Liver

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Anatomy and Physiology

The liver is a large reddish-brown organ located in the upper right part of the abdominal cavity extending 3-4 inches to the left of the midline. It weighs about three pounds and is approximately 3-5% fat. It performs over 500 functions.

You could function fairly normally with as little as 1/6th of your liver intact, and if as much as 80% of your liver were cut away it would grow back to a full size in approximately three months. Because the liver is designed in this way, it is usually hard to determine if the liver is damaged until the damage is quite advanced.

Some of the major liver functions include:

1) Synthesizing 1-2 grams of cholesterol daily (about three times the average daily dietary intake) to be used to produce steroid hormones and bile salts.

2) Storage of excess vitamins A, B-12, D, K, and iron.

3) Synthesizes blood proteins - albumin, globulin, and fibrinogen (a clotting factor).

4) Converts dietary fatty acids into circulating phospholipids.

5) Converts beta-carotene to Vitamin A.

6) Can store up to 1 liter of extra blood in times of excess blood volume and supply it to the body when needed (e.g. in times of blood loss or heavy exercise).

7) Can convert up to ½ ounce of alcohol per hour into carbon dioxide and water.

8) Makes 1 quart of bile daily to aid in dietary fat emulsification.

9) Detoxifies incompletely digested proteins, excess hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, etc.), drugs, food additives, poisons, etc.

10) Converts glucose, pyruvic acid, amino acids, glycerol and lactic acid to glycogen. It can store up to 4 ounces of glycogen to be released when it is needed to maintain blood sugar levels, upon signals via epinephrine or glucagons.

11) Stores sodium, which aids in neutralizing some toxins.

12) Uses bile salts to aid in breakdown and absorption of vitamins A, D, E, and K.

13) Takes ammonia which is formed from the break down of protein and changes it into urea for kidney excretion.

14) The kupffer cells of the liver filter out about 99% of the bacteria in the blood coming from the intestines before it can enter the general circulation.

15) Breaks down lipids for energy, desaturates fatty acids.

16) Forms new sugar (gluconeogenesis). Cortisol can increase this process up to 1000% and greatly increase blood sugar levels. The liver can synthesize up to 4 ounces of glucose daily and will do this during fasting and diabetes mellitus. A properly functioning liver will buffer or tone down swings in blood sugar by up to 65%.

Bile from the liver is either stored in the gallbladder or secreted into the duodenum. It is approximately 97.5% water, 1.1% bile salts, and small amounts of bilirubin (a byproduct of used and ruptured red blood cells), cholesterol, lecithin, and electrolytes (especially sodium and chloride ions). The bile salts decrease the surface tension of fat particles in the small intestine allowing them to be broken down into smaller pieces so they can be acted upon by lipase. Without bile salts only about half the fat eaten would be absorbed as compared to 97% with normal bile secretion.

Symptoms of Liver Dysfunction

1) Any symptoms due to an excessive amount of hormones be it estrogen, testosterone, cortisol, etc., could be due to a malfunction in the secreting organ or could be due to an overtaxed or sluggish liver being unable to deactivate it.

2) Increased cholesterol levels can be from overproduction by the liver.

3) Abdominal bloating, tenderness over the liver area.

4) Acne, skin rashes, photophobia, constipation, itching, fatigue, loss of appetite, yellow tinge to skin (due to excessive bilirubin), bitter or metallic taste in the mouth, split ends, brittle nails, all may indicate liver dysfunction.

5) Hypothyroidism can be due to excess estrogen in the blood, due to the liver not breaking it down.

6) Blood sugar handling problems due to the glucose-glycogen-glucose conversion. Large swings in blood sugar can be due to a diseased liver.

7) Liver congestion can cause portal hypertension leading to pressure in the venous system and thus causing hemorrhoids or varicose veins.

8) Pain between the shoulder blades, inability to digest fats properly, and decreased resistance to infection can all indicate liver dysfunction.

9) Swelling in legs due to an overtaxed liver being unable to destroy extra antidiuretic hormone.

Causes of Liver Dysfunction

1) It is up to the liver to detoxify most poisons we eat, touch, smell, and breathe daily. In my practice it seemed like the liver would reach a saturation point in some patients and then cause symptoms. To give an example, a good friend of mine is a carpenter and is constantly exposed to toxic chemicals used to treat lumber. His liver is working very hard to break these down. When his diet was high in fatty foods - corn chips, vegetable oil, peanut butter, and other fried foods he would break out in a skin rash and also hemorrhoids. His liver didn’t seem to be able to handle both the chemicals and the fatty foods. We worked on his liver reflex points and eliminated the oils from his diet and his symptoms cleared up. A few months later his diet temporarily slipped and his symptoms returned till he began to abstain again.

2) Fried foods, animal fats, hydrogenated vegetable fat (margarine, etc.), too much vegetable oil, and roasted nuts, can overtax and congest the liver.

3) Taking ferrous sulfate as an iron supplement can damage the liver.

4) Polluted air and water, taking strong medications, strong cleaning solutions, soaps, deodorants, birth control pills, pesticides, herbicides, food additives, etc., can overtax the liver and damage it.

5) Page 865 of Merck’s Manual states "Drugs are an important cause of hepatic disease".

6) Nerve pressure in the mid thoracics can cause liver dysfunction (see Appendix A).

7) Tannic acid (in tea), and BHA (a common food additive) have been implicated in liver cancer.

8) Any dysfunction in any other organs of elimination - colon, kidneys, lungs, skin can overload the liver by giving it more work to do.

9) Artificial sweeteners have been implicated in liver damage.

10) Diets too high in protein (meat, gluten, and isolated soy protein) can overwork the liver (converting excess ammonia to urea).

11) Refined sugar can damage mitochondria in liver cells and decrease the ability of the liver to break down excess triglycerides causing elevated triglyceride and cholesterol levels.

12) Alcohol is well known as a cause of liver cirrhosis. Tobacco and caffeine must also be detoxified by the liver and can overwork it.

13) Corticosteroids (cortisone etc.), carbon tetrachloride, alcohol, tetracycline, can all cause triglyceride and fat buildup in the liver.

14) A B vitamin deficiency can make the liver unable to break down excess steroid hormones.

15) A major cause of liver dysfunction is a toxic bowel with a resultant increase in transit time. This overworks the kupffer cells and other parts of the liver causing liver congestion and sluggishness.

Other Indications of Liver Dysfunction

1) A weak rhomboid muscle or pectoralis major (sternal division) can indicate liver dysfunction (see Appendix C and figures 10.1, 10.2).

2) Press hard (2-3 ponds pressure) with your thumb on the skin between your shoulder blades just to the right of the spine. When you let go if a blanched area remains for more than a fraction of a second it is a sign of venous congestion and possible liver involvement (see figures 10.3, 10.4). If you do suspect liver dysfunction and follow some of the treatments outlined later in this chapter you can use this test to monitor your liver’s progress. The shorter the time the blanched area stays the more progress you are making.

3) Due to the liver’s role in venous pressure, if inflating a blood pressure cuff around your calf to 180mm. Hg pressure causes muscle pain, it is often due to liver congestion. This test can also be used to monitor your progress.

Prevention and Treatment of Liver Dysfunction

1) Beets, black radish, and dark greens, are all very cleansing to the liver. The juice of ½ a large beet daily will help much (more can be too cleansing and cause nausea).

2) The juice of ½ lemon in a glass of warm water drank upon arising every morning will also help cleanse the liver.

3) Fried foods, roasted nuts, peanut butter, vegetable oil, margarine, meat, should all be abstained from as should alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, chocolate, medications (if possible), spices, synthetic vitamins and minerals. Also keep sugar and concentrated sweets to a minimum. Keep this up strictly for 3 months.

4) Drink a lot of water and get plenty of exercise to help stimulate the channels of elimination.

5) Live where the air and water are clean. Try to avoid sprayed foods, harsh cleansers, deodorants, food additives, etc.

6) Especially if you also have pain between the shoulder blades, or have a sitting job, or bad posture, see a good chiropractor to check for nerve pressure damage (see Appendix A).

7) Rub a reflex area between the 5th and 6th ribs on the right side from under the nipple to the sternum. Do this for 1 minute, every other day, for 2 weeks.

8) In infants with neonatal jaundice - sunlight, a full spectrum artificial light, or blue light will bring dramatic results. In conjunction with this charcoal will also help. Put 1 teaspoon of charcoal in a cup of water, strain it, and then fill your baby’s bottle with the water. Sunlight and charcoal due to their detoxifying properties are also helpful in adult liver disorders.

9) Dandelion root, yarrow, and blessed thistle, are good for regulating liver function and cleansing it. Barberry root and pokeroot are reported to aid bile flow.

10) For breaking up liver congestion, dip a piece of flannel or cotton in warm castor oil, set it on the liver and cover it with plastic. Secure it in place and use overnight. Do this three times over two weeks.

11) The author has found that a fairly deep massage over the liver area below the ribs will help stimulate and cleanse a sluggish liver.