Eating to aid detoxification.

Liver Detoxification Foods:

Our liver and body detoxifies itself daily. Some foods and substances add to the load, others help out.

If you want to support natural liver detoxification.  Here are some of the key compounds you can get from your food that are supportive:

Glutathione and/or N-acetyle cysteine – found in onions and garlic

Coenzyme Q10- found in oily fish (sardines, mackerel, salmon, tuna), spinach, raw seeds and nuts

Vitamin C- found in broccoli, peppers, citrus fruit and berries

Vitamin E- found in raw seeds, nuts and fish

Selenium- found in raw seeds, nuts (especially Brazil nuts) and fish

Beta carotene – found in carrots, peaches, watermelon, sweet potato and butternut squash

Omega 3 fats- found in oily fish and flax seed (sardines, salmon, tuna, mackerel).  Please avoid frying fish.

DIM and TMG- found in broccoli and cruciferous vegetables, helps detoxify excess oestrogens and hormone disrupters and with methylation.

Bioflavonoids- eg. Anthyocyandins in blueberries, quercetin in red onions, polyphenols in green tea, turmeric contains curcumins, which is a potent antioxidant and increases production of glutathione.

Detoxification processes and foods that help:

Sulphation: onion, garlic, eggs 

Methylation: greens and beans, (B12 animal source eg. red meat, root vegetables). B vitamins: green leafy veg, stir fried or steamed or raw– not boiled (Bs are water soluble) to support methylation, beans, avocado, lentils, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, asparagus

Glutathione: found particularly fruits, vegetables, and meats. Foods rich in glutathione include asparagus, spinach, garlic, avocado, squash, zucchini, potatoes, melons, grapefruit, strawberries, and peaches.  Can be made when body has access to glycine, cysteine, and glutamic acid (glutamine)

Glutamine: beans, fish, chicken, eggs, cabbage, spinach, beetroot, tomatoes (but destroyed with cooking)

Cysteine: onions, garlic and eggs

Glycine: root vegetables

Note: it is best to try to get these goodies from food rather than just taking heaps of supplements.