It’s Liver Health Month! Have you felt more fatigued than usual, noticed unusual digestive discomfort, or experienced unexplained skin changes? Your liver might be trying to tell you something. Dr. Shelby Garn explains:

In honour of Liver Health Month, it’s a perfect time to focus on this silent but essential organ that works tirelessly to detoxify, metabolize, and regulate your body’s hormones, nutrients, and energy. If you’re a patient of mine, you know I love all things liver! I often hear from my patients that if they don’t drink a lot, how can their liver need supporting? And the answer is that, unfortunately, we are exposed to an incredible number of toxins or burdens to our liver every day—estimates suggest we encounter 70,000–100,000 different chemicals in our environment, food, water, air, and personal care products. This includes pesticides, heavy metals, preservatives, pollution, and household chemicals. While most are at low levels, cumulative exposure can place a significant burden on the liver and detoxification systems over time. Not to mention, a high viral load can also affect liver efficiency. The ultimate goal here is to prevent these toxins from entering the cancer territory by removing them from our bodies effectively.

A healthy liver keeps your metabolism in balance, efficiently managing blood sugar, fats, and hormones. In doing so, it helps protect against conditions like insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol and fatty liver disease.

Luckily, the liver responds efficiently to daily lifestyle changes. Simple lifestyle factors that support optimal functioning are things such as:

– Focusing on leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts), berries, and healthy fats. Sulfur compounds—found in garlic, onions, and cruciferous veggies—help your liver detoxify by supporting toxin breakdown and antioxidant defenses. Many brightly coloured foods are full of anthocyanins and antioxidants that help prevent or reduce damage to the liver

– Reducing processed foods, refined sugars, and excessive alcohol to lower toxic burden

– Drinking plenty of water to help support detoxification

– Daily movement to support circulation and lymphatic drainage

– Focusing on plenty of sleep; the liver is closely tied to your circadian rhythm, at night the liver shifts toward detoxification, repairing cells, and processing waste products

– Implementing stress management techniques such as meditation, journaling, or breathwork reduce the hormonal load on the liver

And a brief shout out to eggs! Eggs are a liver‑friendly superfood, they are the richest dietary source of choline (specifically egg yolks). Choline is essential for liver health because it is a critical precursor for phosphatidylcholine which helps the liver process fats, support detoxification, and reduce the risk of fatty liver. Preservation of choline in the body has a substantial impact on preservation of health and well-being. What were once a controversial topic in terms of cholesterol, recent research shows that eating up to two eggs a day did not elevate LDL and in some cases was linked with improved cardiovascular risk markers. Moral of the story, don’t be afraid of eggs!

The liver responds well to supplementation, whether that be orally or intravenously, and there are so many well studied remedies to support your liver in functioning as optimally as possible. To help the liver improve circulation and detox effectively a couple at home remedies to consider are castor oil (Ricinis Communis) packs and saunas. Both saunas and castor oil packs work to increase lymphatic circulation aiding in detoxification, stimulating immune function and ultimately eliminating toxins. Supporting your liver isn’t about dramatic cleanses or quick fixes—it’s about sustainable habits that reduce stress and nurture your body’s natural detox pathways. Simply sweating regularly, having daily bowel movements and drinking plenty of water (since our liver is approximately 70% water!) are foundational factors to a happy liver. To learn more about what options are best for you book in for a consult with a naturopathic doctor.