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Liver Function – What Does This Vital Organ Do?

~ by Jo Jordan

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Our largest organ, the liver works to keep us healthy. It converts food into substances needed for life and growth, storing glycogen (a blood-sugar regulator), amino acids, protein, and fat. It also makes the enzymes and bile that help to digest food.

In addition, the liver neutralizes harmful toxins and wastes, so it is at great risk of contamination from environmental toxins and those contained in over-processed foods.

Over 500 Liver Functions, including:

• Assimilating and storing fat-soluble vitamins
• Creating bile
• Filtering blood
• Metabolizing fats, proteins, and carbohydrates
• Metabolizing hormones, internally-produced wastes, and foreign chemicals
• Producing urea (a primary waste product, flushed from the body in urine)
• Purifying and clearing waste products, toxins, and drugs
• Regulating and secreting substances important to maintaining body functions and health
• Storing important nutrients (such as glycogen glucose), vitamins, and minerals
• Synthesizing blood proteins

While the liver is capable of regenerating itself, its capacity to repair itself can be seriously impaired by repeated or extensive damage.

Liver Function Tests

Often in the initial stages, diseases of the liver result in very mild symptoms and in some cases, none at all. For this reason in certain instances, liver function tests are performed to detect, evaluate, and monitor liver disease or damage.

Early detection of liver disease is vital to recovery. If you are at risk for liver disease, take medication that may cause liver damage, or have symptoms of liver disease, your physician may suggest testing.

Liver function tests (also known as LFTs or LFs) include liver enzyme readings. A single blood sample may include liver function testing for the following¹:

• Alanine transaminase (ALT): An enzyme that helps metabolize protein. When the liver is damaged, ALT is released in the bloodstream.



• Alkaline phosphatase (ALP): An enzyme needed in small amounts to trigger specific chemical reactions. Normally present in the liver, bone, kidney, and intestine, higher than normal levels may indicate liver damage or disease.



• Aspartate transaminase (AST): This enzyme plays a role in the metabolism of the amino acid alanine. An increase in AST levels may indicate liver damage or disease.



• Albumin and total protein: Levels of albumin – a protein made by the liver – and total protein indicate how well the liver is making the proteins needed to fight infections and perform other functions. Lower than normal levels may indicate liver damage or disease.



• Bilirubin: A bi-product from the breakdown of red blood cells, bilirubin normally passes through the liver and is excreted in stool. Elevated levels – manifested as jaundice – may indicate liver damage or disease.

Additional tests that may be used to evaluate liver function include²:

• Gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT): This test measures the amount of the enzyme GGT in the blood. Higher than normal levels may indicate liver or bile duct injury.



• Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH): An enzyme found in many body tissues, elevated levels of LDH may indicate liver damage.



• Prothrombin time (PT): This test measures the clotting time of plasma. Increased PT may indicate liver damage.

For more information on the liver, please review the liver cleansing overview article, or search for related articles on the left side of the site.

Improving Your Liver Functions

Dr. Jim Steigerwalt (AKA Dr. Jim) conducted an independent, unsolicited clinical trial on Puristat Colon and Liver Cleanse programs. The results for Dr. Jim and his patients have been life-altering and life-saving. Here's what the doctor had to say about his experiences with Puristat....

"I cannot swear that Puristat is the only reason my liver has healed, but it would have to be one heck of a coincidence if it wasn’t in large part because of Puristat!!" ~ Dr. Jim Steigerwalt, aka Dr. Jim, retired hematologist

In 2000, after having taken the medication methotrexate, Dr. Jim’s liver became damaged. He was told there was little that could be done for him. Dr. Jim decided to set up clinical trials to test Puristat’s Liver Detoxification program on himself and others with liver damage.

After completing Puristat’s program, Dr. Jim had his liver re-tested. His eight-year struggle to restore his liver had finally ended; he received a letter from Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pennsylvania, stating that while they could not explain why, his liver had returned to its healthy state.

"I had a problem because of taking methotrexate; it did some damage to my liver. My liver enzyme readings, specifically transaminase and LDH, were twice the level they ought to have been. After the Puristat detoxification, my liver enzyme levels returned to normal. Now I’m up at the crack of dawn, jumping up and down off of my tractor all day long!"

"But my results cannot be fully explained medically and, therefore, this type of treatment is not accepted wholeheartedly by the medical community. However, several physicians at Johns Hopkins and I have reviewed all the results, and everything is normal. Some of the liver specialists at Johns Hopkins, while not flag-waving supporters of detoxification, admit that there’s something to it."

"Often, simple dietary changes and herbal cleanses – along with probiotic supplements to replace the natural bacteria you’re going to be wiping out through cleansing – can yield dramatic health results."

"The beauty of Puristat’s Liver Detoxification program is that it is simple to use. Compared to some of the others I considered – whose instructions read like a legal brief – Puristat is a breeze."

"Along with Puristat’s Liver Detoxification, I cleansed my colon by way of diet – salads, roughage, and that sort of thing. But some people find exclusively diet-centered cleansing extremely difficult. I believe most people would find it easier to do a Puristat cleanse rather than messing around with food detoxes. I’m very excited by the possibilities of future trials."

Liver Cleanse Packages:

Colon and Liver Cleanse Combination Plans

All Colon / Liver Cleanse Plans Include: Liver Cleanse Dietary Directions RRN Nursing Support Our Gaurantee:45 Day 100% full product price refund, no questions asked. Choosing Your Plan

MILD • 21-Day Colon / Liver Cleanse • 30 Days Probiotics • 30 Days Digestive Nutrients • 30 Days Digestive Enzymes $114.95 MODERATE • 28-Day Colon / Liver Cleanse • 30 Days Probiotics • 30 Days Digestive Nutrients • 30 Days Digestive Enzymes $134.95 (Save $75.00) ADVANCED • 35-Day Colon / Liver Cleanse • 30 Days Probiotics • 30 Days Digestive Nutrients • 30 Days Digestive Enzymes $154.95 (Save $105.00)

The above packages are "bundled" packages. They represent the most recommended packages for simplicity, in addition to providing discounted prices. The products listed on the order page are "un-bundled", and are available individually without discounts. All products above come with an opt-out autoship of our maintenance plan. Learn More

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Notes:
1. Mayo Clinic.com, Tools for healthier lives, "Liver function tests: What do they involve?" http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/liver-function-tests/AN00876 (accessed October 16, 2007).
2. Ibid