Toxins in the Liver:
We hear a lot these days about toxins, both avoiding them and removing them from your body. Your body is exposed to toxins every day, through your skin, the air we breathe and the food and water we ingest. But nature has provided you with one of the best toxin cleansers around – your liver.The liver is one of the largest organs in the body with many metabolic functions. It helps convert the amino acids in our food into energy our bodies can use, stores them and provides them to cells when needed. The liver has many other functions as well, including controlling and producing glucose and regulating blood clotting.The liver also functions as a filter for harmful substances that enter our bodies. Liver tissue is made up of smaller units of liver cells called lobules and canals carrying blood and bile run between these cells. Blood flows into the liver from the digestive organs, carrying nutrients, medication and toxic substances. Once these reach the liver, the organ processes them, stores them and remove harmful materials before passing them back into the blood. Bile is stored in the gallbladder on the underside of the liver and the liver excretes this bile to carry harmful substances out of the body through the bowel.For example, the liver can remove alcohol from your blood as it passes through the organ. It can also remove the by-products of medications or naturally occurring by-products from the break-down of proteins in the body. When the liver helps produce energy for the body by metabolizing fat, carbohydrates and proteins, a toxic substance called ammonia is a by-product of this process. The liver converts ammonia into urea, which is then carried out of the body in bile through the bowel.Many of the toxic compounds that enter the body (for instance, due to exposure to chemical substances in the workplace) are fat soluble. Before the body can clear them, the liver has to convert these into water soluble compounds. The clearing process generally consists of two phases, Oxidations and Conjugation. Cornell researchers explain the technical details here.
“Phase 1 neutralizes the toxin
or changes the toxic chemical to form activated intermediates… Phase 2 is called the conjugation pathway because the
liver cells add another substance
such as cysteine, glycine, or a sulphur molecule to a toxic chemical to make it less harmful. As a result it makes the toxin water-soluble so that it may then be excreted from the body via watery fluids such as bile or urine.”Whether ingested, inhaled or brought into the body through skin contact, toxins generally follow this route through the liver. However, the precise biochemical mechanisms that get turned on depend on the nature and dose of the toxic compound.While the liver is the only organ capable of regenerating, repeated exposure to high levels of toxins, alcohol, and drugs can still damage the liver permanently. You can help keep your liver healthy by limiting alcohol and following a healthy diet.If you think you’ve been harmed by toxic exposure, the professionals at the Madeksho Law Firm may be able to help. For a FREE consultation, call the us at 1-888-910-6376, or contact us here.
