Happy liver, happy life
Is life worth living? It depends on the liver, so let’s explore, shall we?
Gardeners and other folks are assembled in miraculous fashion. Along with a heart, guts. feet, brains and brawn we have a liver that is very busy. Its functions are important enough that a breakdown in them would portend a dire outcome. Let’s not do that.
Liver health can be negatively impacted by different factors. Most folks would think of drinking alcohol, especially to excess, as the primary cause of liver disorders. Alcohol is toxic to the liver, and overuse might eventually lead to cancer or cirrhosis. Each of us handles the effects of alcohol differently. Eubie Blake was a life-long musician and composer, and is credited with saying in his early 90s, “If I had known I would live this long, I would have taken better care of myself.”
Nevertheless, waking up in the morning doesn’t mean you didn’t do what you did last night. Being hungover is temporary. The effect on your body is cumulative.
Nevertheless, alcohol is involved with only about a third of liver disorders. More common than cirrhosis is non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and there is also hepatitis, obesity and simply your genetics.
Among the symptoms of an upset liver are mid-section pain, swelling in legs, fatigue, discolored urine and bruising easily. The good news for those concerned is livers can heal themselves if the stressers abate, plus there are plants with medicinal properties that can help.
Milk thistle seeds contain a flavonoid called silymarin (that’s three fun words) that protects the liver from toxins by repairing liver cells. It has an anti-inflammatory effect if the liver swells plus it contains antioxidants. It’s all about chemicals. All we are is chemicals and air (which is chemicals).
Milk thistle even counteracts mushroom poisoning, but it is best not to test such a predicament. To get the benefits of milk thistle, soak seeds in boiling water for a few minutes, strain and drink a cup two or three times a day. Or you can get teas, capsules, tinctures or liquid extracts. And for fun – thistle, thistle, silymarin!
A word of caution is any herb might have mischievous interactions with medications. Milk thistle, for example, might reduce blood sugar which could be a problem for folks who have diabetes. Danshen, a salvia family member native to south China, is beneficial for kidney functions but interacts negatively with certain medications and might disturb normal liver activity. I’ve never known anyone who used danshen, but the point is pay attention.
Gardeners regularly grow garlic and holy basil in their gardens, and both have vulnerary effects on sour livers. Studies related to hepatic problems have shown consumption of garlic relieves oxidative stress and inflammation plus it goes toe to toe with liver cancer cells. A study in China which used garlic powder instead of raw garlic still demonstrated positive results for patients.
Holy basil touts a long list of health benefits including counteracting stress and reducing inflammation, both of which are great relief to an overworked liver. Evidence indicates it also has anticancer properties. Tea bags, capsules or tablets of holy basil are readily available. I have seen a healthy holy basil plant become a small shrub with plenty leaves to harvest and dehydrate. Sprinkle the dried leaves in with beans, rice or pasta or make tea.
Turmeric grows best in tropical regions but can be grown in our area as an annual. The rhizomes are the medicinal part. The curcumin in the rhizomes counteracts excess fat in the liver, but turmeric also stimulates bile production which helps clean the liver and make it happy. We want happy livers. Turmeric powder works best when combined with black pepper.
Even beet juice and plain old green tea have a salutary effect on tired livers by reducing the accumulation of fat in the liver. Also beneficial are ginger, licorice, astragalus, ginseng and a healthy lifestyle. It’s up to you, but life is worth living, so eat some garlic.