Dr Sandra Cabot:

[Guest guest]

>Taken from a book by Dr Sandra Cabot.

 

 

>Fatty Liver:

 

>Fatty liver generally takes several years, and sometimes many years to

develop. It is more common in overweight persons over the age of 40, but

it is not rare in much younger people.

 

>The most common cause of fatty liver used to be alcohol excess, and it

is still a common cause today. However, it has been overtaken by

incorrect diet, as the major cause of fatty liver. The regular

consumption of high amounts of refined sugar, processed snack foods,

hydrogenated vegetable oils, along with greasy foods such as deep fried

foods, has caused fatty liver syndrome to become very common. Many of

the processed low fat foods that are consumed contain high amounts of

carbohydrates in the form of added sugar, and the " plastic fats " called

hydrogenated vegetable oils. The liver will convert this sugar into fat,

which will be stored in the liver. It is not easy for the liver to

metabolise the hydrogenated trans-fatty acids,as they are the wrong

shape and do not fit the cell membranes properly. Thus these trans-fatty

acids tend to accumulate in the liver.

 

>A lack of raw foods and vegetables and a deficiency of essential fatty

acids (the good fats), can also cause fatty liver.

 

>Raw foods and their juices contain active enzymes and nutrients that

help the liver to break down fat. These foods have a cleansing effect

upon the liver filter and also help the liver cells to break down and

eliminate toxins. That is one of the reasons why eating raw salads and

fruits, and drinking raw vegetable juices, helps with weight loss.

 

>Essential fatty acids (obtainable from foods like olive oil, nuts,

avocados, cold water fish, eggs, dark green leafy vegetables) are

vitally important for the fat burning function of the liver. The liver

cell membranes and the tiny internal organs inside each liver cell are

made of these essential fatty acids. The membranes and the internal

organs of the liver cells have much to do with the metabolism of fats,

and if they are poor quality, your ability to regulate fat metabolism

will be poor.

 

>It is also thought that the regular consumption of artificial

sweetners, such as aspartame, will increase the risk of fatty liver.

Aspartame is toxic to the liver where it is broken down into methanol

(wood alcohol) and formaldehyde.

 

Chemical artificial sweetners may cause instability of the blood glucose

levels, which will lead to hypoglycaemia and thus make you crave

carbohydrates even more.

 

>If the liver is repeatedly exposed to toxins such as pesticides,

insecticides, organic solvents, etc and some prescription medications,

liver damage may occur, which results in fatty changes in the liver.

 

>Minimise your exposure to such toxins and keep your home environment

friendly. The drugs that are most likely to cause liver damage are

long-term antibiotics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, some

anti-fungal drugs, and pain killers. If you have to take any of these

drugs on a long-term basis please ask your doctor to check your liver

function regularly with a simple blood test. You will be able to avoid

liver damage and fatty liver this way. Before committing to the

long-term ingestion of any drugs, ask your doctor to see the full side

effect profile of the drug - you may get a shock! I have seen many

people develop mysterious liver disease in adulthood, and the only

antecedent factor that I could find was overexposure to drugs,

especially in childhood, where the over use of antibiotics used to be

widespread.

 

>The Cleansing Function of the Liver:

 

>The liver is the cleanser and filter of the blood stream and is of

vital importance. The liver filter can remove a wide range of

micro-organisms such as bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites from the

bloodstream.

 

>Infections with parasites often come from contaminated water supplies

found in large cities, and indeed other dangerous organisms may find

their way into your gut and blood stream from these sources. This can

cause chronic infections and poor health, so it is important to protect

your liver from these micro-organisms. The safest thing to do is boil

your water for at least 5 minutes, or drink only bottled water that has

been filtered and sterilised. High loads of unhealthy micro-organism can

also come from eating foods that are prepared in conditions of poor

hygiene by persons carrying bacteria, viruses or parasites on their

skin. Foods, especially meats that are not fresh or are preserved, also

contain a higher bacterial load, which will overwork the liver filter if

they are eaten regularly.

 

>Toxic Overload:

 

>If the step one and two detoxification pathways in the liver become

overloaded, there will be a build-up of toxins in the body. Many of

these toxins are fat-soluble and incorporate themselves into fatty parts

of the body where they may stay for years, if not for a lifetime. The

brain and the endocrine (hormonal) glands are fatty organs, and are

common sites for fat soluble toxins to accumulate. This may result in

symptoms of brain dysfunction and hormonal imbalances, such as

infertility, breast pain, menstrual disturbances, adrenal gland

exhaustion and early menopause. Many of these chemicals (eg pesticides,

insecticides and organic solvents) are carcinogenic and have been

implicated in the rising incidence of many cancers.

 

>If the detoxification systems within the liver are overloaded, this

will cause toxins, dead cells and micro-organisms to build up in the

blood stream. This will then increase the workload of the immune system,

which will become overloaded and irritated. The immune system will then

produce excessive inflammatory chemicals, and in some cases,

auto-antibodies,because it is in a hyper-stimulated state. This may lead

to symptoms of immune dysfunction such as allergies, inflammatory

states, swollen glands, recurrent infections, chronic fatigue syndrome,

fibromyalgia or autoimmune diseases. Some of the more common autoimmune

diseases are systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), sclerosing cholangtis,

primary biliary cirrhosis, Hashimotos thyroiditis, vasculitis and

rheumatoid arthritis.

 

>Immune dysfunction is common in the chemically overloaded environment

we live in today, and is exacerbated by nutritional deficiencies

inherent in processed and high sugar diets. Suppressive drugs are often

used to treat symptoms of immune dysfunction.