Get glowing skin by supporting your liver

If you stop and consider the functions of the skin that covers your entire body, you quickly realise the marvel that it is. Skin is incredibly porous yet protective. It shields us from the outside world including light, temperature extremes, chemicals and infection. It is soft and malleable all while helping to prevent injury.  It is even home to its own natural community of micro-organisms. Our skin is truly amazing!

The skin and detoxification

The skin is also a large detoxification organ playing a role in excretion, the elimination of substances in the body. Many of us a familiar with sweat and associate it as the mechanism our body uses to cool us down if we become hot. However, sweat is also a vehicle for excretion, it consists of water salts, carbon dioxide, ammonia and urea. Thus, any dysfunction of the skin in excretion will put stress on the other eliminative organs and visa versa. Often skin conditions are a result of internal dysfunction within these organs including the liver, kidneys and bowel or issues with the circulation. The use of herbs for skin conditions will therefore be highly individual depending upon the root cause or causes of the condition. That said, in my clinical practise I have often found that supporting the liver is paramount in shifting stubborn skin conditions. It can also help those who are just looking to boost their excretion pathways and glow, from the inside out.

St Mary's Thistle- a liver loving herb

Silybum marianum known commonly as St Mary’s Thistle or Milk thistle is a well-known herb with a 2000-year history of use. It is indicated in liver disease such as hepatitis and cirrhosis but it is also useful for all conditions arising from hepatotoxicity. This can be from excessive alcohol use, prescription or elicit drug use, overeating or poor diet, environmental chemicals or an excess in hormones. When you consider the main actions of St Mary's Thistle, you can see why it is considered an effective tool in improving the function of the liver:

Main actions of St Mary's thistle:

Hepatoprotective- protects hepatocytes (liver cells) against toxic damage

Hepatotrophorestorative- restores the integrity of liver tissue

Choleretic- increases the production of bile by the liver

Antioxidant- protects against oxidation from free radicals

Interestingly, some studies have shown that the constituents in St Mary's thistle may also help to protect the skin from harmful UV damage and slow down skin photoaging. Silymarin, one of the active ingredients of St Mary's thistle has also been reported to play a role in the treatment of alopecia (hair loss), wound repair and healing. Additionally, Silymarin has also been shown to reduce the impact of acne medication on liver enzymes.

St Mary's thistle is contraindicated only where a known allergy to the herb or other plants in the Asteraceae (Daisy) family is present. The herb is cautioned in patients with gallstones, due to the potential for impacted gallstones and obstructed bile ducts. It is also necessary to take care when taking St Mary's thistle alongside other prescription medication as it may affect the clearance rate of the medication.

If you're interested in ways to support your skin health and liver health, let's chat! You can book a discovery call here