Advocates of do-it-yourself liver cleanses suggest using a combination of home potions, one of the more popular consisting of epsom salt, lemon juice and olive oil. Instructions on how to cleanse your liver to remove "toxins" are all over the Internet and vary widely. However, this at-home liver cleanse has been investigated by New Zealand researchers, who arrived at the conclusion that the benefits of liver cleansing exist only in your mind.
Liver Cleansing
A "liver cleanse" is sometimes used alongside or interchangeably with a "gallbladder cleanse." According to David H. Gorski, MD, PhD, surgical oncologist at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, liver cleansing typically involves consuming large quantities of fruit juice followed by a special concoction that "flushes" the liver and gallbladder of accumulated "toxins." Purportedly, the goal of a liver cleanse is to remove small, uncalcified gallstones that remain undetected by diagnostic testing. Other proponents of liver cleansing assert that this home procedure can treat allergies, high cholesterol, malnutrition, hepatitis, cancer and unspecified "parasites."
Home Brews
The liver cleanse procedure differs, depending on which Internet site you happen across. One such regimen described in Gorski's blog, Science-Based Medicine, involves drinking a mixture of orthophosphoric acid and apple juice for three to five days in large quantities. Liver cleansers then drink a mixture of epsom salt dissolved in water after lunch and perform a coffee enema afterward. After consuming as much heavy whipping cream and frozen berries as you want, you then drink a mixture of olive oil and lemon juice. Yet other liver cleanses advise you to mix together epsom salt, lemon juice, olive oil and ornithine and consume it all at once. Purportedly, nausea is a common and expected side effect of the liver cleanse -- proof that the liver cleanse is "working" to remove toxins from the body.
Results
It's common for you to notice small green, brown, yellow or black "stones" after a bowel movement following the above-mentioned liver cleanse. According to information provided by Quackwatch, an affiliate of the National Council Against Health Fraud, these may look like gallstones; however, they're actually tiny bits of "soap" that form because you drank a lot of olive oil. The curious color of these "stones" is caused by the absorption of bile in the intestine. Moreover, the "stones" float when placed in water -- real gallstones sink.
Case Study
An article published in the April 2005 issue of "The Lancet" examined a case study in which a 40-year-old woman was diagnosed with gallstones after receiving an ultrasound at an out-patient clinic. For three months, the patient experienced pain after eating fatty foods. Her medical history revealed that she had completed a liver cleanse similar to the cleanse described above at the urging of an herbalist. The woman passed many semisolid green "gallstones," which she brought to the clinic. The authors of the "Lancet" article concluded that the strange specimens were caused by the action of potassium carboxylates in the lemon juice on the olive oil she consumed, which formed "soap stones." The real gallstones were subsequently removed surgically.
Other Cautions
Information on some websites defers to the liver cleansing instructions of Dr. Hulda Clark, self-proclaimed independent research scientist and naturopathic doctor who made unsubstantiated claims about the benefits of liver cleansing. Clark asserted that "flukes" -- parasites -- resided in the adult liver and caused various ailments, but mainly cancer. In 2003, charges were brought against Clark by the Federal Trade Commission for engaging in the unlawful practice of selling fraudulent health supplements and devices including the "Super-Zapper Deluxe," which purportedly killed parasites; a three-week program that cured end-stage cancer; a "Complete Herbal Parasite Cleanse;" and a device designed to detect "parasites." Clark died of cancer in September, 2009.
Liver Function
According to Quackwatch, advocates of liver and gallbladder cleanses assert that stones that form in the liver are far more common than they actually are -- they are in fact rare in Western countries. Although it's possible that tiny gallstones -- real ones -- can find their way into the liver, this too is rare. The council concludes that a liver cleanse probably won't hurt you too much, if you're in otherwise good health. The biggest danger is using a liver or gallbladder cleanse as a substitute treatment for real gallstones when you need surgery to remove them.
References
- Science-Based Medicine: Would You Like a Liver Flush with that Colon Cleanse?
- The Lancet: Could These be Gallstones?
- Harvard Medical School: The Dubious Practice of "Detox"
- Sense About Science: Debunking Detox (Pamphlet)
- Quackwatch: The Bizarre Claims of Hulda Clark
- Federal Trade Commission: FTC v. Clark Research Association
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