Happy Spring!
This is my absolute favorite time of year, life is returning to the earth, the temperature is perfect for spending time outdoors, and everything is bright and colorful again.
Many of us have our regular rituals or practices that we partake in this time of year. We till the ground for our gardens, get away for spring break, celebrate holidays like Easter, Passover, and Cinco De Mayo. And everyone’s least favorite, spring cleaning. Which incidentally is what this month’s newsletter is about.
Don’t worry, the spring cleaning I’m talking about is much better than decluttering the garage and ransacking the attack. I’m talking about some of your most important internal interfaces; your gut and liver.
Featured Recipes
Tropical Gut + Detox Smoothie:
With tasty Bone Broth IQ, greens, sours, ginger, vitamin C, and spirulina, this nutrient-packed smoothie will support both gut health and healthy detox pathways.
30 Day Flush – Gut and Liver Tonic:
A simple and refreshing way to start your Spring with a daily drink full of antioxidants, herbs, sours, and APV. Your gut microbiome will thank you and your digestive function will certainly approve.
Garlic Ginger Noodle Soup:
Bringing back my top choice for gut and detox support. This richly decadent broth-based soup supports a healthy microbiome, provides gut-healing nutrients, & bok choy boosts detox pathways.
REAL FOOD
Just as with any health intervention, the best dietary approach is a whole-food, low toxin diet rich in fresh fruit and vegetables, clean protein, and whole grains.
Nutrients for Gut & Liver Detox Support
There are many specific nutrients that target both gut and liver cleansing. You can include these in meals, drink them as teas, take them in supplement form, or all of the above
*Always work with a healthcare professional before taking supplements that address these systems. There are many poor-quality products out there as well as dangerous ingredients that can actually cause harm.
Liver supporting foods:
- Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, mustard greens, kale, bok choy, kohlrabi)
- Organic green leafy vegetables
- Dandelion greens
- Artichoke
- Green tea
- Organic coffee
- Grapefruit
- Organic blueberries
- Spirulina
- Protein
- Healthy fats (fish, nuts, olives, etc.)
Gut supporting foods:
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Peppermint
- Bone broth
- Glutamine (rich in eggs, beef, tofu, corn, and supplement form)
- Glycine (rich in bone broth, gelatin, poultry skin, meats, and supplement form)
- Fiber (whole grains, beans, vegetables)
- Fermented foods (tofu, yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, kefir, kombucha, etc.)
Why Cleanse?
A well-functioning gut and liver are essential to longevity and optimal health. It’s ideal to do routine, focused cleanses given the immense amount of work these organs do and the number of metabolites and toxins thye come in contact with.
If you’ve followed my article for some time now, you know I’m big on organic foods. I’ve never explained why it’s so important, so let’s discuss. About 1.2 billion pounds of pesticides are sprayed on American crops each year, that’s about 5lb of pesticides per person.(1)
If this has never been something that’s bothered you, consider this: these chemicals are used to kill and repel pests that damage crops – and not in the peaceful pass-in-their sleep sort of way. If these chemicals can kill bugs and small animals, just imagine what they are doing to your body. Your cells are, in fact, made up of the very same organic matter and molecules as these “pests”. (2)
Additionally, pesticides have been linked to multiple forms of cancers, they have caused pollinators like honeybees to become endangered species (3), and they kill the microbes that thrive in the soil (yes, the same type of microbes that we need healthy and thriving in our guts) (4).
On top of this, many people are eating about 8-10lb of food additives each year (5) so let’s just say your gut and liver deal with a LOT. They deserve a little love and support for all they deal with on our behalf.
Even if it’s Organic – You Still Want to Wash It
Even organic foods have been found to have pesticides and chemicals on them due to harvesting techniques, transportation processes, and handling in stores. So give that fruit a good wash WITH SOAP! Water alone doesn’t get off the fat-soluble chemicals.
Additionally, “organic” is not a regulated word so really anyone can use that word on a label. “USDA-certified organic” ensures that they are following strict protocols in the growth and harvesting of crops.
The Clean 15 and Dirty Dozen list from EWG is an excellent reference source. Only buy organic foods on the dirty dozen list.
Why Spring Cleansing?
It’s good practice to do a gut/liver cleanse once a year for routine health maintenance. Spring is a great time because the weather is warming, we are likely to move more, our bodies become less stagnant, and it’s a great time for a reset and growth internally just as the external world is doing the same.
Likewise, according to Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Spring is the best time to do a liver cleanse as this time of year aligns with the cycles of the body. If you’re interested in this topic, you can learn more about it here: http://www.chinainstitute.com/spring-and-the-liver/
While my clinical practice is very science-based, I have a lot of respect for TCM as they have a pretty solid record in health spanning thousands of years. I also appreciate how its principles intertwine aspects of the physical body, the earth, nature, and philosophy. There’s a beauty to it that deserves respect as everything matters when it comes to the experience of life.
How NOT to Cleanse
Your gut and liver allow for healthy flow in and out of your body. We want nutrients to flow in and toxins to flow out. Gut and liver cleanse are popular topics on the internet, but there is a correct way to do it and a juice cleanse is not it.
There are many articles to be found online that recommend doing a “juice cleanse” or “water cleanse” as a liver detox but this is not a healthy way to cleanse your liver. Many of these articles will also warn of a “detox phase” wherein you’ll feel bad as your body “flushes out toxins”.
As a practitioner, I feel obligated to warn you of the dangers of internet health fads and provide you with a safer, healthier option. The reason these types of cleanses don’t work is because you NEED protein in order to effectively clear toxins from your body.
There are 3 phases of detoxification, the 1st phase is one in which these fads may truly help. The 2nd phase, however, is completely dependent on amino acids from proteins – and if you’re doing a juice fast, you aren’t eating protein.
The result is toxins building up in your body that can’t be sent to the 3rd phase – elimination. This is why people often feel bad when doing these cleanses. Not because it’s working, but because it’s making your body MORE toxic.
This is why my approach includes whole foods and adequate protein plus personalized supplements that safely and effectively stimulate detox, flow, and elimination.
A Little More on Your Liver
You are likely well aware that your gut is a very important facet of health. It’s taxed with the digestion, absorption, and elimination of every bit of nutrients that you give your body – it’s pretty clear why we would want a healthy, resilient gut. But what does the liver have to do it?
The liver is essentially the logistics manager of internal nutrients, metabolites, and toxins. It’s intimately involved with gut function along with collective bodily functions and metabolisms. Beyond being a major detox organ, did you know that every single molecule of food (or otherwise) that you eat passes through the liver to be metabolized before being sent out to the rest of your body?
Many molecules pass right through to circulation like essential nutrients that are already in a bioavailable form like glucose, amino acids, and some vitamins and minerals.
You don’t always get a free pass if you’re a nutrient in its building-block-form. Your liver will also ensure that only the right amount of these nutrient metabolites are passing through to circulation. The excess is often stored or converted to other metabolites (this is how overconsumption of carbs can lead to issues like fatty liver and/or high cholesterol).
Many other molecules from our food and internal processes must also be converted into a specific form in order for our body to use them efficiently or eliminate them when it’s done with them – that’s another incredible feat your liver does on a constant basis.
Without your liver, most of the nutrients from your food wouldn’t make it into the rest of your body to sustain life and you would have a very fast build-up of molecular waste by-products that have no way out.
And what about all the things in our food that shouldn’t be there?
Our liver sorts out and handles all of the good nutrients we need to support health, it’s also the front-line organ doing its best to protect you from less-desirable molecules that we ingest.
Things like food additives, preservatives, colors, fillers, mixers, pesticides, herbicides, heavy metals, other toxins in foods, and medications all hitch a ride straight to your liver. Balance between the 3 phases of detoxification mentioned above is essential for your liver to get rid of these unwanted and dangerous chemicals.
Overall It does a great job of multitasking, but after years of managing these thousands of processes, things can get a little backed up and sluggish.
This is why it’s so critical for overall health and wellbeing that you do what you can to:
- avoid toxins in foods and the environment (eat organic produce and meat, filter your water, wash produce with soap, limit food additives and alcohol, don’t do drugs, and only use essential medications),
- eat foods that support these very complex systems,
- drink plenty of water,
- and have a regular cleansing practice.
Of course, you should not change anything or start anything new (like supplements, a detox protocol, or detox-specific therapeutics)without working with a health professional . As far as dietary interventions go, including fresh, clean, whole foods daily will only serve to benefit your health. I hope that some of this information has inspired you to give your liver and gut some support this month. Please feel free to reach out to me if you’d like to take on a more personalized and therapeutic detox intervention.
I hope you’ve found this article helpful in your health journey. If I can assist you along the way or if you’d like to learn more about functional medicine, you’re welcome to schedule a complementary consultation here. I look forward to hearing from you.
Be well,
Jordan Smith MS
Functional Medicine Nutritionist
