By Danielle Roberts
Following the fantastic article on PMDD (http://hamiltonchiropractor.co.nz/premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-pmdd/ ) by the Hillcrest Spinal clinic I wanted support this with further information on how you can create greater hormonal balance to the body through giving nourishment to the liver. Many of you will understand that it has the major role of detoxification. However this organ does far more than that!!
Other important roles are:
– recycling of sex hormones (reducing unideal forms of estrogen and testosterone- if becomes out of balance can end up with hormonal diseases like PCOS and Endometriosis)
-recycling of cholesterol ( reducing bad forms – if this becomes out of balance we can end up with high blood pressure and cholesterol which if not sorted out can lead to heart disease )
– balancing blood levels of glucose, amino acids and fats ( if not kept in balance can end up with diabetes- pancreas issues and heart disease)
– makes non -essential proteins
– makes bile to breakdown fats ( if bile isn’t produced can end up with gall bladder issues)
If we aren’t nourishing our bodies right, if we are stressing too much i.e. mentally or emotionally we can inhibit the liver from functioning optimally. This means it will only deal with getting rid of the toxins because that is most important for survival— all the other functions start to slow down. This creates great imbalances in the body. Not only for just the liver but all the other systems and processes it is linked to as mentioned above! Focusing on recycling of sex hormones, if we do not have enough liver cell functioning that is optimal to clear unwanted forms of estrogens and testosterone then those forms have a greater presence in the body. In order for hormonal balance we need progesterone to balance with estrogen. Under stress the adrenal glands (on top of the kidneys) are not being able to produce enough progesterone (hormone which aids balance to many body systems, happiness, a balanced metabolism, and healthy shine) due to too much cortisol and adrenaline production. Creating the same symptoms and contributing to the underlying conditions of PMDD.
If stress on the liver functioning continues toxins will be sent to other tissues in the body effecting them also creating a widespread systemic issue. By this stage the person might be also experiencing what is called Fatty Liver. Normally associated to alcoholics but now also associated with people who stress a lot also. What happens is the cells of the liver that make up the organ start to become damaged from the toxins and breakdown and eventually die. In place of those cells comes along fat globules who take the place of the cell. This means there are even less cells to do the long list of jobs above and so the cycle continues.
Good news your liver cells are regenerative!! So if you create the environment (nourishing foods, exercise and decreasing stress of all kinds in your life) for your liver to heal it will be able to produce new cells for your liver to start optimally carrying out all of its roles again.
Generally your yellow and green coloured fruits and vegetables are fantastic for starting the healing process of your liver.
Here are some of my top picks and why……
Lemon: the limonene a compound in the lemon is a powerful cleanser – it will clean your bench top of germs, which says everything really haha. It will cleanse the inside of your liver and also works well with cleansing and balancing the stomach for better digestion of the nutrients you are eating.
Banana: having over 200 functions for the body and being high in potassium bananas are a very calming and anti-inflammatory food to be bringing in a wide range of healing nutrients.
Mango: high in vitamin A / beta carotene the vitamin needed for repairing the damaged liver cells. Also high in digestive enzymes to breakdown our food greater.
Pineapple: high in anti-inflammatories to help reduce inflammation and stress to the cells in order to create a beautiful healing environment – the banana is also good for reducing inflammation.
Green apples: apple juice especially like lemon is great for cleansing the liver and also flushing out the lymphatic system which is also a huge part of removing the toxins/ waste from the body.
Spinach: filled with vitamins like the b vitamins they repower the cells with energy to aid the healing process.
Kale and/or broccoli: high in hormone and cholesterol recycling compounds great for kick starting those other processes in the body.
Celery: great for aiding the lymphatic system also. Works great with the lemon and apple juice.
Coriander/parsley: both of these are easily grown and they also work very well with the detoxification processes (much like the supplements below) of the liver and lymphatic system.
