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Keep your liver from aging you too fast
Many people assess their health with a quick look in the mirror and a brief reflection on how they feel.
If you see you need to lose a few pounds, you might think about going on a diet or adding in some regular exercise.
But I bet the last thing you think about is how being overweight can prematurely age you… starting with your liver.
Your liver and aging
A study at UCLA shows that if your liver is aging too quickly, your health may be in serious danger.
According to the researchers, letting your weight climb burdens your liver with an overload of physiological tasks that makes it old before its time.
The scientists used what they call an “epigenetic clock” in coordination with researchers in Germany to investigate how gaining weight quickens the aging of the liver. They believe their findings indicate why being very overweight and obese significantly increases your risk for liver problems that can cut your life prematurely short.
Researcher Steve Horvath says that this research shows how carrying around extra pounds creates physiological problems inside the body that accelerate aging.
“This is the first study that evaluated the effect of body weight on the biological ages of a variety of human tissues,” Horvath said. “Given the obesity epidemic in the Western world, the results of this study are highly relevant for public health.”
For this analysis, Horvath examined about 140 liver samples. He discovered that when you carry around extra pounds your liver function deteriorates.
As an example, he says that a woman who is 5 feet 5 and weighs 200 pounds has a liver that is about three years older than a woman of the same height who weighs 140 pounds.
“This does not sound like a lot, but it is actually a very strong effect,” Horvath says. “For some people, the age acceleration due to obesity will be much more severe, even up to 10 years older.”
The cycle of liver dysfunction and weight gain
Your liver is the main organ responsible for getting rid of all of the toxins that accumulate in your body each day from the food you eat and from the environment.
But, if it can’t keep up — if it’s overworked or beaten down by things like alcohol, junk food and other pollutants — it can’t flush out the toxins so instead it stores them.
Where? In your fat!
Chemicals such as pesticides, industrial compounds and cosmetic ingredients become absorbed into your body and if they don’t get sufficiently detoxified and eliminated via your urine or stool, then they will be stored in your fat for years. Obesogens, the worst offenders, are chemicals that disrupt the function of hormonal systems and lead straight to weight gain.
Fat cells on your body that store obesogens are much harder to lose. That’s why liver dysfunction and weight gain can happen in a toxic loop.
How to support your liver for weight loss and healthier aging
Weight loss is important for your liver to function well, but when it’s not functioning as it should, weight loss is difficult.
So start with a look at what you eat that can harm your liver and cut back on those foods first. They include:
- White bread, pasta and rice
- Too much red meat
- Added sugars
- Fried foods
- Alcohol
Next, feed your liver supportive nutrients so it can do its job more efficiently, including:
- N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC) – To help support gentle detoxification and guard against future damage.
- Milk Thistle – A liver booster that promotes the elimination of heavy metal build-up, medication residue, environmental pollutants and alcohol.
- Turmeric – A powerful antioxidant to promote healthy liver function and the health of liver cells.
- Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) – A potent antioxidant to help keep fats from accumulating in the liver.
- Selenium – To help promote detoxification and rid the body of toxic mercury buildup.
- Schisandra – Helps activate enzymes in the liver cells that produce glutathione – the master antioxidant that detoxifies the body and recycles vitamins C and E, so they can protect cells from free radicals.
Exercise is a “must-have” for a healthy liver. Researchers at the University of Tsukuba have discovered that exercise changes circulating concentrations of specific organokines, molecules that regulate bodily functions like inflammation, oxidative stress, glucose and lipid metabolism, fat distribution and endothelial function, by activating an oxidative stress sensor. Exercise also enhanced the protective capacity of Kupffer cells, which help maintain liver function.
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