"I need to pick your brains on the liver.
What, of all that I have here, is a good liver detoxifier. We were
working on the issue of detoxification some time ago in class (an
herb course) and the question came up about whether a detoxification program
should address the liver, kidneys, blood, or bowels first. We went
with liver because of its role as the toxic dump but the question
and answer remained uncertain. Where will the liver dump if the
bowel and kidney is congested as well?"
This question was posted by one of
my students but refers to a discussion in a class taught by someone
else. The answer is based on traditional Ayurvedic medicine and
other natural systems of healing. It is posted in case there are
others trying to develop health maintenance strategies for themselves.
Obviously, serious issues should be addressed by a health care
It's important to distinguish "detoxification" from "tonification." Western
natural medicine is obsessed with detoxification and its elusive
goal of purification. In contrast, in the East, where many people
are malnourished, there tends to be more emphasis on tonification
even though purification is also a highly regarded religious and
The short distinction is that detoxification generally
involves the removal of surplus as well as toxicity whereas tonification
is aimed at weaker systems of the body that need nourishment in
order to repair. Each strategy has its place, and it is important
to point out that people who are debilitated often cannot tolerate
rigorously detoxifying protocols whereas stronger persons often
thrive on precisely the same diets and herbs.
Logic leads to the deduction that if the cause
of less than optimal health is surfeit or some kind of poisoning,
detoxification will relieve some, if not all symptomswhereas
if malnourishment undermines the capacity to regenerate, then tonification
is needed. While the two are not mutually exclusive, the herbs
that are effective detoxifiers tend to be energetically opposite
those that are tonifying so they are seldom used simultaneously.
Years ago, when I was first discovering natural
medicine, I read that most people have clogged livers. The average
person is trying to enjoy health with use of only 40% of the liver's
capacity. Given that this is an average, it is easy to imagine
that some people are more congested with fat and sugar than others
but the average is clearly not the ideal and 80% surfeit is a serious
People on the standard American diet consume an
average of a pound of inorganic toxins per year, this in the form
of food additives, drug residues, and indigestible foods. Environmental
and work hazards merely add to the toll on the liver so I would
consider the liver to be a more critical focus for detoxification
than the kidneys, but obviously nothing works as one would hope
if digestion, elimination, circulation, and respiration are less
than necessary for health.
The most touted liver herb is milk
thistle, but studies indicate that it is much more protective
when administered before exposure to a toxin than when given
after the fact. Nevertheless, there is nothing known to be more
effective in helping the liver to regenerate than milk thistle.
It is also detoxifying, but not as detoxifying as stronger herbs
such as bupleurum, an herb that will trigger the liver in such
a way as to dislodge toxins.
Ayurveda teaches that toxicity is acidic so detoxification
is achieved through the use of alkalizing herbs and the spectrum
of such ranges everywhere from leafy green vegetables to serious
herbal formulas. Thus, while some people will thrive on artichokes,
others will want to add dandelions and herbs. If the herbs cause
the liver to dump toxins, the toxins begin circulating and give
rise to symptoms such as irritability and itchiness. When these
symptoms occur, it indicates that the eliminatory systems are not
carrying off the toxins so the odds favor reabsorption of the toxins,
i.e., little or no gain for the pain.
To avoid this return to square one, most practitioners
suggest combining something that aids digestionless pressure
on the liverwith something that aids elimination. Depending
on individual symptoms and needs, a simple intestinal formula or
both an intestinal and kidney formula might be considered. So,
the answer to the question is clean the liver (and blood) and make
sure the eliminatory channels are efficient.
There are probably a host of definitions of "toxicity." There
are inorganic toxins such as mercury from dental materials and
vaccines; aluminum from food additives and cooking utensils; and
cobalt in beer. There are toxins from venoms such as insect bites;
toxins from foods that are preserved or not digested properly;
and the very serious toxins from environmental pollutants: air,
water, herbicides, and pesticides. There is also simple surfeit,
food consumed in excess of what was needed, food that is held in
reserve for future use and stored in the liver as fat and sugar,
not perhaps "toxic" but nevertheless congesting.
As noted, most toxins are acidic, and they are
neutralized by foods and herbs that are bitter. While significant
improvement is often experienced in a few hours, real detoxification
usually takes months or years. People should be realistic and also
careful to choose products on the basis of their own need. If in
doubt, consultation with an expert is always sound advice.
Levels of Toxicity
Toxicity varies. Some toxicity is serious and
immediately life-threatening whereas some is subtle, almost undetectable
and unlikely to pose any immediate risk. While I have seen people
avoid amputation by swift and correct use of herbs, I have also
seen people procrastinate and take a turn for the worse. Somewhere
in between the extremes is common sense. If someone is hugely toxic,
as evidenced by radiating purple and black lines, there is no time
to waste. However, even in these situations, it is often worth
trying some herbs to see if in the minutes or hours between symptoms
and medical intervention, the symptoms can be reversed. When this
occurs, intervention can be less drastic and healing afterwards
is much cleaner.
My experience is that professional herbalists
are confident about treating themselves but rarely as certain when
offering advice to others. Likewise, patients who are less familiar
with natural methods are less likely to try the same measures that
a practitioner might use. My own experience with spider bites became
quite famous in some circles. I absolutely refused antibiotics
and surgery, but while I am better off today than others who were
bitten at about the same time, my experience took fortitude and
commitment. Ergo, people have to follow their own guidance in such
However, when it comes to such things as minor
visual problems, such as floaters, there is not much to lose by
trying herbs. Find your own safe ground and proceed from there.
Psychological Symptoms of Toxicity
Ayurveda is very clear on the relationship between
physiological and psychological conditions. Toxicity is characterized
first by irritability and eventually by anger. The liver is regarded
as the seat of anger, the place where fire goes amuck and either
erupts outwardly or simmers within, the difference between aggressive
and/or confrontational behavior and self-destructive suffering.
The ultimate mission of fire is to defend itself and right injustices;
therefore, it's important to differentiate reckless and noble use
Ayurveda further states that the fire element
is related to light and the sense of sight so many (non-mechanical)
visual problems are resolved by the same treatments that aid the
liver. There is no clearer example of this logic than with diabetes,
a disease characterized by excess blood sugar and a condition that
often leads to gangrene and blindness. The main Ayurvedic herbs
for regulating sugar metabolism are pungent and bitter. The pungent
(spicy) foods and herbs promote better catabolism, i.e., more use
and less surfeit, while the bitter herbs tend to reduce toxicity.
Both improve circulation. Neither "cure" diabetes, but
both categories of food and herbs promote "balance."
This is the basis of what is today called "energetic
medicine," the system of healing that regards balance as the
key to ease and imbalance as the harbinger of dis-ease. So, the
formulas and protocols that stem from such philosophies are dynamic
rather than treatment oriented. By this, I mean that the patient
must be actively involved in the cure because no amount of herbs
will correct for a terrible dietand the wrong diet would
sabotage the rationale of the herbal choices. Likewise, this approach
does not lend itself to pathologies so when the pathologies are
a prime concern, there is room for "integrative medicine," systems
in which diseases are brought under control through "medicine" and
the causes of imbalance are addressed through diet, herbs, life
style, and perhaps such intangible factors as prayer and meditation.
This said, fire cannot be subdued through suppression.
If anger is buried, dragons develop until they are strong enough
to assert themselves in such a way as to express the truths that
have been neglected. The Chinese discuss this wisely, for while
fire loves action, wisdom often dictates waiting for more propitious
moments so a person who waits is not a coward but rather someone
who recognizes that success often depends on timing. While people
are waiting for that moment, the subconscious is often busy with
the issues giving rise to anger and resentment. In Chinese medicine,
they suggest that at night, the blood retreats more deeply into
the liver and when toxic, sleep is more disturbed. People may act
out in their dreams what they dare not do by day. If they suffer
from nightmares or inability to relax, a little bitter medicine
does a lot more good than a cup of milk. Half a cup of aloe vera
juice may mean the difference between violent dreams and rest.
Continued on next page
Berry Smoothie Recipe for Liver and Blood