This is what earlier peoples called the liver. They recognized
that the liver was important to their health and could see the
basic relationships between its function and how they felt. Their
view of the liver included a belief that the liver was the seat
of our emotions and courage. Liver interpretation-reading the
liver much as people read palms — even spread from Mesopotamia to
Greece and Rome. Through occult anatomy, we know that reference
was being made to the desire body counterpart of the physical
liver. Certainly earlier people were correct in understanding
the liver's importance to our bodies.
The liver is so important that if it is not working right, other
organs begin working harder in order to make up for what the liver
is not doing. The other organs tire, resulting in many of the
symptoms of illness. Many health professionals believe that an
out-of-order liver is one component of many of the sicknesses
we experience.
The Anatomy of
the Liver
If we imagine the veins and arteries that carry our blood as a
closed circuit racetrack, we could well think of the liver as
a required "pit stop" on the circuit. The blood must
pass through this checkpoint, and when it does it is prepared
for another circuit. The liver is designed to do this efficiently.
The liver is composed of about 100,000 liver lobules, which are
cylindrical structures less than an inch long. A lobule is made
of hepatic plates (hepatic simply means liver) that contain a
number of liver cells.
Between these plates of liver cells are the hepatic sinusoids,
curvy "passageways" that allow blood to flow around
the liver cells. Between the sinusoids and hepatic plates are
special cells called the Kupffer cells that can digest bacteria
and other foreign matter found in the blood. When blood flows
between the hepatic plates, it is cleansed of harmful and unnecessary
matter.
Storage and Filtration
As we might make a pit stop for the supplies available, so the
body uses the liver as a storage room. It is the major blood storage
unit of the body, generally containing about one pint of blood,
or about ten percent of the total blood volume. This storage capability
aids us when we lose blood. For example, if a hemorrhage occurs,
the blood lost from the circulatory system is replaced by the
reservoir of blood in the liver. This reservoir of blood is also
released when we exercise heavily.
The liver also stores vitamins and iron. The liver stores enough
vitamin A to prevent a vitamin A deficiency for as long as 10
months, enough vitamin D to prevent a deficiency for 3 to 4 months,
and enough vitamin B-2 to prevent a deficiency for a year or even
several years. Iron is stored in the liver in the form of ferritin.
When your body needs iron, ferritin releases the iron stored in
the liver.
On its trip throughout our body, our blood picks up a lot of excess,
and at times harmful, baggage. This baggage includes bacteria,
drugs, and hormones, as well as part of the up-to-15 pounds of
chemicals that Americans inflict on themselves every year. These
chemicals include the many artificial additives used to preserve
foods and "improve" their appearance. Additives such
as BHT, BHA, sodium nitrate, and MSG come to mind, as well as
dyes and artificial sweeteners. The liver removes this unnecessary
and at times harmful baggage from our bodies. If the liver is
not functioning and overloaded with these additives, we might
experience indigestion, gas, and abdominal pain.
Using Fuel
Efficiently
When we make a pit stop, we also fuel up. When we do so, we want
to use the fuel as efficiently as possible. The liver does this
through metabolism. Metabolism is the processes that
make it possible for our cells to continue living. Metabolism
breaks down the foods we eat into simple forms that can be transformed
into the energy our cells need. Our bodies use this energy to
move muscles, digest food, and other functions-in short, to live.
The liver changes carbohydrates, fats, and proteins into energy.
About 45% of the calories in an average American diet come from
carbohydrates. Examples of carbohydrates include bread, pastas,
potatoes, vegetables, and fruit. It is thus extremely important
that our bodies can turn these foods into energy. One way the
liver helps us with carbohydrate energy is by keeping the correct
amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood. When we eat carbohydrates,
our blood glucose level rises considerably. Our cells use some
of the glucose for immediate energy, and the liver changes the
extra glucose into glycogen, which is stored in the liver and
muscles. The liver changes this "surplus energy" back
into glucose when our body recognizes that our blood sugar is
low. The liver also turns fats and proteins into carbohydrates.
When our blood sugar is low, fats and proteins can be changed
into carbohydrates and then into glucose to give us the blood
sugar and energy that we need.
Another 40 to 45% of our diet is fat. The liver changes this fat
into energy by splitting the fats into their two component parts,
glycerol and fatty acids. The liver also manufactures fats from
excess carbohydrates. When we consume too many carbohydrates to
use for energy or to store as glycogen, the liver can transform
them to fats. This means not letting excess carbohydrates go to
waste. Indeed, the average person has close to 150 times as much
energy stored as fat as carbohydrates.
The liver also plays an important role in changing protein into
energy. Unfortunately, when the liver does this, one of the results
is the formation of large amounts of ammonia, a deadly by-product
that must be removed from the body. To remove this poison, the
liver forms urea, a fluid that transports the ammonia out of the
body via the urinary tract. The liver also creates about 90% of
the plasma proteins in our blood. Some of the components of these
proteins play the largest role in maintaining our immune system.
Bile and Digestion
The liver manufactures and secretes bile to filter out unwanted
matter from blood and aid the digestive tract. This bile is stored
in the gallbladder, a small pear-shaped organ located just below
the liver. The bile remains here until it is needed in the small
intestine to help lubricate, break down, digest, and assimilate
oils and fats. The bile works on fats much the way a detergent
works on oil and grease-breaking them up so that they are more
easily dissolved and flushed from the system. If the liver is
"sputtering" because of too many additives, it cannot
produce enough bile to digest foods such as butter, nuts, and
creams. This can lead to many health problems, including obesity.
Bile also is used to remove bilirubin, the extremely toxic end
product that red blood cells leave behind when they have completed
their life span.
Cirrhosis and Hepatitis
Because of the many functions the liver has in the body, any slowing
down or breakdown of the liver can seriously affect us. Two of
the more common liver diseases are cirrhosis and hepatitis. Cirrhosis,
or hardening, is the scarring of liver tissue and the corresponding
blockage of the blood flow. This slows all the functions of the
liver, which can lead to the building up of toxins in the system
and eventual death. Alcoholism and hepatitis can cause cirrhosis.
Hepatitis is a viral inflammation of the liver.
You can see why it is important that your liver function at 100%.
How can you help? The easiest, and perhaps the best way is to
maintain a good diet. Eat plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits.
Stay away from alcohol. Drink plenty of liquids, especially juices.
Various herbs and whole food concentrates can also help your liver.
Others recommend juice fasts once a month. Whatever you do, keep
your liver tuned up; you will find yourself in better health and
with more energy.
— Rays from the Rose Cross Magazine, March/April, 1996
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