflammation.
#4: Green Tea
Green tea reduces fat deposition in the liver following overconsumption of sugar, while supporting the liver so that it is able to perform metabolic activities efficiently.
#5: Turmeric
Turmeric is a spice that is all the rage due to a little compound it contains called curcumin that has incredible anti-inflammatory properties, while also improving enzymes involved in liver detoxification.
#6: Eggs
Eggs provide the amino acids that are necessary for the liver to effectively eliminate toxins from the body, while also being rich in choline—a nutrient that helps liver to detoxify and avoid accumulating fat.
#7: Olives & Olive Oil
Besides being packed with detoxification enhancing compounds, olives also contain oleic acid, which can prevent fatty liver disease—a potentially life threatening disease that affects as much as 30 percent of the population.
#8: Vinegar
Whether you prefer balsamic or apple cider vinegar, adding it to meals has a protective effect on your liver.
#9: Resistant Starch
Found in unmodified potato starch and other foods including green bananas, resistant starch can prevent fat accumulation in the liver and is a viable treatment for reducing belly fat.
#10: Probiotics
Present in fermented foods including yogurt, pickled ginger, and kefir, probiotics have an antioxidant effect, improving insulin sensitivity and preventing fatty liver.
Before we say goodbye and set you on your way to optimal liver function, remember that along with alcohol and prescription drugs, even over-the-counter aids like Tylenol can give the liver a beating. Try to avoid these as much as possible.
References:
Al-Muzafar, H., et al. Probiotic mixture improves fatty liver disease by virtue of its action on lipid profiles, leptin, and inflammatory biomarkers. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2017. 17(1):43.
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Bouazza, A., et al. Effect of fruit vinegars on liver damage and oxidative stress in high-fat-fed rats. Pharmaceutical Biology. 2016. 54(2):260-5.
Chen, K., Li, P., et al. Depression by a Green Tea Extract of Alcohol-Induced Oxidative Stress and Lipogenesis in Rat Liver. Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry. November 2011. 75(9), 1668-1676.
Chen, Q., et al. Effects of Natural Products on Fructose-Induced Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD). Nutrients. 2017. 9(6).
Naziroglu, Ml., et al. Apple cider vinegar modulates serum lipid profile, erythrocyte, kidney, and liver membrane oxidative stress in ovariectomized mice fed high cholesterol. Journal of Membrane Biology. 2014. 247(8):667-73.
Wang, F., et al. Effects of Beverages on Alcohol Metabolism: Potential Health Benefits and Harmful Impacts. International Journal of Molecular Science. 2016. 17(3):354.
Zhan, W., et al. Effects of blueberries on migration, invasion, proliferation, the cell cycle and apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma cells. Biomedical Reports. 2016. 5(5):579-584.