Liver Detox - Myths & Realities If You Really Need To Do It?

Clearing out your liver, making it function better… seems like a great promise. But, keep certain things in mind, so you aren't surprised when miracles don't happen. A liver detox is good but not a fix to your health problems.

This is where we have to divide things between common usage and medical usage.

Medically, detoxification of the liver gets rid of toxins, but it is a specific process that can remove fatty acids, built-up, waste, and chemicals. Most doctors only do it when medically necessary, if they do it at all. Generally, Indian and Asian doctors will do it more than European or American doctors.

But, the word detox is corrupt. Some holistic practitioners co-opted the term, applying it to anything that seemed to help the body. Unfortunately, detoxing has become a new fad.

We're going to tell you right now, most fad detox diets don't work. They let you feel better for a little while, but don't solve any problems.

Most people don't need medical detox, but following a wishy-washy fad approach isn't going to do anything, either. Instead, in the middle of the road, you'll find dietary recommendations, herbs, and exercise practices that can assist your body use its natural detoxification systems more efficiently to help clear your liver.

This is what you should be looking for.

5 Reasons You Should Do A Liver Detox

1. Remove Built-Up Wastes From Liver

Your liver removes waste and toxins from your blood to filter out for excretion. But, if it builds up too much, it can slow your liver is processing down and cause damage. Certain herbs and medications help remove the build-up of waste from your liver. A diet eliminating toxins and other inflammatory foods can benefit your liver.

2. Remove Fatty Build-Up From Liver

Fatty liver disease hurts many people. Removing the excess built-up fat from your liver can help both your liver and gallbladder process more efficiently. But, cutting fat from your diet is not how to remove fatty build-up from your liver. You have to let your body naturally go through the detoxification process.

3. Reduce Inflammation

Many diets and herbs used in detoxification programs are also anti-inflammatory. They can improve your whole body, not just your liver.

4. Lower Gut Pain

A fatty liver or one that has built-up debris can cause undisclosed gut pain. Letting your body naturally detoxify itself can reduce the pain by removing the cause.

5. Curb Carb Cravings

Many detox diets reduce carb consumption significantly. Over time, that reduces your overall desire for carbohydrates. And although your liver has very little to do with your desire for carbs, it can significantly influence how your pancreas behaves.

 

7 Reasons You Should NOT Do a Liver Detox

As much as doing a detox can help you, many ideas out there just don't hold true.

1. Lose Weight

Liver detox will not cause you to lose weight. However, many dietary changes cut out processed food and carbohydrates and encourage you to exercise more. These changes encourage you to lose weight.

2. Correct Diseases – Fatty Liver, Hepatitis

As much as detoxifying your liver works to make you healthy, it does not cure disease. If you have fatty liver disease, cirrhosis of the liver, cancer, or hepatitis, a detox is not a cure. It aids your health, helps make treatments more successful, and make you feel better.

3. Fix Gallbladder Issues

It lets your gallbladder work a little more efficiently because the liver and gallbladder are connected. But, a detox will not cure gallstones, gallbladder disease, or change your bile patterns.

4. Eliminate Depression & Sleep Problems

Clearing your liver will not change your mental or physical behavioral patterns. However, some dietary changes and herbal supplements help improve your digestive health, hormones, and behavioral patterns. It's much more complicated than a simple detox.

5. Stop Digestive Problems

Again, it's not the detox. The dietary changes usually focus on getting more fiber, probiotics, and reducing processed foods and chemicals. This allows your digestive system to work better and balance your gut bacteria.

6. Cut Out Joint Pain

As you reduce inflammatory foods and get more water, your joints feel better. But, the detox itself is not directly responsible for your joint pain relief. What works better is eliminating processed foods and chemicals and losing weight.

7. Clear Skin Problems

Your skin benefits from your liver’s ability to filter toxins. The dietary changes support getting more nutrients into your system, helping reduce triggers for dry skin and premature aging.

 

So, is a detox right for you? A medicinal detox should only be done under the supervision of a doctor or qualified nutritionist. But, if you make the dietary changes to support a healthier diet and add in herbal supplements that are known for helping improve your health, you will feel better. In this way, you improve your overall health, both body and liver.