Liver function is crucial for overall health and immunity. The purpose of this episode is to help you understand the different detoxifying processes that occur in your liver and what foods, toxins or drugs activate or inhibit these functions. This list proves that your diet and your environment have play a great role in your health. Fortunately, not many people have issues with their phase I detoxification. However, the issue lies in their phase II functionality.
In this episode, I discuss how an efficient phase I pathway paired with a sluggish phase II pathway can be extremely dangerous to the body. Check back in next week as I dive into phase II detoxification and how to improve the efficiency of these pathways. It’s not as difficult as you may believe!
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Episode Notes
Should you detox questionnaire:
- Do you feel you’re not as healthy as others your age?
- Do you have low energy levels and often feel sluggish?
- Do you have difficulty thinking clearly?
- Do you often feel down or depressed?
- Do you get sick more than once or twice per year?
- Do you experience PMS, irregular periods, fibroids, or fibrocystic breast disease?
- Do you often experience sore, achy muscles for no apparent reason?
- Do you often have bad breath, stinky stool, or bad body odour?
If you answered yes to more than one question, it’s likely you need a detox.
Your liver naturally detoxes your body, but its function can become sluggish because of the mass amount of toxins we encounter every single day.
Sources of toxins
- processed foods
- hormones
- pesticides
- air pollution
- plastic fumes from carpeting, bedding, etc.
- the list goes on and on…
While it is important to reduce our toxin load, it’s more important to improve our detox abilities. Normally, phase I liver enzymes (cytochrome P450) break down these molecules into metabolites, which are then easier for phase II processes to breakdown.
The issue in today’s society is that most people’s phase II pathways are not functioning efficiently. Phase I detoxification creates metabolites that are actually more toxic than the original substance, as well as free radicals. If phase II cannot efficiently process these toxins, they can filter back into the body, creating negative symptoms like headache, body aches, PMS, bad breath, etc.
Substances that activate phase I detoxification
- alcohol
- nicotine
- steroids
- exhaust fumes
- paint fumes
- pesticides
- brassica vegetables
- charcoal broiled meat
- high protein diet
- oranges and tangerines
- niacin (B3)
- thiamine (B1)
- vitamin C
Substances that inhibit phase I detoxification
- benzodiazepines
- antihistamines
- stomach ulcer medication
- grapferuit
- curcumin (turmeric)
- red chilli pepper
- aging
- toxins from bad gut bacteria
It’s important to remember that phase I detoxification is rarely the issue for most people. Activating phase I without properly functioning phase II can cause more damage to the body. Always be sure your phase II pathways are functioning effectively before increasing phase I activity.
References
Murray, M. T., & Pizzorno, J. (2012). The Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine (3rd ed.). Atria Books.
Paris, L. (2021, February 24). Functional Medicine Detox Phases 1, 2, and 3. Paris Healing Arts. https://www.parishealingarts.com/functional-medicine-phase-detox/
