The Mediterranean Diet has been rated as the healthiest diet on the planet three years in a row, and as the meals are simple to prepare and truly delicious, it has also been ranked as the easiest diet to follow long term
The diet itself is based upon the eating habits of people living around the Mediterranean Sea: Spain, France, Italy, Greece, and Turkey, as well as middle eastern and northern African countries.
What these cuisines have in common is the consumption of fresh, seasonal, whole foods featuring vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, herbs and spices; the predominate use of extra-virgin olive oil instead of butter, margarine, or vegetable oils; moderate amounts of seafood and poultry; and the moderate consumption of red wine. What the Mediterranean diet specifically has avoided is processed foods, sugar, sweeteners, and artificial flavors. Red meats are rarely on the menu or are used sparingly to flavor a dish.
Overall, a Mediterranean eating plan is extremely versatile. You can follow a vegetarian version very easily. You can skip breakfast and include partial intermittent fasting and benefit from ketosis several mornings per week. And as I’ll expand upon shortly, you can also limit the glycemic load (sugar-load) to enhance blood sugar control and weight loss.
For 2020, The US News and World Report rated the Mediterranean diet as:
The best diet overall
The best diabetes diet
The best diet for healthy eating
The best plant-based diet
The easiest diet to follow
It won similar awards in 2018 and 2019. These honors should not be too surprising, as Mediterranean countries have some of the longest life spans on the planet and they have lower rates of heart disease, diabetes, memory loss, cancer, and obesity than nearly all other western countries. The people of Spain, who follow the Mediterranean diet perhaps the closest, have the longest lifespan and the best health of any country in the Western world, and are anticipated to surpass Japan for longest lived country on the planet by 2030.
Considering all these benefits, I felt compelled to write a book, The Mediterranean Method, to help promote this eating plan and to make it simple to follow. The research included reading nearly 1,000 scientific journal articles, plus, my wife Nicole and I bought a sailboat in Europe with the goal to evaluate the food, lifestyle, and health habits of people living on the Mediterranean Sea. We spent 10 months sailing from Spain to Turkey during the spring and summers of 2018 and 2019. We followed the coastline along Spain, France, Corsica, western Italy, across to Greece and through the Cyclade Islands, and on to Turkey. We visited small ports, food markets, mom and pop family run restaurants, and searched for regional recipes that were easy to prepare, delicious, and healthy. What was amazing was how inexpensive and delicious the food was. And how opinionated locals were about how to prepare a dish within each region. Whether one worked in a food market, at a gas station, or drove a taxi, everyone cared about what ingredients went into local dishes and how they were prepared.
Let’s look more closely at the top three health benefits from following a Mediterranean Diet:
Better Weight Control
Reverse and Prevent Heart Disease
Improve Cognitive Function and Prevent Memory Loss
Better Weight Control
In 2016, Dr. Joseph Mancini and his colleagues evaluated five randomized weight-loss trials with more than 1,000 subjects on various dietary regimens including low-fat, low-carb, and Mediterranean. These subjects were followed for at least 12 months, a meaningful length of time given most people lose weight in the short term and regain it later. The research found that the Mediterranean Diet was more effective than the low-fat diet, and equally as effective as a low-carb diet over the long-term. What’s more, they concluded that those following the Mediterranean Diet not only lost weight, but they had the best improvements in lipid and metabolic profile. The typical weight loss ranged from 10 to 22 pounds lost throughout the 12-months.
Preventing Heart Disease
Heart disease remains the #1 killer for men and women, even though studies have shown we can prevent 90 percent of heart disease with the right lifestyle changes–our biggest challenge is finding a diet and lifestyle that people are willing to follow long-term.
In 2003, the Greek EPIC trial showed that the closer subjects followed a Mediterranean eating plan, the lower their rate of cardiovascular events. Subsequent studies have shown that the closer people living outside the Mediterranean follow this same diet, the less heart disease and longer life they enjoy.
Then in 2018, the large-scale landmark PREDIMED study with over 7,000 subjects published in The New England Journal of Medicine affirmed the cardiovascular-fighting reputation of the Mediterranean Diet; those who followed a Mediterranean diet and added extra nuts or olive oil had 30% fewer events than those following a low-fat diet.
Data published from my own clinic has shown that in patients who follow a low-glycemic version of a Mediterranean diet, the average person shrinks their artery plaque load over time (measured with carotid ultrasound testing), and amazingly, hundreds of our patients had more than a 10% regression in their arterial plaque load over an average of 2-3 years.
Enhancing Cognition and Preventing Memory Loss
The most expensive disease in the U.S. and most western countries is dementia; recent estimates are that the total bill to treat it exceeds $278 billion per year. More startling is that the rates of memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease are predicted to double over the next 15 years.
Yet, just as we can prevent most cases or heart disease, there is now growing evidence that we can also prevent dementia and cognitive decline with the right lifestyle changes. PREDIMED researchers tracked the impact on cognition of the dietary interventions over 6.5 years on over 500 participants and controlled for multiple lifestyle and health factors. Those randomized to a low-fat diet had lower overall cognitive scores and more progression to dementia than those in the Mediterranean diet group.
Many other studies have also shown cognitive improvement and/or reduced cognitive impairment with following a Mediterranean diet, including the FINGER trial, Three-City study in France, the Chicago Health and Aging Project (CHAP), and in a group of more than 1,200 Puerto Rican adults living in the U.S.
Data published from my own clinic confirmed that the closer a person follows these dietary recommendations, the better their brain processing speed and cognitive scores, results which have continued over 12 years of follow up.
Myths Regarding a Mediterranean Diet
Despite the many health benefits of this eating plan, and the delicious food it provides, there are several misunderstandings that threaten to eliminate these benefits. Let’s clarify several right now, dealing with the top six myths.
MYTH #1. YOU CAN EAT ALL THE HEALTHY FOOD YOU WANT
There’s no need to put a hard limit on daily servings of vegetables (you won’t overdo it because you’ll naturally fill up on fiber), but it is possible, for instance, to overeat walnuts or almond butter, or use too much olive oil, particularly if you’re dipping pieces of bread into it.
MYTH #2. EATING MEDITERRANEAN MEANS EATING PASTA, BREAD AND PIZZA
You can easily overdo the portion size, even with whole grains. When you see grains and cereals on the Mediterranean diet, this doesn’t mean a giant platter of pasta, unlimited bread (even if it’s organic and whole grain), or bowls of rice (even if it’s brown rice). It’s important to control your portions of grains and cereals, and as you’ll read in a moment, of all the food components listed in the Mediterranean diet, whole grains provide the least health benefit.
Further, when you grind a grain into flour, such as bread, that processed grain has a much higher glycemic load (sugar load) than the same amount of whole grain. If we want healthy blood sugar control, we all need to limit or avoid even whole grain products that are processed into flour—such as bread, crackers, cake, and pancakes.
MYTH #3. EATING SEAFOOD ON OCCASION WILL BENEFIT YOUR HEART
Eating fish merely a few times a month won’t yield the disease-fighting benefits of the Mediterranean diet, particularly for the heart and brain. Because of the benefits from consuming long chain omega-3 fats that are found only in seafood, aim to eat seafood at least twice a week–preferably three to five times per week. Seafood includes fish, shellfish, and seaweed.
If you are vegetarian, or avoid fish and shellfish for other reasons, plan to either eat seaweed several times per week, as in a cup portion of seaweed salad, or take a seaweed DHA supplement daily.
MYTH #4. ALL CHEESES (AND YOGURTS) ARE CREATED EQUAL
Treating pasteurized cheese as a go-to food–compared, for example, with raw, probiotic-rich and vitamin K2-loaded camembert–is a mistake. The same goes for yogurt and kefir. Many of my patients are shocked when I explain that fruit-flavored yogurt has more sugar than ice cream. As with so many components of the Mediterranean diet, when choosing your foods, simple and unsweetened is best.
If you avoid dairy products, you still need some source of probiotic food source, which can easily be obtained by using coconut yogurt sources, and other pickled foods, such as sauerkraut, olives, capers, and Asian foods such as miso and kombucha.
MYTH #5. YOU CAN SKIP THE BEANS
Don’t miss out on this fiber-packed superfood that is one of the best foods for controlling blood sugar, and it’s the #1 all-time top food for blocking disease-causing oxidation. They are also loaded with fiber, protein, B vitamins, and calcium. In Mediterranean cuisine, beans are the healthy foundation for countless meals and are used often as a side dish as well.
However, 10% of people appear to be lectin intolerant–they develop major gastrointestinal symptoms when they consume beans. The process of soaking (so called sprouting) appears to help, but if you have a lectin intolerance, just like any food intolerance, then avoid beans.
MYTH #6. YOU CAN USE EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVE OIL FOR ALL YOUR COOKING NEEDS
Don’t use extra-virgin olive oil for high-heat cooking, or even medium-high heat. Once it reaches 400ºF–its smoke point, the maximum temperature it can reach before it breaks down and becomes a damaged fat–extra-virgin olive oil starts losing nutritional value, not to mention its complex and delicate flavors. For medium-high heat cooking, use avocado and/or almond oil) instead.
Save flavorful extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling over foods, making dressings, and for low or medium heat cooking.
Adapting the Mediterranean Diet to the 21st Century
Despite all these clear health benefits, there are some limitations related to the Mediterranean diet that should be applied to living in the 21st century.
First, the original Mediterranean diet was followed by farmers, fisherman, and herders–men and women who were physically active for 6 to 10 hours per day. Very few can achieve this much movement today. We therefore need to modify an eating plan with a lower glycemic load to match our activity level.
Second, studies that have evaluated the Mediterranean diet have also assessed what components of the traditional eating plan had the most and least health benefit. Results from the EPIC trial showed that consuming vegetables, fruit, beans, nuts, and olive oil provided the greatest benefit, and eating whole grains provided the least–likely related to their glycemic load.
A more recent study, The EPIC Greek Cohort study, published in 2012, analyzed adherence to a Mediterranean Diet, and glycemic load intake. It concluded that those who adhered to a Mediterranean Diet and had the lowest glycemic load intake had the best health benefits of all. And if the subjects were overweight, the benefits of following a low-glycemic load version of a Mediterranean Diet were even greater.
This low-glycemic version has the added advantage of appealing to many people who have already shifted towards a low-carb and/or Paleo eating plan, and switching from a low-carb to a Mediterranean diet will usually increase their nutrient dramatically.
Beyond Food
Though there are many proven benefits to following a low-glycemic version of a Mediterranean diet, the health benefits of the Mediterranean lifestyle are not solely limited to food intake. Mediterranean people are more active than we are in the U.S., they spend more time walking and cycling to work and for daily shopping, and they spend more time outdoors and with nature.
How they eat is important as well. They enjoy long, leisurely meals typically with friends and family, which fosters close social connections, which is likely related to the fact that they have lower rates of anxiety and depression than are found in the U.S.
Summary
Let me share my version of the food and lifestyle pyramid of a low-glycemic Mediterranean diet, adapted from my book, The Mediterranean Method.
The pyramid’s foundation is the lifestyle, which features activity, social interaction, cooking, and mindful-leisurely eating.
Foods and beverages that are consumed daily include vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, olive oil, herbs and spices, yogurt, dark chocolate, and water, with moderate intake of red wine and coffee or tea. Seafood, poultry, eggs, and other probiotic-rich dairy products are on the menu several times a week, although a vegetarian or vegan version without animal protein is very feasible. Whole grains are also an option, although served in small portions (and gluten free as needed).
Unlike many diets that are popular today, notice that almost no real foods are completely banned–for a special occasion, you can still enjoy special treats that fit the affair–the key is that you limit them to a special event, and that you eat real, unprocessed food.
The Mediterranean Diet is not just a short-term eating plan. It has been followed for centuries, generation after generation, tested in numerous long-term clinical studies, and been found to be the best diet on the planet for long term adherence and for healthy eating. The food is delicious, generally simple and easy to prepare, and the ingredients can be found at your local grocery store. This is an eating plan that truly combines proven health benefits with delicious food–no other diet can embrace the saying as well–To Your Health & Bon Appétit!
Steven Masley MD, FAHA, FACN, CNS is a physician, nutritionist, author, and a trained chef. He is a fellow with the American Heart Association and the American College of Nutrition, plus he is an Affiliate Clinical Associate Professor at the University of South Florida. He has written seven books and his latest is The Mediterranean Method. You can follow him on his blog (at www.DrMasley.com) and/or see his posts on Facebook (@StevenMasley)
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of GreenMedInfo or its staff.
MedDiet interventions improve endothelial function in adults, suggesting that the protective effects of the MedDiet are evident at early stages of the atherosclerotic process with important implications for the early prevention of CVD. This study has the PROSPERO registration number: CRD42018106188.
Coffee, however, isn’t a guilty pleasure; it’s a superfood that reduces your risk of serious diseases like diabetes, heart disease, dementia, and Parkinson’s, as well as a host of minor afflications, including constipation and premature ejaculation.
Most important of all, it’s now clear that coffee drinkers are less likely to get cancer than people who drink other beverages, including tea…. (See link for article)
After a run-in with Joe Mercola at PaleoFX, biochemical hacker Dr. Chris Shade started intermittent fasting—and it put him in ketosis almost immediately, to his surprise. As the founder of supplement company Quicksilver Scientific, the leader of the R&D team, and the developer of all products and protocols, Dr. Shade is no stranger to problem-solving. He conducted the research necessary to find the link between AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase) and the production of ketones, and used this understanding to inform the development of new Quicksilver Scientific supplements. The resulting products have the power to transform your sleep patterns—and your health.
“There’s a balance between your immune system and your adrenals. When that’s ideal, you don’t get sick. When your adrenals can’t hold it anymore, you get all fogged up.”
In this first video episode of Stacked, we put supplements under the microscope and explore their role in cellular health, from detoxification to ketosis. Dr. Shade explains the interconnectedness of stress, glutathione, and leaky gut; walks us through the best way to prepare for a detox protocol, and shares his experience with NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) and travel recovery. He’s on a mission to combat universal toxicity, and this episode is packed full of information that will help you navigate the saturated supplement market and experience optimal health.
“We’ve got tools that let us push different levers and such. But it’s not just the biochemical—it’s our whole application to the world.”
First video episode! (2:00)
The breath, the parasympathetic nervous system, and detoxification (7:00)
How to rebalance neurotransmitters (it’s less complicated than it sounds) (12:30)
Free medicine: supplements can’t save you from an unhealthy lifestyle (15:00)
Preparation for a detox protocol (16:40)
How your cells work (and what happens when they don’t) (21:00)
If our environments aren’t more toxic, why are we more susceptible—and how do we heal ourselves? (25:30)
Visceral fat, glutathione, and leaky gut: every process informs another (28:00)
Why plants don’t kill you (35:00)
What AMPK does in the body, and the effect of intermittent fasting (37:00)
Mitochondria and supplements (46:00)
The science behind the new Quicksilver Scientific supplements (58:00)
NAD and travel recovery (1:05:00)
Supplements and sleep: align more, sleep less (1:10:30)
How to know you’re getting your NAD levels right (1:15:00)
Take a holistic approach: it’s your whole application to the world (1:17:50)
Are you flushing money down the toilet with less than optimal supplements? With most traditional supplements, the amount that survives digestion and general acidity in the gut is very low. That is why Dr. Chris Shade developed the world’s most advanced phospholipid delivery systems. Through this superior delivery method, all Quicksilver Scientific products nourish your cells and enrich your body as they deliver nutrients more quickly and up to 600% more effectively.
Blood doesn’t lie. That is why Inside Tracker not only tests for your most important biomarkers—Glucose, Vitamin D, inflammation and many more—but also tracks your progress, makes dietary suggestions, and even suggests workout protocols to help you find health and wellbeing in your everyday life.
Let me tell you about a little hack I have been using lately: Before every show, I find a quiet place, grab my noise-canceling headphones and head over to brain.fm. With brain.fm you can decide how you want to spend the next few hours of your day — focus, productivity, relaxation — and brain.fm will play music that has been scientifically engineered to shift your brain in that direction. (See more of the science behind this here).
You can now save 20% on this already inexpensive app when you head over to brain.fm/stacked.
“This Workhorse of an Organ Can’t Signal for Help – Until It’s Often Too Late”
Your liver endures a tremendous amount of stress and toil, 24 hours a day. Hidden from sight, it doesn’t provide many clues as to its well-being. Yet it depends on you to give it the care it needs. Are you doing all you can?
By Dr. Mercola
Your liver might just be the most underappreciated organ in your body.
It is your body’s largest internal organ and one of its important functions is to help remove toxins and harmful substances. Unlike your gall bladder or appendix, you can’t live without your liver, at least not for very long.
And unlike some other organs in your body, such as your heart and lungs, it can be difficult to measure how well your liver is working. That is, until it falls to about 10 percent of its healthy working capacity.
Your liver can’t skip beats or produce a cough to warn you when it needs help…
Just because it sits quietly in your body most of the time doesn’t mean it can thrive without special care. Maybe 20 or 30 years ago, a healthy person’s liver did just fine without extra support, but today we live in a different world.
Today your liver confronts – and must overcome – challenges it’s never faced before.
Live Without Your Liver? Don’t Bet Your Life on It
Your liver serves many life-supporting functions
Your liver, which is made up of two main lobes, is located beneath your diaphragm and on top of your stomach, right kidney, and intestines.
Besides its primary role of protecting your body from harmful substances, your liver plays other key roles, too.
Your healthy liver:
Produces bile, which helps carry away waste and break down fats
Helps regulate the levels of sugar, protein, and fat entering your bloodstream
Clears your blood of drugs, alcohol, and other potentially harmful substances
Processes nutrients absorbed by your intestines during digestion
Produces cholesterol, proteins, and clotting factors to help your blood clot
Regulates many of your hormones
Neutralizes highly reactive oxygen molecules, or free radicals
After your liver breaks down harmful substances, they enter your blood or bile and leave your body either through your kidneys and urine or your feces after traveling through your intestines.
Normally, all these functions go on like clockwork, without much support on your part. But today many potential threats to your liver’s well-being prevail…
Is Your Expanding Waistline Putting Your Liver at Risk?
A renewed reminder of why it’s important to maintain your ideal body weight
Stunning new research suggests that your liver may be aging faster than the rest of your body if you hold excess weight in your waist.
Researchers found that for each 10-unit increase in body mass index, or BMI, the physiological age of the liver grew by 3.3 years.
To put that into real numbers…
Suppose a 5-foot, 8-inch man weighs 130 pounds and has a BMI of 20. A second man of the same height and age weighs 230 pounds, and has a BMI of 35.
The liver of the second man is likely five years older than the liver of the normal weight man.
And here’s another interesting finding… If the second man decided to have surgery to rapidly lose the excess weight, the age of his liver wouldn’t change!
What’s behind this vicious threat to your liver? It may be linked to one of its worst enemies.
One of Your Liver’s Worst Enemies Isn’t What You Might Expect
I’m guessing many people would say their liver’s worst enemy is alcohol. Yes, alcohol is harmful to your liver, but there’s another substance that’s equally so – and far more pervasive.
Unlike alcohol, this other substance can be found in some form in nearly everyprocessed food in your grocery store.
Fructose, the most damaging type of sugar to your body, is particularly hard on your liver, much like alcohol:
Fructose must be 100 percent broken down by your liver. Glucose on the other hand only needs to be partially broken down before it can be utilized.
Fructose is metabolized directly into fat that gets stored in your liver and other internal organs and tissues as body fat, which leads to mitochondrial malfunction
Corn sugars can damage your liver much like drinking alcohol
Fructose produces toxic metabolites and superoxide free radicals when it is metabolized, that can lead to inflammation in your liver
Fructose is a cheap form of sugar that’s found in thousands of food products and drinks. It’s often deliberately disguised by the use of many different names, so the only way to steer clear of it completely is to avoid eating processed foods.
I believe fructose and other non-fiber carbs are important factors behind the rising rates of liver issues and at least 30 other health concerns. Tragically, even children are now showing signs normally associated with alcohol abuse from their consumption of fructose!
Other Silent Slayers of Liver Function
Unfortunately, fructose isn’t the only challenge your liver has to deal with. Plenty more lurk in your home, water, and the air you breathe. Chemicals in plastics like phthalates and BPA/BPS, flame-retardants, and formaldehyde may be found in your:
Many people don’t realize how their living environments can impact their livers
Furniture and carpeting
Vinyl floor coverings
Building materials
Paint
Mattresses
Vinyl shower curtain
Children’s toys
Plastic water bottles and containers
Grocery store receipts
Scented personal care products
These contaminants enter your body through your skin or your lungs, or from the food and beverages you consume.
No matter how they enter your body, they end up in your bloodstream and your liver must process them.
Compared to 20 or 30 years ago, we are exposed to far more chemicals in our food, as well as in our living and working environments.
Yet your liver hasn’t changed – it hasn’t evolved to keep up with the increase in challenges. You still depend on it, day in and day out, to help minimize the effects of potential contaminants.
Simple Ways to Help Support Your Liver
Organic Lacinato kale is a liver-protectant food
Most likely by now you have a healthy appreciation of what your liver is doing for you – or at least trying to do.
Responsible for so many essential tasks, your liver can use all the support it can get. Luckily, there’s much you can do.
Of course, in today’s world you can’t safeguard your liver function 100 percent. But it’s worth doing all that you can…
To help protect your liver, I recommend:
Restricting alcohol consumption, and avoid completely if taking acetaminophen or Tylenol
Minimizing or avoiding the use of potentially harmful acetaminophen or Tylenol (be sure to check labels, it’s found in many over-the-counter products!)
Attaining and maintaining your ideal weight
Restricting your intake of fructose from all sources to about 15 to 25 grams per day (avoid sweeteners in foods, fruit juices, dried fruits, and limit sugary fruits like grapes, pears, plums, and red apples)
Avoiding or minimizing contact with toxic chemicals like pesticides, cleansers, paints and solvents
Buying products packed in glass containers and limiting your use of plastics, including plastic wrap
Adding liver-protective foods to your diet, like fermented vegetables, dark leafy green and cruciferous vegetables, “clean” sea vegetables, sprouts, artichokes, garlic and onions, avocados, berries, whey protein powder from grass-fed cows, and organic pastured eggs and grass-fed meat
In addition to these commonsense measures, there’s another simple way to help support your healthy liver function.
Trifecta Support for Your Liver Function
In my opinion, there are three ingredients that provide healthy liver function support:*
N-Acetyl L-Cysteine (NAC)
Milk thistle
Organic broccoli sprouts
I’ve combined this “perfect trifecta” of ingredients into my Liver Support for regular, daily use to specifically target six areas of concern:
Provide on-going support to help minimize the damaging effects of contaminants on your liver*
Help maintain intracellular levels of glutathione*
Maintain the normal metabolism of alcohol*
Provide antioxidant mitochondria support*
Support your body’s detoxification (cleansing)*
Provide short-term support for occasional acute events*
Let’s take a closer look at the first of these remarkable ingredients…
The Leader of Your Antioxidant Army… And It Helps Save Lives
Glutathione is your body’s principal antioxidant, and exists in each of your cells. With its lead status, it functions by keeping all the other antioxidants in line and performing at their peak.*
This super-antioxidant’s primary task is to help protect your body from free radical damage, wastes, and potentially harmful substances.* Glutathione is one of the most important factors in your body’s detoxification arsenal and is crucial for your liver’s well-being.*
As you age, your body’s ability to produce glutathione declines. And many substances like alcohol, drugs, and contaminants can deplete your glutathione levels.
While a glutathione supplement may sound like a good idea, oral glutathione is merely three amino acids and is rapidly broken down in your stomach by digestive enzymes. Even if it were effective, I still wouldn’t advise taking glutathione in oral form as it may interfere with your body’s ability to produce it naturally.
What I recommend instead for restoring the levels of glutathione inside of your cells is provide the raw materials for making glutathione so your body can produce the right amounts it needs and not any more.
One of the best ways to do this is use a derivative of the amino acid cysteine, called N-acetyl cysteine, or NAC for short.* NAC comes with four decades of scientific validation, and has been used in traditional medicine for over 30 years.
One of NAC’s primary roles in conventional medicine is as a treatment for acute poisoning with acetaminophen-containing pain-relieving drugs – the number one cause of acute liver failure in the U.S.
Too high of an acetaminophen dose can exhaust the body’s glutathione reserves, leading to permanent liver damage. As its precursor, NAC quickly restores glutathione levels, and, in effect, helps save lives.*
NAC’s Actions Beyond Its Role as Precursor to Glutathione
By replenishing your cells’ supplies of glutathione on a regular basis, NAC helps your cells regain their ability to protect themselves against free radicals and other damage.* This is especially desirable as you age.
Researchers have found that NAC does more than just replenish levels of glutathione within your cells. NAC provides additional potential benefits in these areas:*
Helps regulate the expression of many genes involved with your body’s inflammatory response*
Supports normal healthy insulin sensitivity*
Supports respiratory health*
Protects tissues and cells from the effects of oxidative stress from exercise*
Supports normal healthy cellular growth and development*
There’s no question that NAC offers valuable potential for the support of your liver health. Now let’s take a look at the second ingredient in Liver Support…
Don’t Be Fooled by Its Appearance – This Highly Valued ‘Weed’ Offers Potent Liver Support… and More*
Milk thistle contains liver-friendly silymarin
Milk thistle has been treasured for over 2,000 years for its value in supporting liver, kidney, and gall bladder health.*
When the leaves of the plant are crushed, they release a milky sap. Hence the name…
The herb milk thistle is an excellent source of the antioxidant compound silymarin, its primary active component.
Extracted from the plant seeds, silymarin consists of three flavonoids – silibinin, silidianin, and silicristin – all of which may help repair liver cells that have been damaged by environmental pollutants, alcohol, and fructose.*
Silymarin has been found to increase glutathione and help prevent its depletion in your liver.* It also helps support a normal inflammatory response in your cells through its effect on gene expression.
Support Your Liver With Up to 100 Times More of the Sulforaphane Precursor in Fresh Broccoli
Broccoli sprouts contain up to 100 times the glucoraphanin found in fresh broccoli
Glucoraphanin is a precursor to sulforaphane, a potent liver-supporting substance found in regular organic broccoli – its best-known source.
However, fresh, young broccoli sprouts – grown from organic broccoli seeds – can contain up to 100 times the amount of this glucoraphanin!
When animals in studies chewed or swallowed vegetables containing glucoraphanin, the resulting sulforaphane fired up the body’s waste disposal system.
This not only helped the body rid itself of pollutants, it also helped protect the body from potential harm.*
Researchers wanted to see how these substances would work in humans, so they travelled to one of the most heavily industrialized and polluted regions in China to put their theory to the test…
They recruited a total of 291 men and women living in a rural farming community in Jiangsu Province, China, about 50 miles north of Shanghai for their 12-week trial.
The treatment group received a half-cup of a beverage made with broccoli sprout powder containing glucoraphanin and sulforaphane, combined with sterilized water, pineapple and lime juice.
Urine and blood samples were taken during the trail to measure inhaled air pollutants.
The results were astounding… Excretion of a common and potentially hazardous airborne pollutant increased the very first day in the broccoli sprout powder group – by a whopping 61 percent! And increased excretion continued during the entire 12-week period.
Researchers concluded that the sulforaphane in the sprout powder might in some way be signaling to the cells the need to adapt to and survive a broad range of environmental contaminants, including those in water and food.
Based on these studies and more, I decided that organic broccoli sprout powder had to be part of my Liver Support!
Are You Ready to Give Your Liver the Support It Likely Needs?*
As I pointed out earlier, it can be difficult to know exactly how well your liver is functioning. That is, until it’s possibly too late.
But one thing we do know for certain is that your liver continuously labors hard to protect your body from the effects of environmental pollutants and chemicals.
Now you can help give it the support it may need with my Liver Support. With my unique “trifecta” formula, you get:
NAC for its ability to restore glutathione supplies and support mitochondrial function*
Milk Thistle Extract for its silymarin to help repair damaged liver cells and increase glutathione levels*
Organic Broccoli Sprout Powder for its rich supply of sulforaphane precursor to support your rapid excretion of environmental pollutants*
And much more… Liver Support provides the perfect tool to help minimize the damaging effects of everyday pollutants and stresses on your liver. And you can take it every day!
Take control of the health of your liver today and order Liver Support. When it comes to a hard-working organ like your liver, you don’t want to take chances.
.jpg)
Madison Area Lyme Support Group 