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Tiredness

January 18 2025

Liver Health low-down

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Liver Health low-down

Why is the liver important?

The liver’s primary function is detoxification. A healthy liver deals with thousands of toxins each day, including airborne pollutants, caffeine, alcohol, food toxins (additives, preservatives, pesticides), and the chemicals from household and personal care products.

Other functions of the liver include:

Producing bile to aid digestion and help the body break down fats.
Storage of vitamins A, D, E, K, B12 for when the body needs them.
Managing the supply and storage of glycogen (excess glucose the body does not need). The liver releases glucose (sugar) into the bloodstream as and when the body needs it.

Signs of a sluggish liver

Constant tiredness and lack of energy can be a sign that the liver is not functioning efficiently due to toxin overload or impaired glucose storage (glucose is needed for cellular energy production).
Weight gain can occur when digestion becomes sluggish and fat metabolism breaks down.
Digestive issues such as bloating, constipation and heartburn. If bile production becomes compromised due to poor liver function, the body will not be able to metabolise fats effectively, slowing down digestion.
Nausea and vomiting can be a sign the body is unable to eliminate toxins properly causing them to accumulate and circulate around the body.
Hormone imbalances, mood swings, irregular periods, and hot flushes. The liver is responsible for regulating hormones and excreting excess hormones from the body so poor liver function can result in hormonal imbalance.
Continual skin breakouts and acne. If the liver is struggling, toxins can build up and cause inflammation. When toxins cannot be excreted properly, the body will try to expel them via the skin. Itchy skin can be a sign of chronic liver disease and must not be ignored.

What causes liver damage?

Excessive alcohol and caffeine consumption
Medication and drugs
Type 2 diabetes
Obesity
Heavy metal toxicity
A diet high in processed foods, sugar, saturated fats (causing too much fat to store in the liver)
Pesticide exposure

Ways to boost liver function naturally

Eat a whole food diet that is abundant in fresh vegetables, fruit, plant-based proteins (nuts, seeds, beans, lentils) and healthy fats (avocado, chia seeds, extra virgin olive oil). Buy organic produce to minimise your intake of pesticides and other toxins from the food chain.
Cut out sugars, refined carbohydrates (pasta, bread, pastries, cakes, pies, pizza), fried foods, processed foods, pasteurised dairy and saturated fats to reduce the toxic load on your liver.
Eliminate alcohol and caffeine (coffee and energy drinks). Try a caffeine-free alternative like chicory root coffee or a turmeric latte. Learn more about coffee alternatives.
Consume sulphur-rich foods including cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale), onions and garlic as they aid detoxification pathways in the body and support the liver so it can function efficiently.
Increase your intake of B vitamins which are essential nutrients for detoxification and help to protect the liver from the damaging effects of alcohol. Foods sources of B vitamins include leafy greens (kale, spinach, rocket), organic eggs, sunflower seeds and legumes (kidney beans, lentils, chickpeas, green peas). Supplementation may be required; consult me for support on supplementation.
Up your antioxidants which are vital to neutralise the free-radicals caused by toxins. Vitamins A, C and E, CoQ10, quercetin and alpha lipoic acid are important antioxidants as well as minerals like magnesium, zinc, copper, selenium and manganese which are co-factor nutrients for liver detoxification. Fruits and vegetables provide an abundance of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.
Avoid drinking water out of plastic bottles and using clingwrap on food as plastics contain toxic chemicals like phthalates and BPA. Instead, use glass storage containers and beeswax wraps for food and glass or stainless-steel water bottles.
Reduce your exposure to chemicals in household products and personal care items by using fragrance-free, natural products. Learn the truth about fragrances.

If this sound familiar and you would like support with your liver health, please get in touch info@annikanourishingnewlife.co.uk

February 10 2022

How Your Female Hormones Affect Your Thyroid

annikanourishingnewlifecouk_main Blood tests, Fertility awareness, Hormones, Tiredness, Vitamins & Minerals, Weigh Gain Acne, blood tests, Constipation, Functional Testing, irregular or absent periods, menstrual cycles, Oestrogen Dominance, ovulation, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, Thyroid, Thyroxine

How Your Female Hormones Affect Your Thyroid

Do you suspect thyroid issues are behind your health concerns?

You couldn’t survive without your thyroid gland, so it’s worth looking after. It can be affected by many lifestyle factors– nutrient deficiencies, inflammation, stress and lack of sleep, as well as exposure to toxic metals and pollutants. But one unsuspected cause of thyroid issues can be an imbalance in female hormones.

How does your thyroid work?

The thyroid produces thyroxine, literally controlling how quickly your cells produce energy. Not enough thyroxine and the brakes are applied to your metabolism and everything becomes sluggish.

Your thyroid is asked to make thyroxine by your brain’s pituitary gland. This constantly measures the amount of thyroxine in your blood and sends a message to your thyroid to make more when levels drop. It’s a well-ordered system, but it’s not infallible.

Symptoms of low thyroid

Tiredness
Dry skin
Constipation
Weight gain
Feeling the cold

Because the gland affects every cell in your body, if it is not functioning well, it may cause a huge array of other symptoms. Some of these are very similar to those caused by female hormone imbalances, like irregular or heavy periods.

Oestrogen, Progesterone and Thyroxine

Inside your body, your hormones are constantly talking to and influencing one another, so if something affects one hormone, it will affect the others too. Your female sex hormones oestrogen and progesterone have a particularly close link with your thyroid, and they all affect each other.

Oestrogen Dominance

Thyroid health can be affected when oestrogen becomes excessively high compared to progesterone. Oestrogen tends to increase the levels of a protein-binding thyroxine, making it less accessible to cells and therefore less able to influence them. High oestrogen levels increase inflammation, impairing thyroid function, encourage antibodies to be produced against your thyroid and block the messages coming from your pituitary gland.

Progesterone on the other hand increases the availability of thyroxine by making sure it’s not bound up with protein.

Too much oestrogen relative to progesterone is called oestrogen dominance. This situation is very widespread, particularly in perimenopause, the period running up to menopause. At this stage in your life, you often won’t ovulate every month. If ovulation doesn’t happen, no progesterone is released in the second half of the month. Because progesterone prevents oestrogen levels from climbing too high, there’s then nothing to oppose oestrogen.

Environmental factors: the environment is awash with synthetic chemicals able to mimic oestrogen by latching onto cells’ oestrogen receptors and fooling them into thinking they’re your body’s oestrogen. These substances, found in plastics, personal care products and pollutants are considerably stronger than your natural oestrogen.

Stress: anxiety and tension can make oestrogen dominance worse because it steals progesterone, dominating oestrogen. An unhealthy gastro microbiome also tends to increase oestrogen levels because good gut bacteria can play an important role in excreting unwanted oestrogen. In a vicious cycle, when your thyroid is struggling you can’t process oestrogen well in your liver and gut, making oestrogen dominance worse.

Even though you don’t make as much oestrogen after menopause, it can still remain high relative to progesterone, especially if you’re stressed. Progesterone is made in your stress glands after menopause, and they won’t prioritise making it if they’re busy making stress hormones.

Functional Testing

Your GP may test your blood thyroid hormones, but these tests don’t always measure how much of the hormones are in an active form. So, it’s impossible to tell whether your hormones are affecting your cells in the way nature intended. Because not all thyroid issues show up on a GP’s blood test, it might look like there’s nothing wrong even though your symptoms shout otherwise.

To look at the whole picture, functional tests examine the levels of both your female hormones and your thyroid hormones and reveal the quantities of active and inactive hormones you’re producing.

Combine these test results with an in-depth consultation examining your nutritional status, lifestyle and health history and it becomes much clearer what’s behind your health issues. Only by understanding the route cause, we can make appropriate strategies to put things right.

Contact Me