The liver is the largest and one of the most important organs in the body, with over 500 functions known till date. One of these functions is filtering the blood of waste products and breaking down toxins in the blood into less harmful substances that can be excreted out of the body. Effectively, the liver is a detox organ of the body.
In recent years, an entire industry around detoxification of various organs in the body, including the liver, has emerged. Manufacturers of these products, which are concoctions of herbal extracts and synthetically-added chemicals, peddle claims around detoxifying the body completely and boosting health in various ways. High-budget marketing combined with high-quality content is used to fool people into spending for pills, powders, tonics or diets which are being called ‘liver detox’, ‘liver flush’ or ‘liver cleanse’ solutions.
Not only are these useless, and burn a hole in the buyer’s pocket, they are also harmful and achieve the exact opposite of what they are meant to. Doctors are calling out their lies while regulatory agencies such as the FDA in the US have refused to certify such products. In this article, we explore myths around detoxifying the liver, so that you stay alert and do not fall into the trap of high-voltage marketing.
It is true that, compared to the past, there are more toxins entering our body. The food we eat is laced with pesticides or growth hormones (as in meat), the water we drink is laced with chlorine and trace minerals, the air we breathe has innumerable chemicals belched out by industry, the soil we walk on is contaminated with pollutants from these industries, and finally, we take medication for various ailments and all of these are made up of complex chemicals. This is the logic used to push detox products.
In reality, the liver is a large detox and chemical-processing plant in our body. Medicines or drugs that cannot be easily absorbed by the body are first broken down by the liver into simpler chemicals that the stomach and other organs can process thereafter. Alcohol and fats in the food we consume are also broken-down chemically and processed by the liver.
Then, the intestines and kidneys perform another round of filtering and detox of the food and beverages we consume. The skin also helps gets rid of some of the excess salt in the body, when we sweat. The lungs trap or filter out harmful chemicals from the air we breathe, which are then expelled when we cough, sneeze or exhale. The stomach throws out food that is suspicious or contaminated with pathogens, when we vomit. The bowels are doing likewise when we suffer from diarrhea.
All these mean that, almost every organ or organ-system in the body is working 24×7, to detox or filter out harmful substances from the body, so that we are safe from their ill-effects and remain healthy. A system so complex and so perfect that no scientists or pharmacists can improvise.
One of the claims by these manufacturers is that if you have had a party, festival or period of binge-eating, binge-drinking or consuming recreational-drugs in excess, do not worry, a quick course in liver detoxification will help you lose the weight and toxins.
In reality, dumping harmful substances into your body will do its own share of long-term damage, which no detox diets or product can overcome. Even though the body is one large detox factory, it must be treated with respect, only then will it work right for you.
Secondly, many of these diets have a diuretic effect, which means, they remove water or fluids from your body. So what you see is effectively water weight-loss. Once you resume a normal diet, all the lost weight is back. Some people then blame the normal diet for the regained weight and get into vicious cycles of more such diets, which will do enormous damage in the long run.
Fruits are cool stuff! An array of colorful fresh fruits, fresh vegetables and juices makes for enticing marketing. In reality, fruits are loaded with fructose sugar, so consuming them in excess, even if it’s for a short period of time can spike your blood-sugar levels and expose you to the risk of Type-2 diabetes.
Secondly, these juices lack fiber which is required for healthy elimination of stools, so a juice-heavy diet can lead to constipation.
Finally, these juice diets lack protein that one would find in a normal diet. Protein is required to rebuild damaged tissue, promote muscle growth and sustain the immune system in the overall. Skipping protein altogether for a few days can lead to more fatigue, muscle pain and increased risk of infection.
In recent years, natural herbs and spices like milk-thistle and turmeric are aggressively marketed by the liver-detox industry. Its well-known that milk-thistle has anti-inflammatory properties, so it is used to treat liver inflammation. However, whether it can detox the liver or not is not yet clearly established. Turmeric is rich in curcumin which has anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties, which is why it is so popular in Asian cuisine, especially Indian cuisine. However, it’s not clear whether turmeric can detox the liver.
In reality, the liver is capable of healing or overcoming short-term damage caused by consuming excess alcohol, fatty food or recreational drugs once in a while. But when these substances are consumed consistently in excess, there is long-term damage that no detox diet or product can overcome. Cirrhosis sets in eventually, which can worsen and lead to liver failure.
Detox diets aim at limiting the serving or proportion of food in every meal. This has an effect of limiting intake of proteins and healthy fats which are needed for good health. This creates several complications over time.
Secondly, they achieve the opposite effect. When food intake is reduced constantly, the body is pushed into thinking that food is not available or the person is starving, so the body slows down metabolism, in order to conserve energy which is required for critical activities.
So after the initial bout of feeling fresh, invigorated and energetic by following such a diet, sooner or later, the person starts feeling tired, sluggish and suffer from a range of aches, pains and spasms.
Then how did the initial bout of feeling fresh and energetic happen in the first place? Simple. These diets cut out refined and processed food, which is a good thing to do, so it has a positive effect that is temporary. However, when there is a steady shortage of vitamins, minerals and proteins found in a normal or healthy diet, the body bears the brunt.
A normal or healthy diet is one which has a good mix of a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole or unrefined grains, healthy fats, lean meats and low-fat dairy. All these ensure you are getting an adequate dose of macronutrients such as fats, proteins and carbohydrates, and micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals. This is what various organs in the body require in order to perform their roles, one of which is detoxification.
In contrast, any special diet, no matter how well it is marketed misses the composite nature of a normal diet. In the process, proteins and micronutrients are in short supply, so the body suffers in different ways. In the short-term, these damages can be overcome by quickly resuming a normal diet. But indulging in such diets repeatedly can lead to fatigue, muscle-loss, weakened vision, anemia, malnutrition, heart issues and a weakened immune-system.
So how exactly does one care for the liver? What can we do to ensure we are not abusing any of our organs? Well, there are 4 things you can do:
Reviewed by Dr Suresh S Venkita, Group Medical Director, Kauvery Hospitals
NOTE: Take medications only when prescribed by your doctors, self-medication must be avoided under any circumstances.
Kauvery Hospital is globally known for its multidisciplinary services at all its Centers of Excellence, and for its comprehensive, Avant-Grade technology, especially in diagnostics and remedial care in heart diseases, transplantation, vascular and neurosciences medicine. Located in the heart of Trichy (Tennur, Royal Road and Alexandria Road (Cantonment), Chennai, Hosur, Salem, Tirunelveli and Bengaluru, the hospital also renders adult and pediatric trauma care.
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