Your liver health affects the health of your whole body. Learn the nutrition for liver health, including the best and worst foods as well as the supplements that support liver function.
by Mia Rigden, board-certified nutritionist, classically trained chef
You can’t see the liver, but its health shows everywhere. Among its 500+ functions, the liver processes nutrients into usable forms, regulates blood sugar, removes toxins, stores iron, and turns a toxic substance (ammonia) into urea to excrete in urine. The liver is one of the only in the body that can regenerate itself, so nutrition can play a huge role.
Why liver health is important: Liver health dictates health of the whole body
Your liver is essentially the sewage treatment plant of your body, and in a world where chemicals are abundant and blood sugar levels continue to reach new highs, your liver is doing a lot of work.
- Detox: Removing the bad from the body
- Digestion: Processing nutrients to make into absorbable forms
- Nutrient storage: Keeping some nutrients, like iron
- Blood sugar regulation: Storing excess sugar and releasing in a useable form when needed
- Energy: Breaking down fats for fuel
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Immune system: Keeping immune cells healthy
Support the liver with protein, fiber, healthy fats, and antioxidant-rich plants
What you eat plays a huge role in helping your liver to function properly. As a dynamic organ, it relies on essential nutrients from the body.
Protein for liver repair
Consuming adequate protein helps repair the liver, and create and maintain healthy cells. When it comes to protein, quality matters. The protein that supports your liver comes from natural sources, including:
- Poultry
- Seafood
- Legumes
- Lean cuts of red meat
Fiber for long-term liver health
Fiber intake is associated with a reduced risk of liver fibrosis, cancer, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. It also helps with digestion, reduces inflammation, and can help maintain stable and healthy blood sugar levels.
Fiber-rich plants include:
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Legumes
Healthy fats to fight the bad fats
Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats can help reduce dangerous liver fat and support healthy liver enzymes. Omega-3 fatty acids that can reduce inflammation and improve liver function are found in:
- Fatty fish, like salmon and mackerel
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Eggs
Antioxidants keep the liver strong
The liver is the body’s main detoxifier, which makes the consumption of antioxidant-rich plants especially helpful to their function. Oxidative stress (which antioxidants work to counter) can impair liver function.
Try to eat a variety of plants each week to get a variety of antioxidants like vitamins E, C, and K.
- Leafy greens
- Berries
- Citrus
- Root vegetables
- Fruit
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Green tea (not green tea extract)
Garlic is also excellent for liver health and is a supports production of glutathione, the body’s master antioxidant that is critical for natural detoxification processes.
Stay hydrated
Dehydration impedes liver function, and proper hydration supports the liver in several ways.
- Filter toxins from the blood
- Break down fats and fiber to improve digestion
- Maintain healthy body weight
- Help prevent excess fat from building up in the liver
Avoid processed foods and excess sugar for liver health
In addition to adding liver-supporting foods into your diet, you want to make sure you avoid foods that are harmful to the liver or make it more difficult to do its job. Processed foods are generally high in sugar, sodium, additives, and chemicals, which the liver has to work overtime to process thereby increasing risk of liver disease.
These foods also lack in fiber, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that support liver function.
Limit alcohol to prevent liver damage
Every time the liver has to filter alcohol, some liver cells die. While these cells can regenerate, chronic alcohol consumption can cause permanent damage. Fat accumulates, inflammation mounts, and scar tissue eventually replaces healthy tissue causing the organ to stop working as it should.
Supplements for liver health
Supplements that combat oxidative stress and support the body’s natural detoxification processes can offer powerful for your liver.
Glutathione is key to liver health
Glutathione binds to and neutralizes harmful substances to help the liver remove them from your body. The body’s master antioxidant, glutathione supports liver cells by protecting them from oxidative damage.
Because it is key to the liver’s detox efforts, glutathione can run low when the liver burns through its supply after medication/drug use, heavy drinking, illness, or exposure to toxic substances.
Consuming protein, leafy greens, and allium vegetables gives your body the raw materials it needs to make glutathione, but production declines with age. Since that’s when you need it more, supplementing glutathione can be helpful to support long-term liver health.
Alpha Lipoic Acid helps maintain healthy liver cells
Alpha lipoic acid is a powerful antioxidant that contributes to healthy blood sugar and glutathione production. It is not readily available in foods, so supplementing is an option for those seeking extra support for these processes.
Vitamin C regenerates glutathione
Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that fights oxidative stress and helps recycle other antioxidants, including glutathione. It’s prevalent in fruits and vegetables — including citrus, bell peppers, broccoli, strawberries — but the amounts found in food tend not to cover our needs for healthy skin, immune system, and more.
Phosphatidylcholine helps move fat out of the liver and a lot more
Phosphatidylcholine, an essential lipid found in the membranes that surround every cell, helps to process fats and minimize buildup while supporting the liver’s structure and protecting from damage.
Like glutathione, production of this invaluable cellular building block diminishes drastically as we age — just when we need to be keeping our cells as strong and resilient as possible.
How to supplement for liver health
Vitamin C, alpha lipoic acid, and glutathione are water-soluble, so your body can only use what it can absorb immediately after supplementing. This presents a problem since most traditional oral supplements flood your system with far more nutrients than your body is designed to absorb.
Liposomal supplements encapsulate water-soluble nutrients in lipid spheres that deliver nutrients like vitamin C, alpha lipoic acid, and glutathione to the cells for absorption, so the liver has more to use to keep you healthy. Top-quality liposomal supplements use phosphatidylcholine to not only protect and deliver the nutrients, but to merge into the cell membrane and keep the cell looking and acting young.
What We Learned
The liver clears the bad stuff out of bodies, but only if you give it the good stuff that it needs. A nutrient-dense diet based in proteins, fiber, healthy fats, and antioxidants, along with hydration and smart supplements that absorb in the cells makes for a liver that keeps you thriving for a lifetime. Your body works as a unit, not independent parts, so these tips will not only help your liver function but also support your overall health and vitality.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best foods to liver health?
The best way to support liver health is by filling your plate a variety of foods that are high in protein, healthy fats, fiber, and antioxidants. These foods help the liver repair itself and fight the fat that can be dangerous to liver health.
What are the worst foods for liver health?
Processed foods filled with inflammatory fats, additives, salt and sugar make the liver work harder to process while offering minimal support for this organ.
What supplements are good for the liver?
Antioxidant supplements including glutathione, alpha lipoic acid, and vitamin C support the liver by helping to fight oxidative stress that can damage the liver. Glutathione, in particular, is easily depleted when the liver is removing excess toxins, so supplementing can be a powerful way to support the body’s natural detoxification efforts. Liposomal supplements offer a potent means of absorbing glutathione, which has a difficult journey to the cells where it’s needed when taken in traditional oral form. Phosphatidylcholine — found in top-quality liposomal vitamin C, alpha lipoic acid, and glutathione supplements — helps the liver process fats, critical to keeping the liver healthy.
