Your liver is your largest internal organ, responsible for many important functions, such as energy storage, protein production, cleaning of the blood and manufacture of bile to help digest fats. Cirrhosis is a liver disorder in which scar tissues develops in the liver, destroying healthy liver tissue and possibly causing serious illness. Spirulina is a type of blue-green algae with medicinal properties that may be helpful if you have or are at risk for cirrhosis. Consult your doctor to discuss whether spirulina might be a good choice for you.
Causes and Symptoms
Cirrhosis usually develops after your liver is exposed to a toxin, pathogen or other disease-causing situation. Often, heavy use of alcohol or certain drugs eventually causes cirrhosis, as does long-term exposure to toxic chemicals. Chronic infection, for example with the hepatitis virus, may also cause cirrhosis. Inherited diseases such as porphyria and hemochromatosis might also lead to cirrhosis. Early stages of cirrhosis often produce no symptoms. However, later you may experience weakness or fatigue, loss of appetite, swelling of your abdomen, nausea or weight loss. Cirrhosis may also contribute to other serious disorders such as hypertension from circulatory changes in your liver, kidney disease or enlarged veins in your esophagus that may bleed unexpectedly.
About Spirulina
Spirulina is a variety of blue-green algae that lives in tropical and subtropical saltwater bodies and in some alkaline, freshwater lakes. Most supplements contain one or more different species of spirulina, with another type of blue-green algae called Aphaniomenon sometimes included. The algae are highly nutritious, containing protein and other nutrients, B complex vitamins, beta-carotene, vitamin E and minerals, including zinc, copper, manganese, iron and selenium. These and other components of spirulina have biological activity that may benefit your liver.
Properties
Spirulina may boost your immune system by increasing antibody production in response to pathogens. It also stimulates cells that make infection-fighting proteins, a potential benefit to your liver while it heals following cirrhosis-induced damage. Spirulina may also act directly to slow or stop development of cirrhosis, as shown in a study published in 2000 in a Ukranian journal, "Lik Sprava," in which researchers concluded that spirulina helps both laboratory animals and human subjects avoid cirrhosis following liver damage. In addition, a laboratory study published in the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology" in 1999 found that feeding spirulina to laboratory animals protected them from liver damage caused by a chemical toxin. These are encouraging preliminary results, but larger clinical trials with human subjects at risk for cirrhosis are still needed.
Recommendations and Precautions
Spirulina supplements are available from health food stores as powder, flakes or pills. Spirulina is sometimes contaminated with toxic substances, so choose only products from well-established companies, and check labels to be sure that the supplement is certified free of contamination. Spirulina is generally considered free of significant side effects, but do not take it if you have an autoimmune disorder or if you have a condition called phenylketonuria, or PKU. Discuss spirulina with your physician before adding it to your regimen.
References
- National Digestive Diseases Clearinghouse: What I Need to Know About Cirrhosis
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Spirulina
- Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center: Blue-Green Algae
- "Lik Sprava"; Clinical and Experimental Study of Spirulina Efficacy in Chronic Diffuse Liver Disease; E. Gorban, et al.; September 2000
- "Journal of Ethnopharmacology"; Studies on the Preventive Effect of Spirulina Maxima on Fatty Liver Development Induced by Carbon Tetrachloride in the Rat; P. Torres-Duran, et al.; February 1999
