This month I’d like to thank Dr. Brad Molskness, Functional Medicine Chiropractor from the Hope Clinic, for taking the time to present this article for Liver Awareness Month. We take pride in constantly providing an array of informational articles from experts around the area so that our readers are always well versed on how to be as healthy as possible!
Time for a quiz. Can you locate your liver? Go ahead and give it a try. If your hand is on the front right of your body, sitting on your upper ribcage — bingo! That’s your liver.
The main function of the liver is to detoxify the body. It accomplishes this by cleaning toxins out of your blood stream. These toxins can be anything from chemical toxins from our environment or food toxins from some bad food you ate. Another way the liver detoxifies the body, for both men and women, is by maintaining your hormonal balance. The liver gets to decide which hormones get to stay and which ones must leave.
The liver is responsible for converting the thyroid hormone into its active form. This keeps your metabolic rate up, which allows you to lose weight and will also keep your energy up throughout the day.
Is your liver overworked?
The easiest way to create extra stress for your liver is by eating (or drinking) sugar. It can take as little as three tablespoons of sugar to overwhelm your liver. Read about “What to do When Sugar Calls Your Name” on the Hope Clinic of Minnesota’s site here. This means that one can of pop can overwhelm your liver and force your pancreas to secrete extra insulin. This can lead to diabetes.
A congested liver can also cause degrading eye sight and/or dizziness — this is something we see a lot of at Hope Clinic. But if a patient cleans out their liver, we often see their allergies go away, their headaches disappear, and their eye sight improve.
A clear liver can support a clear mind.
If your liver is congested, it’s common for a person to have all sorts of wacky dreams (see our article “Have You Been Dreaming Lately”) because their mind isn’t as clear as it should be. When you dream, your brain is working to connect your emotional brain and your reasoning brain. If your reasoning brain isn’t clear to begin with, it’s common for people to experience, wacky, nonsensical dreams.
A healthy liver is a must-have for athletes
The liver is a very important organ for athletes, especially athletes using physical therapy. If you are on a lot of medication or your liver is congested, it can take your body much longer to see the results of physical therapy. Your diet is another important factor in your physical therapy care. If you are eating a lot of sugars, this can congest your liver and because there is a direct link between muscle performance and repair according to Chinese medicine, your muscles may not be able to repair as well as they should.
How to care for your liver during physical therapy
While you are receiving PT care, be intentional about drinking lots (and lots) of room temperature water and eating well. Your liver particularly appreciates you eating apples, beets, and carrots.
Dr. Brad Molskness
Functional Medicine Chiropractor
Thanks again to Dr. Molskness for this wonderful article about your Liver & how to keep it healthy. Here at LYLPT we want you to understand that overall health is our priority. Keeping a healthy lifestyle should be on the forefront of your life and a priority in aging healthy and actively.
We want you to Live Your Life HEALTHY!
Dedicated to Keeping You Healthy & Active,
Dr. Eva Norman
President & Founder
Doctor of Physical Therapy
Live Your Live Physical Therapy, LLC