Improving Liver Detoxification
Liver detoxification has two phases, one that makes toxins more water-soluble, and a second that binds them to another substance so they can be excreted. A deficiency in either phase leads to accumulation of toxins, with a slow Phase II detoxification being of particular concern.
A lab study on liver cells found that silymarin was able to increase levels of one Phase II enzyme, glutathione-S-transferase, while slowing the speed of Phase I detoxification. Here, cells were exposed to NDEA, a toxin associated with liver cancer, which sped up Phase I and slowed down Phase II detoxification. We find NDEA in cooked meat, tobacco products, and some cosmetics, agricultural chemicals and pharmaceutical drugs as a byproduct. It would be nice to ban all man-made sources of NDEA, but for now we must protect ourselves from them with the right herbal remedies.