Liver-Nourishing Foods

Ann Louise Gittleman, M.S., C.N.S., breaks what she calls "Liver-Loving Foods" into five groups: 1) Crucifers, 2) Green, Leafy Vegetables and Herbs, 3) Citrus, 4) Sulphur-Rich Foods, and 5) Liver Healers. I'll expand upon these categories here, recommending that for the seven days before you cleanse your liver that you eat at least one food from each group daily.

1) Crucifers: caggage, broccolli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli sprouts. These help to convert fat-soluble toxins into water-soluble substances that the body can eliminate through the urine. They also contain indole-3-carbinol and sulforaphane, which support antioxidant activity and neutralize chemicals and drugs in the liver. That's very important for detoxification.

2) Green, Leafy Vegetables and Herbs: chard, collard, dandelion and mustard greens, cilantro, escarole, parsley, kale, watercress. These foods are full of chlorophyll, which purifies blood. Their high magnesium content also feeds the liver's enzyme-producing function. Cilantro chelates mercury. Isn't that interesting?

3) Citrus: orange, lemon, and lime. The high Vitamin C content supplies the liver with the nutrients necessary for the production of glutathione, an important liver-detoxifying antioxidant. Vitamin C also binds heavy metals and toxic sulfa drugs for elimination from the body.

4) Sulfur-Rich: garlic, onions, egg, and daikon radishes. Sulfation is a process that the liver uses to eliminate toxins. These sulfur-rich foods give the liver the necessary nutrients to carry out this process. Daikon radish also aids in fat digestion and metabolism.

5) Liver Healers: artichoke, asparagus, beets, celery, dandelion root tea, nutritional yeast, whey. These foods will support the liver quite nicely during its detoxification process.