Nicknamed "organ garbage collector", the liver performs multiple functions essential to the proper functioning of our body. It treats toxins and undergoes our dietary excesses ... To lighten its work, there are some simple recommendations to apply daily, or by periods, in detox. Advice from experts.
The liver is the largest organ in the abdomen. Its role is to filter the blood loaded with substances digested by the digestive tract and to transform them into products usable by the body, eliminating waste and storing what is in excess. It also secretes bile, necessary for digestion.
Sensitive to bad habits, the liver can be resilient and able to renew itself if cared for. Excessive consumption of carbohydrates, fructose, alcohol, additives or pesticides can damage it. On the contrary, the consumption of fiber, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants or certain fats (omega-3 and -9) will be beneficial to it.
To free the liver from its infiltrated fats, it is therefore advisable to reduce calorie intake. But also to rebalance the contents of its plate.
Opt for unprocessed foods
Processed foods contain certain sugars (fructose syrup, invert sugar...) and starches (refined flour, cornstarch, starch...) that contribute to overloading the liver. "Moreover, they contain additives, explains Pr Gabriel Perlemuter, gastroenterologist. These could act on the liver by modifying the microbiota and the intestinal immunity. They then promote the passage of undesirable substances into the bloodstream, which can behave like toxins."
In detox: we banish ultra-processed products, we prefer raw products, and we cook.
And then? We use them as little as possible and choose those whose list of ingredients, especially additives, is the shortest.
Favour organic food
For good reason: chemical pesticides can damage the liver.
For a detox cure:opt for organically grown plants. Ideally, we do the same for eggs, meat and dairy products.
And then? If possible, we stay with organic. If not, we keep it to a minimum for whole grains, legumes, bread, and the most processed fruits and vegetables (grapes, clementines, cherries, grapefruits, strawberries, nectarines, oranges, apples, apricots, pears, celery, fresh herbs, endive, lettuce, peas, leeks, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, and zucchini), and we switch to conventional for the rest.
Limit sugary products
Excess sugar fattens the liver which transforms everything that is not used by the body and stores it. "Moreover, sucrose is composed of one molecule of glucose and one molecule of fructose, underlines Angélique Houlbert, dietician-nutritionist. But if glucose can be metabolized by our cells, fructose is only metabolized by the liver.
In detox: exit sugar and products containing added sugar. For dairy products, we use cinnamon, edible essential oils (mint, lavender, citrus)... Too hard? We allow ourselves a square of 90% dark chocolate.
And then? We divide the sugar of the recipes as much as possible and we use whole cane sugar. One sulks the products containing syrups (of glucose...), inverted sugar...
Controlling the intake of fruits and their derivatives
The main sugar in fruit is fructose. However, there is no question of eliminating them because they provide fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.
For a detox cure: choose fruits that are less rich in fructose and limit yourself to 2 portions per day (1 portion = 1 apple, 1 pear, 1 banana, 1 orange, 2 clementines, 2 kiwis). Avoid dried fruit, or only occasionally and as a replacement for fresh fruit (1 portion = 3 dried apricots, 3 prunes, 3-4 dates, 2-3 figs, 20 raisins). We skip compote, jam and juice.
And then? 3 portions per day, but we continue to limit the most fructose-rich ones.
Fructose content per 100g of fruit
- Green light for: peach, mandarin, plum, pineapple, raspberries, strawberries (2g)
- Orange light for: blackberries, mango, lychees, banana, orange, blueberry, red currant (3g). Watermelon, cherry (4 g). Kiwi (5g)
- Red fire for: apple, pear, grape, pomegranate (6 to 7 g). Prunes (9 g). Dry apricots (12 g). Dry dates, dry figs (20 to 25 g). Dried grapes (32 g).
Choose starchy foods according to their glycemic index
Quickly assimilated, starchy foods with a high GI promote the accumulation of fat, especially that which is lodged in the liver. "They also provide a lot of carbohydrates, insists Pr Perlemuter. Large quantities fatten the liver!"
In detox: we prefer low GI, we are satisfied with one source of starch per meal, and we limit the portion to 100 g, cooked weight.
And then? We expand to moderate GIs. And we go to 120 g-150 g, cooked weight, per meal.
- Green light for: semi-complete or complete al dente pasta, bulgur, wheat grains, T80 flour, spelt or small spelt, Kamut, rye, hulled barley, millet, oats, complete or semi-complete long rice, quinoa, buckwheat, legumes, parsnips, Jerusalem artichoke, sweet potato, oat flakes
- Orange light for: wholemeal or semi-complete wheat flour, polenta, white semolina, wholemeal sourdough bread.
- Red light for: potato, white flour and white bread, cornstarch, white, round, sticky, parboiled and quick-cooking rice, sweet cereals, pastries, sandwich bread, puffed rice cakes.
Eat large portions of vegetables
They are low in calories, provide volume on the plate, vitamins and minerals, but above all, fiber, which stabilizes blood sugar levels, eliminates some of the toxic substances and preserves the microbiota and the intestinal barrier.
As a detox cure: eat them at every meal, as a starter and as a side dish, raw and cooked, to your heart's content.
And afterwards? For life!
Keep fat, but good fat
If it is not him who causes fatty liver, but the carbohydrates, it remains important to choose it well. "Omega-3s have anti-inflammatory properties and some oils contain antioxidants that protect the organs," says Angélique Houlbert.
As a detox treatment: season with olive, rapeseed, flax, walnut and camelina oils, at a rate of 2 portions of 10 g per day. We consume 2 times fish including 1 to 2 times of fat by privileging the small species (mackerels, sardines...). We allow ourselves 1 portion (20 g) of oil seeds.
And then? You can increase to 2 portions of oilseeds and 3 portions of fat.
Avoid alcoholic beverages
Not only are they metabolized into a toxic substance (acetaldehyde), but most of them also contain large amounts of sugar: double punishment for the liver!
In detox: zero alcohol. Water, tea, coffee and infusions.
And afterwards? We reserve it for special occasions, one glass each time, preferring a good red wine to cocktails, liquor and other alcohols mixed with soda, juices, creams...
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