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A Taco Filling Your Liver Will Love
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A Taco Filling Your Liver Will Love
Tacos -- quick and easy, and a treat for your liver if you skip the ground beef and use this filling instead: winter squash.
Yep, not only do butternut and acorn squash make a hearty, healthful taco base, but new research suggests that this kind of ingredient
swap -- trading high-cholesterol foods for healthy carbs -- could mean less risk of liver disease, too.
Liver-Lovin' Diet
In a 13-year study, people who ate a high-carb diet were far less likely to develop liver cancer or cirrhosis compared with the people who
ate a high-protein, high-cholesterol diet. More research is needed to confirm the study's findings, but we already know that high-
cholesterol diets are problematic for many other reasons. So upping your intake of healthy carbs -- like high-fiber veggies -- while slashing
dietary cholesterol is pretty much a no-brainer. Ready to go meatless with your tacos? Try this Bean and Butternut Tacos with Green Salsa.
Cholesterol Concerns
The new research doesn't mean you should load up on just any old starch. Healthy carbs are where it's at if you want to keep your weight in
check. And you want to. You really, really want to. People in the study who ate too much cholesterol and also were overweight or obese
fared the worst in terms of liver health. So start getting creative in your efforts to eat less red meat. Here's some excellent advice on how to
do it.
Give your liver the love it deserves with these four additional tips:
1. Live clean. Reduce your personal pollution so there's less to filter out. Drink filtered water, eat unprocessed foods, choose veggie protein
over red meat, and practice safe sex. And yes, keep the mojitos to a minimum. For a teetotaler drink that’s just as festive and tasty, try
Green Tea and Mango Splash.
2. Add crunchy veggies. Cruciferous produce (like broccoli and cabbage), B-rich foods (like whole grains) and high C items (like citrus fruit
and leafy greens) assist the liver’s detoxifying process.
3. Consider a supplement. Lecithin (egg yolks and soybeans are good sources) and zinc support liver function, and you may want to
consider supplementing your diet with them if you don't get much naturally. Herbs like milk thistle and dandelion may help liver function,
too, but consult your doctor before taking them.
4. Don't take too much vitamin A. If you do, you risk liver problems, including cirrhosis. There’s no danger of overloading on Vitamin
A through the foods we eat but make sure that a daily supplement doesn’t give you more than 2,500 IUs of this vitamin.
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