Liver & Urinary Tract

Sep 2

5 min read

Updated: Oct 24

The liver is the second largest organ in the body which controls many functions essential for maintaining life. It produces bile, which aids digestion, filters out waste, toxins, and poisons in the blood, synthesizes nutrients, regulates blood sugar, processes hormones, manufactures antibodies and even stores vitamins and minerals. This organ does much more and is so complex, it is second only to the brain in body function. The liver can even regenerate itself when injured!

The urinary tract includes the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra. The purpose is to filter waste material from the blood, control the body's fluid balance, maintain a healthy level of electrolytes and manufacture urine for elimination of waste. This would be the waste treatment center of the body.

Liver and Kidney Care

The liver is the filter system of the body and needs to be taken good care of for healthy function. The way to care for the liver is avoiding as many toxins as possible, eat a whole foods diet, drink plenty of liquids, and feed it liver nourishing foods and herbs.

Consume purified water. Did you know that tap water in the U.S. is treated with over 700 different chemicals, including “medications” such as fluoride? That is a toxic overload on the liver and kidneys, which use water as the means of flushing out waste. Make sure the water you consume is filtered. There are many filtering systems available so do some research and find what system or method may work best for you. Whatever you do, be sure to consume pure water and avoid tap water. Distilled water is best as it is “empty” so it has more room to grab on to toxins for flushing.
Breathe clean air. The air filter we talked about as part of a home system needs to be changed regularly to keep the air in your home as clean as possible and so should the air we breathe. Open the windows in the spring and fall months and get outside as much as possible. The more nature surrounds you, the cleaner the air – breathe deeply!
The lifestyle suggestions in Lesson 10 for stress relief are just the things needed for optimal function of all body systems, including the liver and urinary tract. They include adequate rest, exercise, relaxation time, positive thoughts, feelings, and attitude, etc.
Avoid toxic foods such as alcoholic beverages, excess fried foods, hydrogenated oils, processed and refined foods, artificial (and “natural”) flavors, and colors.
Cut out as many environmental toxins as possible.

LIVER CARE

Herbs to build and strengthen the liver

Shitake and reishi mushrooms
Barberry root
Burdock root
Dandelion
Golden seal
Vervain
Wild yam
Yellow dock root
Yarrow
Milk thistle seeds
Oregon grape root
Turmeric
Dr. Christopher’s Liver Gall Bladder formula

Healing Foods

Foods that can help the liver process toxins

Broccoli
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Kale
Collard greens
Arugula
Onions
Garlic

Foods that improve liver function

All the above plus
Beets
Whole grains
Avocado
Leafy greens
Nuts
Legumes

KIDNEY CARE

Herbs to build and strengthen the kidneys

Chamomile
Dandelion
Fennel
Hawthorn berry
Marshmallow
Mint
Sorrel
Sage
Yarrow
Kidney Support blend

Healing Foods

Foods that strengthen and support kidney function.

Lemon
Apples
Carrot
Cabbage
Blueberries
Bell peppers
Cauliflower
Garlic
Onions
Cranberries
Raspberries
Strawberries
Cherries
Red grapes
Olive oil
Egg whites
Fish

Environmental Toxins

We live in a world surrounded by environmental toxins; pollutants, harsh chemicals – including cleaning detergents and personal care products, secondhand smoke, pharmaceuticals, vaccinations, electromagnetic radiation, etc., etc. this list could go on and on. While we cannot escape them, we can do our best to eliminate what we do have control over. The more toxins the liver must filter out, the harder it must work and sometimes it can be overwhelmed and then those toxins leak into the blood and cause all kinds of health conditions and mystery illnesses. Here is a small list of ways you can cut toxins out of your environment.

Emotions can be toxic! Studies have shown that negative thoughts and feelings literally work like poison to a body, not to mention the soul. If there is any one thing you can do to eliminate toxins from your environment it would be to let go of negative thoughts and emotions. It is okay to experience and feel sadness, anger, and frustration – that is part of life – but the key is to feel it, then let it go. Give it to the Savior, who suffered, died, and atoned for not only our sins, but our weaknesses, sorrow, and negative feelings.
- Forgive others and yourself
- Think positive thoughts
- Seek for understanding of others and look at them through God’s eyes
- Love one another, including yourself
Swap chemical household cleaners for natural ones. You can either make your own or purchase locally from a health food store or do a google search.
Swap personal care products for natural ones. Again, there are many companies out there supporting natural personal care from shampoo and deodorant to makeup and toothpaste. You can also make your own.
Avoid using synthetic perfumes, dryer sheets, or any items with fragrance. Fragrances also act as hormone disruptors which can cause many issues in the body.
Educate yourself on pharmaceutical use. All synthetic medications are chemicals which the liver must process, and studies have shown the ill effects they have on it. On top of liver damage, they also carry side effects and adverse reactions:
- “Prescription medications…readily deplete the body of nutrients and damage the gut lining. This is why all synthetic drugs in some way cause leaky gut.” (Eat Dirt by Dr. Josh Axe)
- “209 people a day – approximately 106,000 a year – die from non-error adverse effects of medications…that figure was for deaths only and did not include adverse effects associated with disability or discomfort.” (Eat Dirt by D. Josh Axe)
- “Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are the 4^th leading cause of death in the U.S.” (Herbal Academy Intermediate Herbal Course Unit 1)

*If you are currently taking pharmaceuticals, you will want to make sure to replenish the nutrients they deplete by eating a variety of vegetables, fruits, and some nutritive herbs such as alfalfa, nettle, and raspberry leaf. Please be prayerful about how you decide to use or not use pharmaceuticals and if you decide you want to cut them out of your life be sure to do it under the care of a physician. Getting off certain medications cold turkey can cause serious harm. Functional medicine doctors (www.ifm.org) can help as they understand and work with the body as a whole. Dr. Christopher’s Liver Transition formula can assist the body transitioning from drugs to supplements.

Liver Conditions

Immune imbalances can happen because of an over toxic liver due to its job of manufacturing antibodies, which mark a virus or bacteria as an invader. If an imbalance occurs no marking happens, and pathogens can run wild in the body. Mystery or chronic illness can also find their root causes in liver dysfunction. Follow the foundational principles of good nutrition and gut healing first, then incorporate liver support and detox measures.