Herbs For Liver and Their Benefits: Here’s All You Should Know
When talking about the body's vital organs, you can't ignore the liver. It plays significant roles in filtration, digestion, metabolism, and other essential activities that keep the body healthy. Due to this importance, liver damage can be a huge hit to your quality of life.
Damages to the liver often come from what we take and our lifestyle. For instance, smoking and alcohol abuse cause many of these problems that affect the liver.
For an organ this vital, active measures have to be taken to ensure that it remains in top working order. Many methods have been adopted to boost the liver condition, and today, we’ll look at one of them —herbs.
So, what are the herbs for liver? How are they beneficial? Read on as we find out.
Learning The Value of a Healthy Liver
The liver is by far the largest organ in the human body. Its functions are numerous, each one as vital as the next. Some major tasks carried out by a healthy liver include protein synthesis, bile formation which helps in fat absorption, storage of fats, storage of iron, and production of digestive enzymes.
The functions of a liver are enormous, and that is why these steps have to be taken to keep it working as efficiently as possible. That involves maintaining a healthy lifestyle, eating correctly, and often adding certain supplements to your diet.
However, for every supplement for liver health, there is a herb for liver that accomplishes the same thing. So why not choose the more natural options? We’re here to guide your hand as you make that choice, by outlining five great herbs for liver health that you will love.
What Are the Best Herbs for Liver Health?
Turmeric
This herb is very prevalent. It is most often used in cooking, and found in many kitchen cabinets, but this herb has proven to be useful in more ways than one, including as one of the herbs for liver health. When we look at turmeric, we discover its significant component of curcumin and its usefulness to people trying to keep their liver in check.
Curcumin is known for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, making it a good choice for any individual diet. It’s efficacy in improving the overall health of the liver has been proven with a study. Other studies show how curcumin helps to reduce body fat, which also aids with weight loss.
For consumption purposes, curcumin in turmeric is best taken with piperine. That’s because piperine, as a supplement, enhances the absorption of curcumin into the body. You can find piperine in black pepper.
Ginseng
Next on our list of beneficial herbs for liver is the herb best known for its anti-inflammatory properties —ginger. Added to these anti-inflammatory properties are antioxidant characteristics that protect against damage to the liver.
These damages or injuries are mainly caused by toxins, excess alcohol, and invading viruses. Another benefit of ginseng is that it helps with liver cell regeneration in the case of surgeries and injuries.
Other perks include a reduction of the markers for liver damage.
Garlic
Another well-known cooking ingredient makes the list. Garlic is an excellent supplement for boosting your liver health and function. Some consider it only as a vegetable and a food additive. Regardless, garlic constitutes a lot of herbal remedies.
Garlic is helpful in making herbal supplements due to the many anti-inflammatory and antioxidant compounds that are contained in it. These compounds include ajoene and allicin, which help preserve and boost your liver health. Also, it leads to a drop in harmful cholesterol levels, making it easier to maintain a healthy liver.
Milk Thistle
When you hear of milk thistle, you simply need to think of a group of compounds extracted from milk thistle seeds. These compounds include silybin, silychristin, and silydianin. Milk thistle has been a mainstay in herbal remedies for a long time, dating back over 20 centuries ago.
For a herb for liver to be in use for so long, it indicates how effective it is. The most important of its benefits is its liver-protective capability. In other words, consumption of this herb is great for liver health.
Milk thistle, also known as silymarin, also possesses antioxidants that help promote liver cell regeneration. Added to this are inflammation reduction and relief from liver cell infections. As a result, milk thistle is one of the essential herbs for liver health and function.
Licorice
Finally on our list of herbs for liver is one that has been tested and proven to possess several anti-inflammatory effects on the liver. Furthermore, it contains antiviral agents that offer protection to the organ. One of the primary compounds found in licorice roots is glycyrrhizin.
This glycyrrhizin is a saponin compound associated with traditional Chinese and Japanese medicinal practices. Its primary function regarding liver health is to provide relief and aid recovery from liver-damaging conditions.
Therefore, licorice roots help combat many adverse liver conditions and boost its functioning.
Other Tips for Taking Care of Your Liver
Natural herbs for liver are essential for boosting your liver health and function. However, a healthy lifestyle is also crucial, and there are various ways of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, with the addition of herbal remedies, here are the best lifestyle tips to adopt:
- Keep Your Weight in Check: One of the quickest ways to acquire an adverse liver condition is through unhealthy weight levels. In other words, being overweight quickly leads to developing terrible liver conditions. Therefore, you must practice a healthy diet and lifestyle to maintain a healthy liver.
- Avoid Toxins: You should avoid ingesting toxins from various products. These toxins are dangerous to the liver and can cause injuries in extreme conditions. Sources of toxins include cleaning products, aerosols, insecticides, and so on. When using these products, ensure the room is appropriately aerated and use a mask when dealing with aerosols.
- Proper Exercise: Regular exercise helps your liver by burning out the excess fat stored. That ensures your liver doesn't suffer from fat accumulation and excess triglycerides as they’re converted to energy during these activities.
- Drink Responsibly: We see these two words in every alcohol ad, and they're no joke. It's essential to regulate your alcohol intake as excess alcohol intake poses considerable threats to your liver. These include damage to liver cells and scarring of the tissues. So, take care when having a tote of the stuff.
Conclusion
Your liver is as important as any organ in your body. To maintain a healthy state, you must ensure every part of it is working perfectly. Therefore, be sure to add the right herbs for liver and maintain the proper lifestyle for a better life and a better you.