Are those elements linked? Do they go together?
The short answer of an herbalist is, "Yes they are. Yes they do".
Let us see how.
Our liver is the detoxification centre of the body. When your liver is happy you are more than half way there with enjoying good health and a beautiful, silky skin. When the liver has a heavy load, it will throw the excess "wastes" on the skin. It can manifest as boils, zits, dull skin, even eczema or psoriasis.
"What does affect the state of the liver?" I hear you say. Here is a short list of what affects the liver in its detoxification work.
- Alcohol
- Deep fried food
- Synthetic medications from pain killer to The Pill, including antibiotics, antidepressants and on goes the list.
- Stress
This last element is a little known contributor to the liver work load. We can agree that we all have some stress in one way or an other particularly in the interesting times we are navigating. It is quite pervasive in our modern societies. The technology we use, with its fast pace which fosters an alert for danger state, does also contribute to the activation of the amygdala. The amygdala is a part of the brain (no bigger than a nut) which is responsible for our safety. It scans for possible threats particularly when it is stimulated. These days it is very much kept in an alert state through the challenging time we are going through.
Back to liver health and the pain killer. The later are also known as NSAID, non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Dr Aviva Romm tells us they are responsible for more liver disease in the US than any other cause. It is my opinion that the situation in Australia is likely to be the same.
Considering the above information, you could ask what would be some simple ways to support your liver? Here are some suggestions.
- Learn about plant based green remedy pharmacy. Prevention is better than a cure and if the NSAID can be avoided because of our prevention work, the better outcome it can be for your liver, your long term health and your glowing skin.
- Increase your intake of bitter greens such as lettuce, radicchio, endive, chicory, rocket. The more variety of these greens you eat, the better your liver is. I suggest to start your meal with a green salad and olive oil (Australian certified organic of course) at least once per day. The greens will help with the bowel motion in a gentle way, nourish your microbiome (more to come on this one in a future blog), and help your skin to be radiant.
- One week per month drink 2 cups of dandelion root tea per day. To be sure the dandelion root tea brings medicinal benefits, here is how you prepare it. In a saucepan put 1 tsp of dandelion root for one cup of water. Bring to a gentle simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let if infuse for an additional 5 minutes. Strain. You can drink this health beneficial herbal tea hot or cold. You can prepare enough to last you for two days by keeping it in the fridge.
- If Dandelion root is not available, then burdock root will do similar work in supporting your liver. The same mode of preparation applies.
