Liver undoubtedly plays a vital role in maintaining metabolic functions ion our body; However, do you realize that our liver is actually depending on you? Even though it’s hidden away inside your body, the truth is they communicate with you. How? If you practice good diet, your liver will tell you by ensuring that your liver manager to function well and you do fell great entirely. On the other hand, if you do not care about your diet, your liver will literally be vulnerable and will result in various health diseases.
Thus, it is important to know what are the best nutrients and hers that are beneficial to your liver! Here are some of the great nutrients that can include in your diet:
MILK THISTLE
- Milk thistle or also called Mary thistle is a flowering herb which is native to Europe. It is often promoted for its liver-protecting properties and gallbladder protection.
- Besides, it has also been used as a complementary remedy by people who have liver damage due to various conditions such as alcoholic liver disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, hepatitis and many more.
- One of the active ingredients extracted from the plant seed is silymarin. Silymarin is a type of flavonoid which contains antioxidant properties.
- Moreover, previous study demonstrated that Filicinin, a major constituent of silymarin has been shown to protect the liver through a few mechanisms.
ASTRAGALUS
- Astragalus, or known as Huang qi among Chinese, is an ancient root of herb that has been widely used for centuries due to immune-boosting and and-inflammatory effects.
- The roots of this plant remarkably contain a lot of active compounds like flavonoids, saponins and polysaccharides that are believed to be responsible for its potential benefits.
- Apart from that, Astragalus might improve quality of life and give protection against liver injury by regulating intracellular calcium levels.
DANDELION
- Dandelion or also known as pu gong ying is naive to Europe but found throughout mild climates of the Northern Hemisphere.
- Moreover, in traditional Chinese and Native American medicine, dandelion root has been used to treat stomach and liver conditions for periods of time.
- Previous study has found that dandelion showed a protective effect on liver tissue in the presence of toxic substances and stress.
- This effect is associated with the dandelion’s antioxidants content which assists against oxidative stress in liver tissue.
ARTICHOKE
- Artichokes originated in the Mediterranean and a type of thistle even though they are always mistakenly classified as vegetables.
- It has been used for centuries for its potential benefits and due to its high number of compounds such as cynarine and silymarin found in the plant, artichoke now is also famous as a supplement.
- Furthermore, artichoke aids in removing harmful toxins from the liver by increasing the production of bile.
- One study indicated that artichoke extract reduced inflammation and less fat deposition after 2 months.
Some of the healthy lifestyle to maintain healthy liver are:
- Healthy Diet
- Avoid taking high fat and high cholesterol food, limit sugar and salt intake, consume more high fiber food.
- The Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) of fat is 20-35% of total calories and mainly are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat.
- Lose Weight
- Obese is highly associated with fatty liver, hence it is best to maintain a normal body mass index (BMI) which is 18.5 – 24.9 kg/m2.
- Maintaining a low body fat percentage can also reduce the risk of fatty liver, especially visceral fat
- American Council on Exercise suggests that the acceptable range of body fat percentage for women and men are 25-31% and 18-24% respectively.
- Physically Active
- Increase physical activity can help to reduce weight and also boost metabolism as metabolic disorder is one of the main causes of fatty liver
- Aim to have 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise for 5 times weekly, or a cumulative of 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise weekly
- Reduce Alcohol consumption
- Limit alcohol intake can help to prevent alcoholic fatty liver
- Men can take up to 2 drinks daily, whereas women can 1 drink daily
- Example of a drink would be 12 ounces (355 milliliters) of beer and 5 ounces (148 milliliters) of wine.