The “Live” in Liver

by Leslie Shanai Moyer

Scenario one:

Imagine you are walking along a beautiful trail in the woods and up ahead, as far as the eye can see, is your favorite body of water.

I always see the ocean below an impressive cliff.

Perhaps it is a waterfall or bubbling creek for you. Continuing along the trail, humming , singing or whistling, because life is good, you suddenly come upon a large section that is covered with blackberry bushes.

In the middle of these berries is a bear, who not only completely blocks the trail, but also the view. In fact, there is no way to even get around the annoying bear. The feeling of being thwarted is what we are left with.

The goal of reaching the expected destination of water of beauty, no longer a possibility.

Scenario two:

Imagine you are an eagle gliding over a lush valley.

With your keen eyesight you can see a lot of details for a long ways ahead. Suddenly you spot a delicious looking mouse and glide ahead where you swoop it into the sky with your talons, providing your next meal.

Mission accomplished, with a sense of  freedom added, as an extra bonus!

Both of these metaphors represent the psychological aspect of the liver system in Chinese medicine.

The first scenario represents a liver that is being blocked; also known as stagnation.

The second scenario represents a healthy liver: unimpeded forward movement towards a goal. For many of us, how we experience life has a big impact on how our livers function.

If we don’t have a sense of purpose, or that sense of purpose is thwarted, or if there is nothing to look forward to, then our bodies pay the price: more than we realize.

Acupuncture follows a system that has Nature as its guide.

To bring health to our livers, in a world that has become 10 times exponentially more toxic in the last 20 years, we are required to do much more than eat well and exercise. Those things were enough when Nature was Queen.

Now, everyone has to work a little harder, in order for our liver to be at its best. The tricks we employed even a decade ago are now not so effective, because of the huge overload for our eliminative organs in this super toxic window we humans are enclosed in.

I find, when discussing liver health with my patients, that the first response the patient wants to do is some kind of liver cleanse or to utilize harsh liver cleansing herbs. In the recent past, that would have been a worthwhile plan.

Currently, aggressive cleansing to the liver just causes even more overload to an organ that is already doing the best it can, especially  under the circumstances.

Supporting the other elimination organ systems to increase their function is one of the best modern ways to support our livers physically. Of those methods, I think the enema/colonic is one of the best. Irrigating the colon stimulates its own function and so is therefore superior to laxatives because it is not habit forming for the body*.

Because the colon removes so many toxins and is also directly related to the liver and gall bladder, enemas are one of the most effective ways to support our liver. In addition, any cleansing that is gentle on the body can also be utilized, such as alternating hot/cold showers or other hydro-therapy techniques, and of course, through dietary support.

Fasting used to be a very effective method for supporting the liver that I personally no longer do, or recommend, with the exception of someone who has been keto adapted. To be clear, I am not referring to the keto diet as that utilized solo is not a well balanced or healthy diet for any length of time. Think Atkin’s diet. Same difference. Being keto adapted means including alternating carbs in the diet once our birth right is returned to us. Carbs contain many important nutrients that humans need to stay healthy, especially in the form of phytonutrients which they have now found are good for cancer prevention.

Dietary suggestions for the liver include decreasing the difficult to digest fats such as cheese, chocolate,  ice cream, peanut butter, and animal fats. If possible, also the gradual reduction of coffee, alcohol and other drugs. Increasing healthy fats such as olives, olive oil, avocados, plus whole seeds & nuts, greatly supports the liver’s function of digesting animal fats easily. Animals store toxins in their fat so it is best to keep the ratio between animal & vegetable oils 50/50.

Eating lots of greens helps the liver directly and also provides the right kind of fiber needed for the colon. Many people are sensitive to grains so that the fiber aspect from them is canceled out, perhaps even becoming causative for poor colon health. Psyllium is also clogging for approximately 50% of the average people who try such. A good replacement is freshly ground flax. (Pre-ground seeds are almost always rancid due to the unstable nature of the oils they contain).

The last food suggestion would be to eat liver, as long as it is organic. The following is a recipe for meatloaf that has liver as one of the main ingredients, but the flavor is well disguised. Even for picky eaters the liver flavor is not noticeable.

Leslie’s savory meatloaf

preheat oven to 350

De-glaze 1/2 lb. organic liver (chicken is mildest) by soaking it in lemon juice, milk, or vinegar for at least 2 hours prior to use. Follow by rinsing with water until it runs clear and then pat dry. This removes any residual unprocessed toxins, making it safe to use. Make the liver smooth by processing in a food processor or a hand held blender.

• 1/2 lb. organic de-glazed liver (directions above)
• 1 lb. ground beef, lamb, buffalo, or venison
• 1 & ½ c. red onion, finely chopped
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 2/3 c. fresh parsley, chopped
• 5 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup flax seeds, freshly ground or equal amount of bread crumbs
• 3 tbsp. dried thyme
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. or more of black pepper
• 1 tsp. tasty salt (such as Himalayan, for ie.)

Knead together, with your hands, all ingredients until blended. Fill loaf pan and set on cookie sheet to catch drips. Meatloaf is done when firm to the touch and has also slightly pulled away from the sides of the pan (1 to 1 & ¼ hours). Best to let sit for about 10 minutes before you serve so that it holds together better. Serve with ketchup, Thai chili sauce, or barbeque sauce.

Liver Smoothie

• 1 cup hot cinnamon tea
• Handful of frozen blueberries
• 1/3 cup lemon or lime juice
• Chai spices
• 1 chicken liver that has been frozen for at least 3 weeks and de-glazed
• Greens to taste
• 2 Tbsp of cocoa butter

Blend and enjoy! Even though this sounds fairly icky, liver is like sushi: much milder in flavor when it’s uncooked. I love the taste of liver so this smoothie is’nt really my deal, but many of my patients swear by it.

My final suggestion regarding liver support is to incorporate acupuncture, and/or Chi Kung*,  as adjunct therapies which have a very direct effect. Acupuncture has its roots in Chi Kung so they are mutually supportive to each other. In Chinese medicine, the nervous system is ruled by the Liver. Anything we can do to calm the nervous system is the superior medicine we are looking for, when it comes to the liver.

As a recap for optimal liver health:

1. Exercise, especially Chi Kung, and walking outside.
2. Reduce hard-to-digest fats, increase coconut, olive & MCT oils, increase greens, reduce drugs (especially coffee and alcohol).
3. Try enemas and/or colonics (I highly recommend Michael of ashlandgravitycolonics.com).
4. Consider becoming keto adapted: I have Dr. Bonnie’s book on this for sale.
5. Go to acupuncture regularly. *Chi Kung teacher recommendation: Shanti Webley at Fire Water Internal Arts. Webpage: firewatertraditions.com

Last updated: February 13, 2019