Springtime brings lots of beauty and energy! Birds are chirping, flowers are blooming, people are emerging from their homes and heading outside to enjoy the sun and fun.
In Chinese Medicine, Spring is associated with the Liver organ system. The Liver "ensures the smooth flow of Qi" and clears the path for energy and blood to flow throughout the body easily and effortlessly. As you can imagine this is an important organ in the body. Clearing the way for all to flow is an important job for many reasons. One of the biggest reasons is that if there is stagnation (think stuck) energy in the body, then pain is the result. Think of a garden hose and what happens when it has a kink in it--no water flows and eventually something bursts or breaks. Another way of looking at it is to think of a cluttered-overcrowded room with lots of objects that no longer work or function properly--these items collect dust (toxins) and block other cleaner, more functioning objects (healing cells) to take their place.
From a Western perspective, the Liver detoxifies the body and acts as a filtering system. Ridding the body of unwanted toxins and waste. What happens when it's overloaded by stress, alcohol, prescription and/or non-prescription drugs, a poor diet, or all of the above? Pain, hormonal imbalance, digestive issues, fatigue and viral and bacterial infections.
Cleansing the Liver can be as simple as taking an herbal supplement to help the Liver do it's daily job of detoxifying the body. We have an excellent supplement in our clinic called Liver DTX. It's a great way to relieve the Liver of unwanted pressure and cleanse the Liver and clear unwanted Qi blockages. Following are some other helpful methods to cleanse and clear this Spring...
5 Easy Ways to Detox the Liver
1. Eat Green and Clean: by loading up your diet with more Organic greens, you'll be healing your liver--Spinach is an excellent Liver detoxifier as are Beets and Beet greens. Fresh herbs are great additions to salads and can be mixed into smoothies to add into the detoxification process.
2. Juices can be easier to digest than taking in raw veggies, if your digestion is still a little challenged by Liver overload, the following "Liver Rescue Juice" is recommended by Anthony Williams (aka Medical Medium)...
2 Apples
2 Cups Coarsely Chopped Pineapple
1 Inch Ginger
1 Bunch Celery
1 Cup Loosely Packed Parsley
Blend and Enjoy!
3. Take supplements to help detoxify the Liver, following are some good ones:
B vitamin complex, Liver DTX (from our clinic), Dandelion/Peppermint and Hibiscus Tea, Ashwagandha, Spirulina and Chlorella, Vitamin C, Milk Thistle, Chaga Mushrooms, etc. If you want more info. we've got it, just ask.
4. Colonics. While these aren't for all, they can be helpful to clear the path for faster waste removal, thus lightening the load the Liver is carrying. Seek a licensed and experienced health-care practitioner for healing and cleansing this area of the body.
5. Acupuncture + Cupping are so helpful in releasing blockages, toxins and helping the Liver Qi flow smoothly in the body. Cupping uses invigorated blood circulation to help detoxify, release tension in the back and shoulders and activate Acupoints on the back to heal the Liver, Kidneys, Digestive Organs, Lungs and Heart. Acupuncture restores the smooth flow of Liver Qi and boosts energy and the immune system allowing the body time and resources to do its natural healing.
And, as always, Rest, Sunshine, Deep Breathing, and Purified Water go a long way in the healing journey, especially for the Liver!