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This is an extremely effective product for detoxifying the liver, normalizing liver metabolism, and preventing further liver damage.
The accumulation of chemicals in our body from the water that we drink and bathe in, the air that we breathe, and the food that we eat have been shown to weaken the immune system plus contribute to the degenerative effects of the body.
Liver Cellular Rejuvenation Support Formula
Ingredient Rationale
A proprietary blend of artichoke (Cynara Floridanum) and sarsaparilla (Smilax Aristolochiaefolia) that contains the following naturally occurring bioflavonoids and polyphenols: silymarin, quercetin, catechin, hesperidin, rutin, cynarin and chlorogenic acid. Bioflavonoids are a class of water-soluble plant pigments (colors) that have anti-inflammatory antihistaminic and anti-viral properties. Health professionals formulated The Liver Cellular Rejuvenation Support Formula specifically for detoxifying the liver and gall bladder and supporting each of their functions along with having the ability to rejuvenate the liver even under stress.
Included Bioflavonoids
1. Silymarin
Numerous clinical studies have shown silymarin to be among the most powerful natural agents available for the prevention and treatment of liver damage caused by exposure to human-made chemicals including alcohol induced liver degeneration and cirrhosis.
2. Quercetin
Quercetin is a bioflavonoid with antioxidant effects. It is used for the prevention of atherosclerosis hypercholesterolemia (excess cholesterol in the blood) and coronary heart disease. It can inhibit carcinogenesis and reduce capillary fragility. Quercetin is used extensively in the treatment of athletic injuries, because it relieves pain and bruising and acts synergistically with Vitamin C to protect and preserve the structure of capillaries. It also promotes circulation lowers cholesterol levels and treats and prevents cataracts. Quercetin fights cancer, diabetes, capillary fragility and arthritis; stabilizes membranes; protects against heart disease and allergies; normalizes blood pressure; helps lowers cholesterol; and slows aging.
3. Catechin
Catechin, another naturally occurring flavonoid, is similar in effect to silymarin. Catechin is a powerful anti-oxidant that helps prevent free radical oxidative damage to cells. It also helps in the treatment and prevention of alcohol and chemical-induced liver disease or damage. Catechin is also valuable for its ability to neutralize intestinal toxins and assist in the stabilization of cell membranes.
4. Hesperidin
Hesperidin has been shown to be useful in clinical trials as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory.
5. Rutin
An antioxidant bioflavonoid, free radical scavenger, and an iron-chelator. It is used as a vascular protector for reducing capillary fragility, permeability and bleeding; as a treatment for varicose vein symptoms; and as preventive for stroke (the sudden rupture or clotting/blockage of a blood vessel to the brain). Some studies show that Rutin offers protection from damage induced by asbestos, the cytotoxic effects of oxidized low-density lipoproteins (LDL), and gastric injury from ethanol. It also offers some protection against DNA damage caused by hepatocarcinogens. Rutin is used extensively in the treatment of athletic injuries because it relieves pain and bruises and acts synergistically with Vitamin C to protect and preserve the structure of capillaries. It also promotes circulation, lowers cholesterol levels, and treats and prevents cataracts.
6. Cynarin
Cynarin assists in the detoxification of the liver and gall bladder. It also supports the function of these two important organs while and assists in their regeneration following damage. Cynarin stimulates the clearance of bile from the liver, preventing congestion in the liver and thus diminishing the chances of liver damage.
7. Sarsaparilla
Sarsaparilla has been used in the treatment of the following conditions: gout, arthritis, digestive disorders, skin diseases and cancer. Sarsaparilla contains saponins, which are steroid-like agents that bind with toxins in the digestive tract. Historically sarsaparilla has been used as a 'blood purifier' and a general tonic for diseases associated with increased endotoxin levels, including arthritis, intestinal ulcerative conditions, eczema and psoriasis.
The tonic effect of sarsaparilla is the result of its ability to stimulate the removal of accumulated waste products from the cells, blood and lymph. These actions tend to increase the health of the entire body and increase vitality, thereby increasing energy and endurance.
8. Chlorogenic Acid (16%)
Chlorogenic Acid is a naturally occurring, water soluble, phenolic acid that is a potent anti-oxidant, carcinogenic inhibitor and protector against lipid peroxidation and free radical mediated cell injury.
DOUBLE BLIND STUDY
2nd Double Blind Study
COMPARATIVE STUDY BETWEEN A COMPLEX OF FLAVONOIDS AND POLYPHENOLS CREATED FROM EXTRACTS OF ARTICHOKE AND SARSAPRILLA AND A PLACEBO IN ALCOHOL RELATED LIVER DISEASE
DECEMBER 12 1998
In a previous study completed over two years ago in this same hospital an extract of artichoke (Cynara Floridanum) and sarsaparilla (Smilax Aristolochiaefolia) was evaluated in addressing the symptoms related to alcoholic liver disease. This study was accomplished over a fifteen-day period with exceptional results. Because of these results noted over a very short period of time, the hospital researchers were anxious to set up the same study over a longer period (30 days). Please refer to the July 3, 1996, study for descriptions of symptoms and study parameters. Results of this study are as follows:
ASCITES
A 72.38% reduction of the accumulation of serous abdominal fluid was noted in the treated group. The placebo saw a 6.35% increase in abdominal fluid.
ENCEPHALOPATHY
A 66.08% reduction of symptoms related to encephalopathy was noted in the treated group. The placebo group saw a 12.24% increase in these symptoms.
HEPATOMEGALY
The treated group experienced a 93.33% reduction in enlarged livers. In the placebo group their livers continued to enlarge by another 7.14%.
SPLENOMEGALY
An 88.40% reduction in spleen enlargement was noted with the treated group. The placebo group worsened by 11.54%.
WEAKNESS
The treated group noted a 73.64% increase in strength. There was a decrease in muscle strength by 7.41% in the placebo group.
PERIPHERAL EDEMA
Edema in the extremities of the treated patients decreased by 48.21%. There was no change in the placebo group.
HEMORRHAGES
The treated group noted a 100% decrease in capillary hemorrhaging in the skin gums and nasal membranes. The placebo group saw an increase of 28.57% in hemorrhaging.
ANOREXIA
Loss of appetite decreased in the treated group by 76.98%. The placebo group noted a decrease of 3.70%.
ABDOMINAL WALL VEINS
The treated group experienced a 60.62% decrease in tortuous veins in the abdomen related to ascites. The placebo group saw a 3.33% decrease.
PALMAR ERYTHEMA
The treated group noted a 26.67% decrease in red and swollen palms. In the placebo group there was no change.
TELANGIECTASIA
A 60.00% reduction in vascular lesions was noted in the treated group. A 3.33% reduction was seen in the placebo group.
TOTAL BILIRUBIN
The treated group noted a reduction of total bilirubin by 38.95%. The placebo group increased by 5.68%.
ALKALINE PHOSPHATASE
The treated group obtained 25.91% reduction in alkaline phosphates. There was an 11.69% increase in the placebo group.
SERUM GLUTAMIC OXALCETIC TRANSAMINASE (SGOT)
The treated group noted a decrease of 23.83% in SGOT levels. The placebo group experienced a worsening of 11.71%.
PROTHROMBIN TIME
A 42.00% reduction in clotting time was noted with the treated group. An increase in clotting time was noted in the placebo group of 6.60%.
SERUM ALBUMIN
An increase of 37.27% in serum albumin was noted in the treated group. There was a decrease in the placebo group of 1.95%.
GAMMA GLUTAMYL TRANSPEPTIDASE (GGT)
The treated group noted a reduction of 23.79% in GGT. The placebo group experienced an increase of 9.92%.
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1st Double Blind Study
INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS OBTAINED IN A DOUBLE BLIND TEST MADE IN THE GENERAL HOSPITAL MEXICO WITH THE PRODUCT LIVER SUPPORT ON PATIENTS HAVING CHRONIC ALCOHOLIC HEPATIC DISEASE.
In order to analyze carefully the results of this study, it is necessary to know the importance of the two clinical and laboratory parameters intervening in the calculations of Orrego and Maddrey Indexes. We will compare the results of the parameters, the placebo control and the Liver Support groups on both indexes. The results are presented as percentages of recovery and are obtained from the data obtained from each group of 30 patients; we will get an average of those results at the beginning and at the end of the study. Both averages will give us a final recovery compared to the initial values. This way we may demonstrate the effectiveness of Liver Support.
DEFINTIONS AND RESULTS OF PARAMETERS
ASCITES
Effusion and accumulation of serous fluid in the abdominal cavity. The experimental group (Liver Support) experienced a 28.8% reduction of ascites while the placebo group experienced no change.
ENCEPHALOPATHY
A DEGENERATIVE DISEASE OF THE BRAIN. Hepatic encephalopathy- a condition usually occurring secondarily to advanced disease of the liver. It is marked by disturbances of consciousness that may progress to deep coma (hepatic coma) psychiatric changes of varying degree, flapping tremor and fetor hepaticas. Also called portal-systemic encephalopathy. Patients on Liver Support experienced a 34.55% reduction of hepatic encephalopathy. The placebo group experienced a 5.5% reduction.
SPLENOMEGALIA
Enlargement of the spleen. An 18.18% reduction was observed in the Liver Support group and a 55% reduction was observed in the placebo group.
WEAKNESS
Lacking physical strength or vigor marked by asthenia atony cardiasthena enervation fatigue and lassitude. The Liver Support group experienced an 83.45% decrease in the incidence of weakness while the placebo group reported no change.
PERIPHERAL EDEMA
A condition in which the body tissues contain an excess amount of fluid. The Liver Support Group experienced an 11.10% reduction in peripheral edema while the placebo group had a 0.69% reduction.
HEMORRHAGES
Bleeding. This was one of the most important benefits observed in the Liver Support group. The Liver Support group had an 89.41% reduction in hemorrhages while the placebo had a 31% reduction.
ANOREXIA
Loss of appetite. Seen in depression malaise commencement of fevers and illness also in disorders of the alimentary tract especially of the stomach and as a result of alcoholic excess and drug addiction. Anorexia was diminished by 86.07% in the Liver Support group. There was no change in the placebo group.
TOTAL BILIRUBIN LEVEL
The predominant pigment of human bile. Total serum bilirubin may be increased in cirrhosis of the liver and acute viral hepatitis. The Liver Support group obtained 25.11% reduction in bilirubin whereas the placebo group had a 7.2% increase.
OGT
(Oxalacetic Glutamic Transaminase). It is distributed all over body tissue especially in the heart and liver. Fewer amounts are found in the spleen pancreas kidneys lungs and brain. Any lesion of a tissue leads to the secretion of this enzyme to the blood stream. The activity of OGT is risen under hepatic necrosis cirrhosis of the liver or hepatic metastasis. In those patients who received Liver Support this level diminished 22.56% in only 15 days of treatment and in the placebo group it diminished 8.51%.
PROTHROMBINE TIME
A test of clotting time made by determining the time for clotting to occur after thromboplastin and calcium are added to decalcified plasma. There was 30.82% reduction in prothrombin time for Liver Support patients whereas the placebo group's time increased 1.25%. This is very important data because it means that Liver Support helps the healing of wounds faster.
SERUM ALBUMIN
One of a group of simple proteins widely distributed in tissues. Albumin is a constituent of blood. Low levels of albumin in blood plasma are associated with a pathologic condition of the liver. The Liver Support group experienced an increase of 8.85% of total albumin levels while the placebo group experienced a 5.35% increase.
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Article published about Extreme's Liver Support Formula in:
"THE TOWNSEND LETTER for DOCTOR'S PATIENTS"
HEPATITIS LIVER CIRRHOSIS/HCC
Understanding Liver Detoxification
LIVER TOXICITY
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Fatigue, low energy |
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Use of tobacco, alcohol, or drugs (any kind) |
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History of exposure to human-made chemicals, smokes, paints, fumes, toxins, etc. |
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History of exposure to natural toxins, heavy metals |
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History of gastritis, Chron's disease, or Inflammatory Bowel Syndrome |
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Bloating/ flatulence |
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Overweight |
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Poor digestion |
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Diverticulitis |
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Bad breath |
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Chronic constipation/ straining at stools |
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Foul smelling stools |
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Lower abdominal pain or spasms |
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Poor skin tone, skin conditions. |
| If you have checked any of the boxes you may want to consider supporting your body's natural processes with scientifically validated nutritional supplements. |
What Does The Liver Do?
The liver is an organ that acts as a complex 'factory', responsible for the processing of carbohydrates (sugars), fats, proteins, and the synthesis (formation) of bile, glycogen, and serum proteins. The liver performs over 500 jobs, all necessary for life and health. The liver also acts as the primary organ of detoxification, protecting us from dietary, environmental and metabolic chemicals and toxins.
What Is A Toxic Or Sluggish Liver?
The symptoms of a toxic or 'sluggish', overworked liver are often diffuse and nonspecific and can involve nearly every organ or system in the body. Accumulated toxins circulating through the body will poison a person to a relative degree, depending on the amount and time component of the exposure and the liver's functional capability to metabolize the toxins.
What Are The Symptoms Of A Toxic Or Sluggish Liver?
Symptoms include, but are not limited to fatigue, low energy, overweight, poor digestion, bad breath, poor skin tone, various skin conditions.
Can A Toxic Or Sluggish Liver Be Reversed?
Yes. A unique feature of the liver is its ability to heal itself and regenerate cells, especially when supported by specific nutritional supplementation designed to detoxify the liver and support its various functions.
What Is Liver Cirrhosis?
Cirrhosis involves inflammation and degeneration of the liver, mainly caused by the chronic use of substances such as tobacco, alcohol and/or drugs, or long-term exposure to human-made chemicals (herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, paints, cleaning products, solvents, petroleum products, etc.).
Can Nutrition Help A Toxic Or Sluggish Liver?
Yes. In fact, I have recently been working with a colleague of mine, Dr. Chuck Cochran, who has been researching the liver, its functions, and specific nutritional support intended to support liver and gall bladder function (they work together). After over twenty years, Dr. Cochran and his research team perfected a formula, Liver Support System, which assists the body in detoxifying and regenerating the liver (see the article: Reversing Liver Damage). The formula consists of a special hybrid artichoke and the herb sarsaparilla. It sounds like a simple formula, however the formulation process is quite complex.
Why Should a Person 'Detoxify' Their Body?
For many natural doctors and therapists, it is a commonly held belief that all Americans are having serious problems with at least three of the five organs of elimination and detoxification. The five organs of elimination and detoxification are the colon (large intestine), kidneys, liver, lungs and skin.
Traditional medical doctors rarely receive any education related to nutritional support for the elimination and detoxification processes in the body. When was the last time you heard of a medical doctor putting a patient on a cellular, liver, or colon cleansed? Common sense and logic dictate that if a living organism ingests, inhales, or absorbs more toxins, chemicals, and disease causing foods than their elimination and detoxification systems can handle, there will be congestion and a loss of the expression of vibrant health, relative to the amount of toxic buildup.
Various forms of toxic buildup in the body are contributing factors to many disease states, or limit the ability of the body to function properly. Detoxification is vitally important for people to be able to get well in many acute and chronic conditions. Many people who think they are 'healthy' have no idea how sick they are, or better stated, how 'well' they could be. Elimination of toxins from the body is one of the keys to experiencing vibrant health.
When the body is healthy and vibrant, the organs of elimination handle the removal of toxins and unwanted substances in the body. When these systems begin to break down or become overloaded due to congestion of these organs and their systems, a person's general quality of health will begin to diminish.
How Does the Body Become Toxic?
One of the main steps in achieving vibrant health is to remove congestion anywhere and everywhere from the body. The body's 'toxic waste elimination organs', found in every cell, the intestinal tract, liver, and kidneys, can become overburdened by exposure to man-made chemicals and heavy metals in our environment or in the foods we eat, or from the over-consumption of cooked, frozen, canned, or processed foods, alcohol, coffee, sugar (candy), fatty foods, drugs (prescription or recreational), and tobacco.
Another main source of toxins are those made in the body, such as excess mucous production in response to eating mainly cooked and refined foods (dead food), and auto-toxification from chemicals produced in the intestines from fermentation and incomplete digestion and assimilation of foods. Common symptoms associated with toxins accumulating in the colon and tissues of the body include general aches and pains, chronic tiredness, headaches, and skin 'reactions'.
What is Liver Detoxification?
The liver is an organ that acts as a complex 'factory', responsible for the processing of carbohydrates (sugars), fats, proteins, and the synthesis (formation) of bile, glycogen, and serum proteins. The liver also acts as the primary organ of detoxification, protecting us from environmental and metabolic toxins.
The most common substances causing liver toxicity include many prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications, recreational drugs, alcohol, tobacco, heavy metals, many human-made chemicals, food additives, chlorine and chlorine based products, herbicides, pesticides, petroleum products, solvents and commercial cleaning products, formaldehyde, combustion by-products, household chemicals, fluorocarbons, glues and adhesives, fluoride & chlorine and other chemicals in tap water, and chemicals found in common office supplies and common personal care products.
A unique feature of the liver is its ability to heal itself and regenerate cells, especially when supported by nutritional supplementation and other effective therapeutic methods.
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AUTISM AND DETOXIFICATION
Might autistic children be the proverbial "canaries in the coal mine" whose nervous systems are more susceptible to the impact of toxic heavy metals in the environment incurring neurological damage even at low exposure levels? One recent study found that in one group of 18 autistic children 16 had blood levels of toxic heavy metals and chemicals exceeding adult maximum tolerance. This build-up of toxins may not arise simply from excessive exposure but from a marked inability to process and eliminate toxins from the body. Indeed when the children were assessed using a biochemical analysis to gauge the body's ability to detoxify substances researchers found that every child showed out-of-range results suggesting a defect in this two-phase detoxification process. (Reason Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula is important.) Researchers explained that such a mechanism could lead to a backup of toxic heavy metals and chemical toxins with increased free radical activity in the body. Since the blood-brain barrier of children is still not fully developed these toxic and oxidized molecules could penetrate into regions of the brain and damage neutrons receptors synapses enzymes and cell mitochondria and also set off auto immune reactions triggering further damage.
According to other studies autistic children may have problems metabolizing and detoxifying certain compounds due to an impaired biochemical process called sulfation. Sulfation plays an important role in the second phase of the detoxification process. (Reason Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula is important.) Impaired sulfation could make autistic children more vulnerable to multiple heavy metal and chemical sensitivities. It may also help explain an exacerbation of behavioral problems after children eat foods containing phenol tyramine and phenyl compounds which are normally neutralized through the sulfation process.
Much concern has been raised over the link between exposure to heavy metal toxins and neurological brain damage associated with learning and behavior disorders in children. Indeed research shows that exposure to heavy metals such as lead mercury and antimony can impair brain development at very early ages even at low doses previously deemed "harmless." Children are particularly susceptible to the deleterious effects of heavy metal exposure for several reasons. First their developing nervous systems are more sensitive. Second their bodies absorb toxins more rapidly yet clear them from the system more slowly than from adults.(Reason Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula is important.) Finally a child's blood-brain barrier the natural protective mechanism which blocks harmful substances from entering and damaging the brain is not yet fully formed.
Many professionals working in the field of autism have expressed concern that some autistic children were exposed to potentially damaging levels of ethylmercury which is a preservative used in certain vaccinations. Clinical neurobehavioral symptoms of mercury poisoning seem to parallel closely many common symptoms of autism. In response to pressure from the FDA the U.S. Public Health Service and other regulatory health agencies vaccine manufacturers have since worked to reduce or eliminate the use of ethylmercury as a preservative in many vaccines.
In addition several studies have associated high lead levels in children with autism. Elevated levels of lead in hair - signify long-term toxic exposure to this heavy metal - were correlated with increased behavior abnormalities and learning disorders in children. Based on clinicians' observations antimony a potential toxin found in some fire retardant materials is also a possible cause for concern.
Nutritional balance and healthy metabolism are also very important. Dr. Lynn Wecker and his colleagues at Louisiana State Medical Centre observe that trace element imbalances in the human body can disrupt neurotransmitter function and produce marked changes in behavior; many of which are consistent with symptoms of autism. For this reason Dr. Wecker and his team evaluated trace element concentrations in the hair of autistic children. They found clear deficiencies of calcium, copper, zinc, and chromium that were so striking that they allowed them to discriminate between autistic children and healthy controls with a high degree of accuracy using just test results. Deficiencies of mineral nutrients can make a child more susceptible to heavy metal absorption. Magnesium deficiencies associated with attention-deficit disorder and hyperactivity may also be clinically significant in autism. Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula radically improves liver metabolism and promotes the detoxification of the liver and the body.
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REFERENCES:
Accardo P Whitman B Caul J Rolfe U. Autism and plumbism. A possible association. Clinical Pediatric 1988; 27(1):41-4.
Alberti A Pirrone P Elia M Waring RH Romano C. Sulphation deficit in "low-functioning" autistic children: a pilot study. Biol Psychiatry 1999;46(3):420-4.
Cohen DJ Johnson WT Caparulo BK. Pica and elevated blood lead level in autistic and atypical children. Am J Dis Child 1976;130(1):47-48.
Edelson SB Cantor DS. Autism: Xenobiotic influences. Toxicology and industrial health 1998;14(4):553-563.
Emory E Pattillo D Archibald E Byroh M Sung F. Neurobehavioral effects of low-level lead exposure in human neonates. Am J Obstet Gynecol 1999;181:S2-S11.
Eufemia P Celli M Finocchiaro R Pacifico L Viozzi L Zaccagnini M Cardi E Giardini O. Abnormal intestinal permeability in children with autism. Acta Paediatr 1996:85(9):1076-9.
Goodwin MS Cowen MA Goodwin TC. Malabsorption and cerebral dysfunction: a multivariate and comparative study of autistic children. J Autism Child Schizophr 1971; 1:48-62.
Halsey NA. Limiting infant exposure to thimerosal in vaccines and other sources of mercury. JAMA. 199 Nov 10;282(18):1763-6.
Horvath K Papadimitriou JC Rabsztyn A Drachenberg C Tildon JT. Gastrointestinal abnormalities in children with autistic disorder. J. Pediatr 1999; 135:559-63.
Kozielec T Starobrat-Hermelin B. Assessment of magnesium levels in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Magnes Res; 1997 Jun; 10(2):143-8.
Lanphear BP Dietrich K Auinger P Cox C. Subclinical lead toxicity in U.S. children and adolescents [abstract#894]. APS/SPR Joint Meeting; 2000 May 12-16;
Boston MA. McFadden SA. Phenotypic variation in xenobiotic metabolism and adverse environmental response: focus on sulfur-dependent detoxification pathways. Toxicology 1996;111 (1-3):43-65.
Shannon M Graef Jw. Lead intoxication in children with pervasive developmental disorders. J Toxicol Clin Toxicol 1996;34(2):177-81.
Tuthill RW. Hair lead levels related to children's classroom attention-deficit behavior. Arch Enciron Health 1996;(3):214-220.
Wecker L Miller SB Cochran SR Dugger DL Johnson WD. Trace element concentrations in hair from autistic children. J Ment Defic Res 1985; 15-22.
Wilson MA Johnston MV Goldstein GW Blue ME. Neonatal lead exposure impairs development of rodent barrel field cortex. PNAS 2000; 97(10):5540-5545.
Weight Loss and your Liver
The "Fat Flush Plan" was on the New York
Best Selling books for almost a year. |
The following excerpt from the book 'The Fat Flush Plan' by Ann Louise Gittleman (is printed with permission. Ann Louise felt Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula was so effective that she allowed Extreme to share about 20 pages on our web site www.ExtremeHealthUSA.com from her book on how the liver is an essential part of weight loss).
Over twenty-five years ago, a health-conscious friend shared an ad with me about the Parcells School of Scientific Nutrition in Albuquerque , New Mexico . The ad promised "five days that would change your life." Nothing could have been truer. After meeting Hazel Parcells, Ph.D., D.C., N.D., my life was changed forever. She inspired me to become a nutritionist with a foot in both clinical and holistic nutrition. Dr. Parcells was eighty-four years old when I met Her - and lived to the incredible age of 106. A true pioneer in natural medicine, she was a woman ahead of her time.
Under Dr. Parcells's masterful tutelage, I first became acquainted with several innovative concepts, many of which later became the foundation of my Fat Flush Plan. The first revelation was the surprising connection between weight loss and the liver. I recognized early on what researches are only now beginning to understand - that not only is the liver the main organ for detoxifying pollutants and chemicals in the body, but this vital organ also is a hidden key to effortless weight loss.
Based on simple biochemistry and the charts from Gray's Anatomy, I learned first hand that one of the best kept secrets to weight loss and lasting weight control is keeping the liver, the key organ for fat metabolism, in tip-top shape. For example, bile, which is synthesized and secreted by the liver and stored in the gallbladder, helps the liver break down fats. Bile cannot do its job, however, if it is lacking certain nutrients that make up the bile salts or if it is congested or thickened with chemicals, toxins, excess sex hormones, drugs and/or heavy metals.
So I researched all the "liver loving" foods and nutrients that would enable the body to produce quality bile and aid in thinning it out. Since one of the primary ingredients of bile is lecithin - a highly effective emulsifier with a detergent-like ability to break up fats - I decided to experiment with adding lecithin-rich eggs to my daily diet. Soon, the addition of fresh lemon juice and water - a well-known bile thinner - followed suit twice a day. Not only did my own cholesterol come down (a good 20 points to be exact), but so did my weight.
Just to make sure I was onto something, I enrolled thirty of my clients in a six-week dietary exploration and instructed them to add at least two eggs daily to their current diet regimens and to add lemon juice and water twice a day - without changing anything else in terms of diet or exercise. Without exception, they all lost weight, especially around the waistline. In fact, one woman lost 21 pounds over the six-week period. I instructed the group to avoid caffeine and medications (including over-the-counter drugs) as much as possible because I suspected even then that these "drugs" were especially toxic to the liver.
Today, light is finally being shed on this vitally important organ. Many laboratories specializing in functional medicine testing offer a liver function test to determine how well the liver's two distinct detoxification pathways, the cytochrome P-450 phase I and phase II detoxification enzymes, are working. An individual ingests caffeine, Tylenol, and aspirin, and then specimens of saliva and urine are taken and analyzed to assess how well the liver is breaking down these substances.
The liver's two detoxification pathways are responsible for breaking down, eliminating, and neutralizing toxins. In this petrochemical world of ours, the sheer number of toxins we ingest from medication, drugs, pollutants, and pesticides can overwhelm the liver's ability to break them down and deactivate them. In addition, the detoxification pathways can become drained of the antioxidants, enzymes, and other nutrients necessary for detoxification because of the overload. The resulting metabolic by-products of incomplete detoxification are often more poisonous to the body than the original toxins.
The April 2001 Consumer Reports on Health provided an extremely helpful list of medications and herbs that can harm the liver with long-term use. The list include common medications (such as ibuporfen); cholesterol-lowering drugs (such as Lipitor); antidiabetic drugs; triglyceride-lowering drugs; anticonvulsants; estrogens used to treat menopausal symptoms (such as Premarin and Ogen) and those used in birth control pills (such as Lo/Ovral and Triphasal); and the herbs chaparral, comfrey, and pennyroyal.
The bottom line is that with so many toxins being dumped into the bile, its storage, concentration, production, and ability to digest fats are seriously impaired.
Another valuable insight I learned from Dr. Parcells was that cellulite - that dimpled accumulation of stored fat on our thighs and buttocks - was more connected to a sluggish lymphatic system than to poor muscle tone or weakened connective tissues. The lymphatic system, a relatively unknown secondary circulatory system underneath the skin, rids the body of toxic wastes, bacteria, heavy metals, dead cells, trapped protein, and fat globules. In essence, the lymphatic system is the garbage disposal of the body.
These concepts were so innovative back then that Dr. Parcells was the only one talking about them. After her ideas on the liver and the value of cleansing began to take root, researchers (for example, Sandra Cabot, M.D. in Australia ) and American doctors (for example, Leo Galland, Kenneth Bock, and Elson Haas) started to write about them. Parcells would have been proud to know that in 2001 - nearly five years after her death - a well-respected cardiologist from Philadelphia , Gerald M. Lemole, M.D. came out with a book called The Healing Diet, which links lymphatic system health with overall wellness.
Thanks to Dr. Parcells, I was given a head start in learning about the importance of cleansing both the liver and the lymphatic system for effective weight loss and cellulite control.
(Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula is available on www.ExtremeHealthUSA.com).
So I honed the Fat Flush Plan to include stress-relieving protocols (such as exercise and journal keeping) that would zap the stress trigger and accelerate weight loss. Probably the most vigorous stress-busting dietary suggestion was to increase protein - at least 8 ounces or more of poultry, fish or lean meat - because the body has higher protein needs when it is under stress. Just by adding another couple of ounces of protein to lunch and dinner, I had elated reports form clients who were dropping two dress sixes in two weeks - at last.
QUICK QUIZ
Your struggles with weight are not the result of simply too much food and too little exercise. A myriad of unsuspected elements come into play. Before we look more closely at these, take this Quick Quiz to put your own lifestyle in focus.
YES/NO
Do you drink caffeinated beverages daily? _______ _______
Are you taking antidepressants or prescription or over-the-counter drugs? _______ _______
Do you eat margarine or foods made with hydrogenated(solid or semisolid) fats? _______ ___
Do you take birth control pills? _______ _______
Are you on estrogen-or hormone-replacement therapy? _______ _______
Did you take antibiotics two or more times during the past twelve months? _______ _______
Do you avoid fat at all cost (e.g. by eating fat-free yogurt and fat-free cookies)? _______ _____
Do you often crave sweets, bread, or other high-carbohydrate foods? _______ _______
Do you eat pasta, potatoes, bread, or other carbohydrates two or more times daily? _______ _
Does at least one meal a day contain processed and/or packaged foods (e.g., frozen entrees or
luncheon meats)? _______ _______
Do you eat fewer than two servings of protein (e.g.,meat, eggs or fish) daily? _______ _______
Do you drink fewer than eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily? _______ _______
Do you regularly sleep fewer than 8 hours a night? _______ _______
Do you lead a high-stress life? _______ _______
Do you frequently skip a meal because you are "too busy to eat"? _______ _______
Would you describe your lifestyle as sedentary? _______ _______
If you answered "Yes" to even one of the these questions, read on to learn how you may be unknowingly sabotaging your efforts at weight control and what you can do to make a difference.
Liver toxicity
Waterlogged tissues
Fear of eating fat
Excess insulin
Stress fat
How do these factors really affect your weight? Over the past several years, I have followed the research and, in some cases, the work of the nutritional pioneers who spearheaded these breakthroughs to answer this question. If you are like most of the Fat Flushers who have followed my work, when you understand some of the no-nonsense reasoning and the science behind the plan, you'll march confidently toward your ultimate success.
HIDDEN FACTOR #1: YOUR TIRED, TOXIC LIVER
Poets and songwriters may wax poetic about the heart, but your liver is by far the most versatile organ in your body and one of the most important. Weighting between 2.5 and 4 pounds in adults, the liver is the largest internal organ as well. Between 3 and 4 pints of blood flow through it every minute. Read the double blind studies on the ingredients of Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula relating to detoxifing, rebuilding and strengthening the liver when using these ingredients. The patients in the study had chroisis of the liver and had powerful liver symptom improvements in as little as 60-90 days.
The Vital Liver
Researchers now estimate that the liver performs nearly 400 different jobs. It is the body's most important organ, functioning as a living filter to cleanse the system of toxins, metabolize proteins, control hormonal balance, and produce immune-boosting factors. Many of these functions are essential to your overall health, for example, the liver's synthesis of fibrinogen and other blood-clotting factors to protect you when you are injured. However, other liver functions have a direct bearing on your weight loss efforts, and these are the focus of the Fat Flush Plan.
A Fat-Burning Machine. Each day your liver produces about a quart of a yellowish green liquid called bile that emulsifies and absorbs fats in the small intestine. Bile contains water, bile acids and pigments, cholesterol, bilirubin, lipids, lecithin, potassium, sodium, and chloride. The liquid is stored near the liver in the gallbladder, from where it is transported to the intestine as needed during digestion.
Bile, as briefly discussed in Chapter 1, is the real key to the liver's ability to digest and assimilate fats. It can be hampered from doing its job because of a lack of bile nutrients, congestion, or even clogged bile ducts, which hamper bile flow and result in less bile production. If there is not enough bile produced, fat cannot be emulsified.
If you have a roll of fat at your waistline, you may have what is commonly called a "fatty liver". Your liver has stopped processing fat and begun storing it, for reasons I'll explain in a moment. Only when you bring your liver back to full function will you lose this fat.
An Efficient Metabolizer. The liver metabolizes not only fats but also carbohydrates and proteins for use in your body. The organ has a triple role in carbohydrate metabolism. First, it converts glucose, fructose, and galactose in glycogen, which it stores. Second, when your blood sugar level drops and no new carbohydrates are available, the liver converts stored glycogen into glucose and releases it into your bloodstream. Third, if your diet is regularly low in carbohydrates, the liver will convert fat or protein into glucose to maintain your blood sugar levels.
The liver converts amino acids from food into various proteins that may have a direct or indirect impact on your weight. Many proteins, for example, transport hormones through the bloodstream; as you've read, hormone balances are crucial to avoid water retention, bloating, and cravings, as well as other health problems. Proteins also help transport wastes, such as damaged cholesterol and used estrogen and insulin, to the liver for detoxification and elimination through the kidneys.
A Potent Detoxifier. Perhaps the liver's most important function, and the one that puts it at greatest risk for damage, is to detoxify the myriad toxins that assault our bodies daily. A toxin is any substance that irritates or creates harmful effects in the body. Some toxins, called endotoxins, are the natural by-products of body processes. For example, during protein metabolism, ammonia is formed, which the liver breaks down to urea to be excreted through the kidneys. Other toxins you consume by choice, such as alcohol, caffeine, and prescription drugs (more about these later). Still others are the thousands of toxic chemicals we breathe, consume, or touch in our environment: pesticides, car exhaust, secondhand smoke, chemical food additives, and indoor pollutants from paint, carpets and cleaners, among others. Under ordinary circumstances, your body handles toxins by (1) neutralizing them, as antioxidants neutralize free radicals, (2) transforming them, as fat-soluble chemicals are transformed to water-soluble ones, and (3) eliminating them through urine, feces, sweat, mucus, and breath. Working with your lungs, skin, kidneys, and intestines, a healthy liver detoxifies many harmful substances and eliminates them without contaminating the bloodstream.
The detoxification process has two phases that should work in close synchronization. Phase 1 uses a group of enzymes to break apart the chemical bonds holding the toxins together. Known as hydroxylation, phase 1 makes some toxins more water soluble and temporarily more chemically active.
Phase 2, known as conjugation, attaches other enzymes to the chemically altered toxins, or intermediates. These enzymes complete the conversion of the intermediates, producing substances that are nontoxic, water-soluble, and easily excreted.
Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula targets both phase I & II .
When the Liver is Overloaded. Your liver is a workhorse that can even regenerate its own damaged cells. However, it is not invincible. When it lacks essential nutrients or when it is overwhelmed by toxins, it no longer performs as it should. Hormone imbalances may develop. Fat may accumulate in the liver and then just under the skin or in other organs. Toxins build up and get into your bloodstream. Among the signs of "toxic liver" are:
Weight gain, especially around the abdomen
Cellulite
Abdominal bloating
Indigestion
High Blood pressure
Elevated cholesterol
Fatigue
Mood swings
Depression
Skin rashes
When your liver is sluggish, every organ in your body is affected, and your weight loss efforts are blocked. Blood vessels enlarge, and blood flow becomes restricted. A toxic liver is unable to break down the adrenal hormone aldosterone, which accumulates to retain sodium (and water) and suppress potassium. This can raise your blood pressure. The liver fails to detoxify the components of estrogen (estrone and estradiol) for excretion, so symptoms of estrogen dominance arise. Unable to carry out its activities to control glucose, a toxic liver can lead to hypoglycemia, which can produce sugar cravings, weight gain, and Candida overgrowth. Fluid accumulates, and you may develop one or more autoimmune diseases such as lupus or arthritis. A liver overloaded with pollutants and toxins cannot efficiently burn body fat, and thus will sabotage your weight loss efforts
Extreme Health's "CURB YOUR APPETITE"
with something good for.
Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula
Extreme Health's wild-crafted Tibetan Goji Berry
Extreme Health's Green Tea - organically grown
More from the book that may be helpful:
Discovery: The Role of Fat-Burning Fats
Another major piece of the weight loss puzzle fell into place during my tenure as director of nutrition at the Pritikin Longevity Center in Santa Monica , California . In the early 1980s, Pritikin diet was widely credited with being the model for the low-fat, high carbohydrate diet prescription. At the center, as well as later in private practice, I found that many women following this type of program were complaining about distressful premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms and other health ailments. I began to study their diet and health histories, hoping to find some underlying patterns.
For the most part, I found that they were loading up on unlimited fat-free complex carbohydrates such as pasta, bread, crackers, potatoes, corn, and beans. I discovered that the more they over ate wheat-based carbohydrates (in particular, pasta, bread, cereal, and crackers), the more they craved them - and the more they seemed to become depressed. And these high amounts of grains were somehow contributing to their bloating - along with all that fat-free milk and yogurt they used with cereal. The unlimited use of fat-free but yeast-relation seasonings such as soy sauce, tamari, tomato sauce, and oil-free vinegar dressings of every persuasion added insult to injury. Of course, the reason they were overusing these kinds of seasonings was that their zero-fat meals lacked any real flavor.
As it turned out, these same women were the ones complaining about retaining fluid, feeling tired and cold, and having allergies and recurring yeast infections, in addition to severe PMS. Therefore, I recommended a highly touted gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) - rich supplement known as evening primrose oil, used widely by European doctors for PMS-related problems. And this is when the unexpected happened. Besides eradicating their symptoms, these also experienced a welcomed side benefit - weight loss.
The GLA fat-fighting connection. Although generations have used the evening primrose plant for its many medicinal and healing properties, the oil in the seeds - containing the powerful GLA - was making a splash in the weight loss arena. In fact, it was through research conducted by David Horrobin, M.D., at the University of Montreal , and M. A. Mir, M.D., a senior researcher and consultant physician at the Welsh National School of Medicine in Cardiff , Great Britain , that helped me realize how the right kind of fat stimulates the body's metabolic ability to burn fat. Their work demonstrated that evening primrose oil was most effective for those who were overweight by at least 10 percent. The key to this calorie-burning mechanism appeared to be the way the GLA-rich evening primrose oil worked via the prostaglandin pathways, a network of hormones that control virtually all body functions at the cellular level. (Small amounts of this rich supplement is included in the Extreme's Health's Wild Tibetan Goji Berry ).
The GLA found in evening primrose oil mobilizes the metabolically active fat known as brown adipose tissue (BAT). This special form of fat, if available in sufficient amounts, can burn off extra calories and boost energy. BAT is a special insulating kind of fat found deep within the body that surrounds your vital organs such as the kidneys, heart, and adrenal glands. It cushions your spinal column as well as the neck and major thoracic blood vessels.
The series I prostaglandins created from GLA are believed to regulated many aspects of metabolism. GLA-induced prostaglandins regulate BAT by acting as a catalyst to either turn it on to trigger calorie burning or turn it off to trigger calorie conservation. Prostaglandins are also connected to a metabolic process referred to as ATPase. ATPase is also known as the sodium pump, a biochemical process necessary to keep the right amount of potassium inside cell walls and too much sodium out. GLA-rich substances such as evening primrose oil, by means of prostaglandin activity, control the sodium pump, which in turn revs up metabolism.
Based on mounting evidence the essential fatty acids are important to overall health - from studies that started to appear in such prestigious medical journals as the New England Journal of Medicine in the mid-1980s - I published my first book, Beyond Pritikin. Released in 1988, the book became a best-seller. It featured a chapter entitled "The Two-Week Fat Flush" that, as I look back, was really the origin of today's Fat Flush Plan. I inserted this program in my book as an antidote to the high-carbohydrate, high-grain-based, yeast-rich, fat-free diets of the era. It contained a one-day sample menu and touched on liver cleansing for more efficient fat metabolism. The diet featured the GLA supplements I had worked with in my private practice.
In 1996 I updated Beyond Pritikin and altered the Two-Week Fat Flush by replacing the safflower oil component with omega-3-rich flaxseed oil. Flaxseed oil works much like GLA but helps the body burn fat even more efficiently by increasing the production of a certain groups of prostaglandins or eicosanoids, as they were called in the 1990s.
When Beyond Pritikin came out, my private practice in California grew, and soon people everywhere were resonating to my message that essential fats where absolutely necessary for rapid weight loss, longevity, and good health.
Discovery: Excess Insulin and Fat Storage
By the mid-1990s it was becoming increasingly clear to me that the public finally was ready to accept my finding that a low-fat diet isn't good for you because of the emergence of yet another piece of the weight loss puzzle: Fat-deprived, carbohydrate-stuffed individuals were realizing, due to the popularity of such books as The Zone (Regan, 1995) and Dr. Atkin's New Diet Revolution (Evans, 1992), that they were seriously jeopardizing their weight loss attempts because of the insulin factor. A fat-free diet, low in protein but high in carbohydrates (even the highly touted complex carbs) keeps insulin levels elevated, which promotes fat accumulation since insulin is a fat storage hormone.
Thankfully, insulin awareness has ushered in a brand new era of balanced nutrition and has legitimized the return of insulin-lowering fats and proteins to America 's dining tables. The Fat Flush formula of healthy fats, lean proteins, and slow-acting (low-glycemic) carbohydrates is right on the low-insulin track.
Discovery: When Fat Is Not Fat and the Stress-Fat Hidden Factors
I learned about the remaining weight loss stumbling blocks through my most dependable sources - you (my readers) and clients. Time and time again I was finding that even when some of my clients were doing everything else right, they still couldn't lose weight. Thanks to the nutritional assessment questionnaire and food diary record sheets I had every client fill out, a pattern began to emerge. I discovered that many of those who were resistant to weight loss had a history of long-tern use of birth control pills, hormone replacement therapy (HRT), antidepressants, and other medications as well as hidden food allergies. In Chapter 2 you will learn that this kind of weight gain is really not fat but rather severely waterlogged tissues masquerading as fat.
In addition, I noted from my client's assessment forms that those who had the hardest time losing weight were also those who were the most stressed out. They were living on caffeine (from 2 to 4 cups daily), juggling home and career, definitely not getting enough rest (four to six hours daily), feeling "on edge" most of the time, and reporting an increase in food cravings and fat storage, particularly in the abdominal area. I suspected that the adrenal glands - our "fight or flight" glands that produce hormones in response to stress - were intimately connected to the stress-fat cycle. And I had a very strong hunch that I could disrupt this cycle with some simple changes in lifestyle habits.
Extreme Health's "CURB YOUR APPETITE"
with something good for.
Extreme Health's Liver Support Formula
Extreme Health's wild-crafted Tibetan Goji Berry
Extreme Health's Green Tea - organically grown
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