What does the liver do? (the Coles Notes Version) Highlights: Every cell in a healthy liver is replaced every 40 days. The liver is not a filter, it is a processing plant. The liver doesn t store toxins, it stores Vit. A & D and glycogen. It sends toxins that it can t eliminate to the fat cells. Functions of the Liver: 1) Chemical Processing Plant 2) Detoxify- All toxic material ingested through the portal vein system (via the stomach and intestines) will be acted upon by the liver and neutralized, thus preventing absorption into the main bloodstream. This includes: chemicals, preservatives, nicotine, alcohol, artificial substances, etc. For this reason prescription drugs have to be of a high enough dose to overcome and bypass the detoxification and neutralization process of the liver. 3) Main Regulator of the Blood 4) Regulates Blood Sugar along with the Pancreas and Adrenals 5) Regulates Fats in the Blood 6) Regulates Hormones 7) Metabolism Director 8) Manufactures Bile -1 Quart Daily 9) Manufactures 13 000 different chemicals 10) Maintains 2000 internal enzyme systems 11) Filters 100 gallons of blood daily
12) Performs more than 500 unique bodily functions critical to life and well-being. 13) Contains part of the immune system (Kuppfer cells)-they alert the body to the presence of pathogenic microbes and other toxins. What does the Liver Detoxify? ``The difference between a person with symptoms and one without is often related to whether the liver can handle intestinal toxins and still have enough capacity left to do its other jobs``. Dr. Jonn Matsen N.D. 1) Intestinal Toxins and Poisons (a liver that is overloaded with intestinal toxins is more vulnerable to the cumulative effects of the following). 2) Heavy Metals ie: aluminum, copper, lead, mercury, cadmium 3) Caffeine 4)Alcohol 5) Nicotine 6) Drugs 7) Pesticides 8) Additives
How Does the Liver do What it Does? (The Biggies!) 1) Regulates Hormones Hormones are messengers secreted by glands which travel through the blood to tell cells what they should be doing to help maintain smooth functioning of all the cells together. Hormones help coordinate homeostasis. If the hormones were allowed to keep circulating indefinitely, their messages would become out of date. Therefore, hormones have to be broken down regularly. The liver filters and breaks down the expired messages. Poor liver function can result in sluggish hormone breakdown. Since the hormones then re circulate through the blood system an extra time or two...they stimulate the cells longer than they should and thus disturb homeostasis. eg: morning sickness in pregnant women men whose livers are damaged by drugs who then develop breasts menopause symptoms such as hot flashes PMS Improving the liver, improves mood (depression, pessimism, irritability and rapid mood fluctuations- all of which are keynote problems of the liver-hormone connection).
2) Regulates Metabolism Improving liver function improves fatigue. Since the liver is the main regulator of the blood, it is the true key to proper metabolic rate. A sluggish thyroid is often secondary to a long term sluggish liver. Improve Digestion- Improve Liver- Improve Thyroid 3) Main Regulator of the Blood The liver regulates the sugar, fat, protein and hormone content of the blood. 4) Regulates Blood Sugar (along with the pancreas and the adrenal glands) Glucose in the blood is fuel for the cells. While some parts of the body can turn proteins or fats into glucose, the brains only fuel is blood glucose. Having too little sugar in the blood = hypoglycaemia with blood sugar being too low, the adrenal glands secrete hormones which stimulate the liver to release stored glucose (glycogen) and thus releasing glucose into the blood. While the adrenal gland secretes hormones that tell the liver to release stored glucose, the Pancreas secretes insulin to tell the liver to remove glucose from the blood.
Hyperglycemia and/or diabetes is a state in which too much sugar is the blood. When there is too much glucose in the blood, the pancreas secretes insulin to tell the liver to remove glucose from the blood and to store it back as glycogen (stored glucose). This causes a drop in blood sugar which causes cravings for stimulants to raise the blood sugar again. All the ways we force the blood sugar back up: refined sugar tobacco caffeine (tea, coffee & chocolate) alcohol drugs stress These stimulants create a roller coaster ride for the pancreas, liver and adrenals (with an accompanying emotional roller coaster for us!) While the blood sugar rise makes us feel good momentarily, the liver and pancreas will immediately try to bring the sugar back down. The resultant drop in sugar ensures that will have a craving for more stimulants. And the cycle continues. This cycle is very hard on the adrenal glands especially and can lead to exhaustion. 5) Regulates Fats in the Blood ``The major overlooked cause of fat problems is actually inadequate liver and gallbladder function.`` Dr. Jonn Matsen N.D. The liver and the gallbladder regulate blood fat levels. When these organs are rendered sluggish by intestinal toxins (autointoxication), they don`t regulate adequately. This is the single most important cause of high blood fat levels.
The majority of heart problems are caused by gallbladder trouble. Low cholesterol diets have missed the boat as the body can make cholesterol even faster than it can extract it from food. When the liver and gallbladder are improved, they can control the blood fat levels as they were designed to do.`` Dr. Jonn Matsen N.D. In addition, an amino acid called homocysteine is toxic to the heart -it is shipped from the gut to the liver where it is supposed to be converted into methionine before releasing it into the general circulation, but it needs adequate co factors to do that-specifically B12, B6 and Folic Acid. 6) Immunity When the liver isn t working optimally, foreign invaders bypass the liver, enter the bloodstream, and overtax the immune system. The liver and gallbladder also play important roles in immunity, by its impact on fat absorption and the resultant effect on membrane strength and resiliency which are important for cell defence. Kuppfer cells are microphages that line the liver. Macrophages engulf and then digest cellular debris and pathogens (infectious microbes and cancer cells). They also stimulate lymphocytes and other immune cells to respond to pathogens 7) Varicose Veins: In the same way that the intestinal blood flows to the liver, so does the blood in the veins. If the liver is overloaded, then the blood in the veins tends to back up, causing increased pressure on the walls of the veins. If this increased pressure is combined with weakened vein walls due to poor mineral and or vitamin absorption, the walls may dilate.
Thus liver overload can be expected when vein signs appear such as: 1) varicose veins (interestingly too is that Vit.C and Bioflavanoids are necessary for vein integrity and when the liver is overburdened, then Vit.C will be robbed from the veins to neutralize the hydrogen peroxide that is generated in Phase 1 detoxification -when there is not enough glutathione peroxidase or selenium to chop the hydrogen peroxide into water). 2) haemorrhoids 3) dark blue bags or lines under the eyes 8 ) Regulates Blood Protein Levels If protein levels are too low, the liver assembles proteins from the various amino acids and dumps them in the main blood stream for distribution throughout the body. If the liver doesn t make protein properly, wasting of muscle is the most obvious sign.