Is Your Liver Struggling? 10 Signs To Look Out For

In todays’ society, the rate of liver issues are sky rocketing. In 2022, it is estimated that a person has a 1 in 103 (or 0.97%) risk of being diagnosed with liver cancer by the age of 85 (Cancer Australia, 2022). Fatty Liver Disease used to be typically seen in people who regularly over-consumed alcohol, however it is now being seen in teenagers. This isn’t a result of drinking excessive alcohol; it’s the processed food and drinks being consumed mindlessly.

An overloaded, struggling liver is generally the result of consuming large amounts of alcohol, trans fats, refined sugars, and synthetic substances; with a lack of beneficial nutrients being consumed to make up for such overload. Below are some of the key indicators that our Liver is struggling:

Poor Thyroid Function – Our Liver is essential for the synthesis of proteins and the metabolism of various hormones. Thus, liver diseases have been shown to be associated with various endocrine disturbance (Bebars, G.M., Sayed, M.A., Hamdy, L. et al., 2021). Signs that your Thyroid function is slow include lethargy, tiredness, constipation, muscle aches and weakness.

Congested Skin – The liver is one of your body’s main elimination organs. Any toxins that you eat, drink, absorb through your skin, or breathe in through your lungs have to be filtered out by your liver. In many ways, your skin is a direct reflection of how efficiently that filtration process is working. If your bloodstream is overloaded with toxins – such as food chemicals, environmental pollutants, drugs, or alcohol— the results may show on your skin. A congested liver is less able to break down these toxins efficiently, causing them to build up. As a result, your body will try to flush these toxins out in other ways, such as through your sweat. When those harmful substances are expelled through your pores, they can irritate and inflame the skin. That’s where breakouts can occur!

Hormone Imbalances – The liver plays a significant role in hormonal imbalances because the liver breaks down or metabolises the hormones once they have done their work in the body. The liver also has a relationship with the hormone insulin, which is very important when it comes to your metabolism and tendency to gain weight. If your liver is built up, this process cannot occur effectively leading to increased hormone imbalances

Insulin Resistance: Insulin is made in the pancreas gland and regulates the metabolism of fats and carbohydrate. Most people with a weight problem have an imbalance in their insulin levels and this makes it very hard for them to lose weight. Insulin is a fat storing hormone so that the high levels of insulin promote the storage of fat especially in the abdominal area. The high levels of insulin also send a message to the liver to store more fat, so many people with a high insulin level develop a fatty liver. A fatty liver is very sluggish and will not break down hormones efficiently and this causes further weight gain and fluid retention. Thankfully it is possible to reverse these problems using our principles of cleansing and opening detoxification pathways.

Sugar Cravings & Elevated Cholesterol – When the liver is struggling to function properly, it manifests in myriad ways throughout the body. Think poor metabolism, fat accumulation, sluggish digestion, high cholesterol levels, and sugar cravings, among other things (SugarScience, UCSF. 2021).

Passing Clots while Menstruating – The liver plays a central role in the clotting process, and acute and chronic liver diseases are invariably associated with coagulation disorders due to multiple causes (Amitrano, L., Guardascione, M. A., Brancaccio, V., & Balzano, A., 2002). A very common symptom of a struggling Liver is increased Clots, although small amount of clots during menstruation is normal.

Poor Sleep – The Principles of Chinese Medicine state that the quality of the Liver dictate how well you sleep, especially between 1-3am. Naturally, if your Liver is struggling you will experience insomnia between those times.

Easily bloating – When the Liver is sluggish or malfunctioning it can lead to an imbalance of proteins and other compounds, and fluid builds up in the tissues i.e. bloating and distension.

A short fuse, negative and impatient temperament – When your liver is overwhelmed with the burden of high toxin exposure you start to feel the effects in your whole mind-body.

How to help your Liver thrive again:

On a positive note, our Liver is extremely resilient and responds well to small adjustments such as adding Coffee Enemas to our wellness regimens, and increasing bitter greens such as Happy Bum Gut Greens, which the Liver loves. The key to ensuring our Liver is well and thriving is balance and nourishing ourselves with our food and drink choices, as well as giving it an opportunity to detoxify through a Coffee Enema. They are well known to be a powerful tool for detoxification as the caffeine in coffee dilates the liver’s bile ducts, facilitating elimination of toxins trapped in the liver. They also benefit the following areas:

Blood Purification: The lower colon is designed to re-absorb liquids from waste. Here, two palmitic acids in coffee; Kahweol and Cafestol palmitate, are absorbed into the portal vein system, which leads directly to your liver. These palmitic acids boost one of the body’s most powerful detoxifier, the glutathione s-transferase (GST) enzyme system, by up to 700 percent! GST captures and metabolises toxins and binds them with reduced glutathione (the body’s master antioxidant) in the liver and escorts them out of the body via the colon. All of your blood passes through the liver every three minutes. Because a coffee enema is typically held for 15 minutes, it facilitates the elimination of toxins, purifies the blood, and prevents the reabsorption and recycling of toxic bile. Who wouldn’t want that?

Improves Tone and Motility of the Colon: It is believed the theophylline compound in coffee causes blood vessels in the colon to dilate, enhancing blood flow and improving muscle tone and motility. In addition, the enemas help neutralize common toxins in liver and intestinal tissue, supporting repair and regeneration and improving function.

In addition to Coffee Enemas; it is important to address the following if you are experiencing symptoms that suggest your Liver is struggling:

• Remove foods that are especially harmful to your Liver. These include refined and processed foods such as simple carbohydrates and refined sugar.
• Substitute toxic and poor quality fats and oils like canola oil, corn oil, margarine and trans fats for good quality oils such as ghee, butter, coconut oil or rice bran oil.
• Eliminate or greatly reduce alcohol
• Include foods into your diet that support liver and digestive function . Eat fresh, seasonal, whole foods, fruits and vegetables. Preferably organic if this is an option.
• Foods that support liver detoxification: Beetroot, turmeric, onion, garlic, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cauliflower, green leafy vegetables (especially the bitter kind such as Rocket, endive, dandelion leaves), wheat germ, legumes, grapefruit, lemon.

We hope that this blog has provided you with some insight on what to look out for, and some of our Top Tips for maintaining a healthy Liver!

Happy Bum Co. HQ xx