Detox or detox for short is one of the most important functions of the liver. Your liver has to safely break down and eliminate everyday substances the body produces, such as hormones and metabolic waste products, as well as the more obvious chemical toxins that you consume through our food and water.
It is based on two complicated phases of detoxification that involve enzymatic reactions to break down toxins and make them safe for excretion through the bile in the form of feces or in the urine produced by the kidneys. Research has shown that specific foods and nutrients have an inhibitory or potentiating effect on these detoxification enzyme systems. Many of these foods should be used for a more effective liver detox diet. These same foods and nutrients can even be used to treat some common toxicity and immune system disorders.
There are two detoxification pathways known as Phase I and Phase II. Diet can help regulate and balance your activity for a safer and more effective detox. For example, if the Phase I detox is working well, but Phase II is slow, the toxins processed by Phase I can accumulate and cause damage while waiting for Phase II to treat them.
Many of these intermediate toxins can be more dangerous than the original substance and can have adverse effects on the glandular system, the immune system and the nervous system, causing health problems.
Some of the substances that cause an increase in detoxification from Phase I without the equivalent increase in Phase II are pesticides, cigarette smoke, exhaust and paint, burned or grilled foods, alcohol, intestinal toxins, and certain medications.
Main foods to help liver detoxification:
1) Cruciferous vegetables: cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi, broccoli, broccoli sprouts, mustard greens, turnips, radish, cauliflower, kohlrabi, collard greens, daikon.
They contain powerful phytochemicals and antioxidants that support Phase II detoxification activity. They help the liver turn chemicals that could cause cancer into something much less toxic that can be safely excreted. Broccoli sprout extracts inhibit Phase I but stimulate Phase II. This is beneficial for people exposed to a high level of toxins from paint fumes, cigarette smoke, pesticides, and alcohol.
2) Sulfur foods: fish, meat, eggs, onions, garlic, turnips, radishes, celery, kale, green beans. These foods are beneficial for phase II detoxification, which uses sulfur for its sulfation pathway.
3) Fresh Fruits and Vegetables: Eating your 5 or preferably more servings per day helps supply the amino acid glutathione necessary for Phase II detoxification. If you are exposed to a high level of toxins, it is essential to eat foods rich in glutathione. Commercially prepared foods contain very little glutathione. Frozen vegetables appear to retain their glutathione content.
Especially rich in glutathione are cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, avocado, dill, and caraway seeds. Fruits and vegetables are rich in antioxidants that help protect the liver from free radical damage caused by toxins. Organically grown ones are the best.
Grapefruit and its juice is an exception. It contains a substance, naringenin, which, if consumed regularly, inhibits phase I detoxification. Drugs and toxins can remain in the body longer before detoxification causes harm. Therefore, if you are taking drugs or exposed to a high level of toxins, do not eat grapefruit or drink juice.
4) High-quality protein: meat, fish and eggs provide the amino acids necessary for the conjugation pathways of phase II detoxification. It is important to eat organically produced or free range meat and eggs to avoid more toxins stored in the fats of intensively raised products. Fish is best sourced from deep, clean waters or organically grown.
5) Essential Fatty Acids – Unfortunately, many diets lack the beneficial fats that are vital for phase I detoxification. Avoid all hydrogenated fats found in many commercially produced and processed foods and meals, and hot fats that they can damage them.
Eat fresh nuts and seeds and their cold-pressed oils without heating. Oily fish may be contaminated with mercury and other contaminants, so it is debatable whether they should be included now.
No matter how good your diet is or how clean your environment is, you will always be exposed to toxins. Strengthening detox pathways through the specific foods listed above will help you stay well or may improve existing conditions. Worth it!