Liver Support: Find Your Best Way To A Healthy Liver
Learn the best foods, herbs, and lifestyle tips to support liver health and natural beauty.
Do you have a daily beauty routine? I'm guessing you take amazing care of your skin. But did you know? Next to the skin, the liver is your largest organ by mass, and it hefts a lot of metabolic weight. Having a healthy liver is one of the best things you can do for your skin. In fact, liver support should top your list of daily health activities.
Why A Healthy Liver Matters
As your largest internal organ, the liver has many jobs to do. You probably know that the liver filters toxins that come through your body. Yes, it does that and so much more.
In fact, only the brain does more work than the liver. The liver is responsible for the following important functions: (1)
produces blood plasma
produces cholesterol
converts and stores glucose for energy
stores iron
produces bile, which is stored in the gallbladder, then used for digestion
processes drugs and other toxins in the body
fights infection by removing bacteria from the blood
When the liver isn't working well, you probably aren't feeling well. As stated in Current Biology, "These processes that are fully developed in the mature liver are imperative for life." (2)
The importance of a well-functioning liver cannot be stressed enough. We need a strong liver to keep out environmental toxins and persistent organic pollutants (POPs), as well as to keep our metabolism on track.
In this day and age, that's a tall order!
Skin: The Liver’s Reflection
Your skin isn’t just your largest organ. It also functions as a detox channel. One way to release toxins is through sweat. If the liver is not functioning, then your skin bears the brunt of it.
When your liver is working efficiently, it filters out toxins, breaks down old hormones, and processes fats and nutrients with ease. But when it’s overloaded with processed foods, alcohol, synthetic chemicals, stress, etc., those toxins get pushed out through the skin. That’s when you see breakouts, rashes, dull skin, and wrinkles.
So let's take a closer look at the best ways you can support your liver.
Foods For The Liver
What supports liver health? The best-ever liver foods, for one.
In a review of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), researchers concluded that gradual weight loss via healthy lifestyle changes realized the most benefit. Study participants who ate a liver-loving diet, avoided toxins, and added in moderate exercise effectively managed the disease. (3)
So what were those best foods?
Those who followed a Mediterranean Diet, specifically, the Green Mediterranean Diet, found the greatest benefit. In addition to eating plenty of vegetables, nuts and seeds sparingly, and (if you eat meat) wild-caught fish, participants included green tea and a sea vegetable called Mankai. (4)
Low glycemic and brightly colored fruit will also support liver health. Just be sure to eat fruit away from your protein. (5)
Best Foods For Liver Support
1. Beets: Not just the root but also the stalks and leaves contain compounds that protect the liver from damage. The liver makes glutathione, the body's most important antioxidant, and beets support this process. (6, 7)
2. Berries: Blueberries especially contain high levels of polyphenols — antioxidants that protect against inflammation and insulin resistance. (8)
3. Dandelion Greens: Any dark, leafy green has compounds that support liver health, but Dandelion greens offer something a little more. Dandelion stimulates bile production in the liver, which supports fat digestion, and it also supports sugar metabolism. (9)
Bonus: Oatmeal! Yes, this often neglected grain offers high fiber and polyphenols that support liver health. Specifically, oatmeal is high in beta glucans. This soluble fiber aids digestion and may also help reduce inflammation. (10)
Whenever we can tout the benefits of chocolate, we do! A study published in 2024 highlighted how theobromine, a compound in cacao, protects liver health. (11)
Best Supplements for The Liver
1. Chlorella: This nutritious compound helps detoxify the body. In studies, chlorella not only helped reduce fasting blood sugar levels, but it also lowered the heavy metal burden on the liver. (12, 13)
2. Glutathione: Yes, the liver produces glutathione, the body's master antioxidant. But taking supplemental glutathione supports an already toxic liver and protects against oxidative stress. Glutathione also helps fight infection. (14)
3. Milk Thistle: This humble little herb contains the compound silymarin, which stimulates the detoxification pathways of the liver. (15)
Bonus: Medicinal Mushrooms help modulate the body's stress response. These adaptogenic herbs also provide compounds shown to protect against Hepatitis B, as well as diseases of the liver. (16)
Avoid These Foods & Protect Your Liver
1. Ultra-Processed Food: Ultra-processing means high heat, added chemicals, and food additives. Any of these insults to food leads to toxins that the liver has to try to deal with. (17)
2. High Fructose Corn Syrup: Yep. The liver coverts glucose into energy. But fructose (fruit sugar) is not quite the same. The liver can't store it for energy, so it converts fructose into triglycerides, which leads to fat accumulation. (18)
Side Note: when researchers want to fatten up their animals to study, they feed them HFCS or put fructose in the drinking water. Of course, high sugar and high fat diets are also studied. (19)
3. Vegetable Oils: This ties into ultra-processed foods. Vegetable oils, or industrial seed oils, are mostly fragile polyunsaturated fats. What does that mean? They cannot withstand high heat. Also, these fats are high in omega-6 fatty acid, which creates inflammation in the body. (20)
According to Dr. Mercola, linoleic oil is one of the main culprits in poor metabolic health! (21)
Moderate Exercise for The Liver
Another lifestyle intervention is, of course, exercise. Those 10,000 steps offer an easy-to-do workout with now risk of injury and little extra cost. You just need good walking shoes!
Getting the lymphatic system moving clearly supports the liver, too. Try rebounding as another low impact yet effective exercise.
Try A Liver Cleanse
No magic pill exists to immediately improve your liver health. But a liver cleanse offers a good start. Consider the Liver Cleanse Program. If your liver has lived with years of processed food or a sedentary lifestyle, then it may need a little extra love.
Fortunately, you can jumpstart your liver detoxification pathways and support your liver with a liver cleanse program. This kit includes the supplies you need for a 6-day detox, intended to release and flush toxins from the liver.
Learn more HERE.
Conclusion
Your skin tells the story of your liver. When your liver is clean, efficient, and well-supported, your skin glows with vitality. When your liver is sluggish or overloaded, the signs show up on your face, in your energy, and throughout your body.
The beauty industry wants you to believe the secret is in the next expensive serum or high-tech facial. But real beauty — the kind that radiates from within — begins with how you nourish and care for your internal organs, especially the liver.
So drink that lemon water, take your daily walk, and fuel your body with vibrant, living nutrition. Your liver will thank you — and your skin will, too.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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