Love your liver

Love your liver
Mumbai Mirror Bureau

The liver hates December, and with good reason. Lessen the brunt of your festive binge abuse with this plan.

End of the year is not a happy time for the liver. It’s when she works the hardest, processing excess alcohol you down at the Christmas eve work party and the handi biryani you ate by the kilo at your buddy’s new year’s bash.

What docs call one of the most significant organs in your body (this claim gains seriousness when you realise that a transplant - success rate of 50% to 80% - costs Rs 12 lac upwards) is a 1.5 kilo gland that is exclusively responsible for a host of tasks including processing nutrients from the food you eat, storing energy, helping blood clot, process medicines, make bile to help with digesting dietary fats and filtering out toxins that make their way into your body when you drink alcohol. First, about 25% is absorbed from your stomach into the bloodstream, the rest from the small intestine. Almost 90% of the booze is broken down in your liver while the rest is rejected through urine or excreted in your sweat.

Doctors use the word resilient to describe it. It’s not afraid to take hits and even just 1/4th of its entire mass is enough to do the job it needs to do. But if you constantly attack it with toxins and injury, it’s going to spend its time regenerating its cells instead of performing regular tasks.

And so, smart people who love their food and drink, always ensure they are nice to their livers. Here’s how you can do it too.

Excess protein is liver-unfriendly. Divide your weight by 2. The figure you get is the amount of protein in gms you should eat every day

Sleep for seven. Even if you think you need very little down time, your liver needs more. Seven hours is what you should aim for every night. A research conducted at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine discovered that shift workers and those who suffered from sleep deprivation suffered a range of health problems including diabetes, obesity and heart scare. It’s because their livers were unable to process fat efficiently, allowing it to accumulate. In optimum condition, troupes of molecules are sent to the liver to help it tackle the fat that has piled up at night. When you don’t sleep, the day-working molecules don’t report for duty and the fat from last night begins to grow.

Don’t self medicate. The liver breaks down everything that you pop into your mouth, including medicines and herbal supplements. Acetaminophen (also known as Tylenol) is commonly available over the counter and is present in several cold and flu drugs. It’s considered safe, when taken in excess and continuously, it can cause liver damage. Similarly, antibiotics can destroy good or toxin fighting bacteria present in your intestines. Antacids tend to weaken digestive acids, so use when only absolutely necessary. Certain herbal remedies have also been shown to harm the liver, especially if they contain high doses of vitamin A or D. Always check the label of medicines and supplement to see if there are any warnings pertaining to liver damage.

Measure your protein. Protein is what helps cells build and maintain their form, which makes its consumption indispensable. But eat too much, and it will build up in your liver, interfering with brain function. Here’s a simple trick to determine how much protein you should consume. Divide your weight by two. Eg: if you weigh 66 kg, you should consume half of it - and in grams - in protein. In this case, it’s 33 gms a day. And, try to get it from a variety of foods - vegetable, nuts and dairy products instead of just from meat and eggs. Carbohydrates tend to cause a fatty build-up in the liver, leading to liver dysfunction. Cut down on foods high in salt and restrict carbohydrate intake.

Chase antioxidants. You may not like the taste of them all, but they are good to eat around the time you are likely to binge on booze and fatty eats. Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and sprouts contain antioxidants that stop free-radical damage, helping detoxify damaging cells. Chinese steamed or stir fried veggies (minus sauce) is what you should be ordering at the restaurant. Citrus fruits and juicy berries are your other friends.

Salute the 3 gems. Always add a pinch of turmeric to your soups, stews and curries because it’s miraculous at healing liver infections due to its anti-inflammatory properties. Add bitter foods like rocket leaves, karela and methi to your diet to stimulate the production of bile and help the liver function better. An amino acid called methionine is present in garlic and gives an assisting hand to the liver. And sprinkle sesame seeds on salads to up the methionine even more.

Eat wholegrains. A diet that’s rich in low-glycemic foods helps because it is a nutritious carbohydrate source. If you have fatty liver disease, simply replace processed carbohydrate foods (cereals, processed snacks, white bread) with whole grains (oats, barley, brown or red rice and rye).
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