Why People Think That Liver Is Toxic

In order to understand why people think that liver is a “dirty” organ, you need to consider the function of the liver.  Many people believe that the liver is filled with waste and junk that is filtered within the body.

Yes, the liver is an organ that helps with detoxification functions in the body.  But, it’s not the location where those toxins are stored.  In fact, the liver stores important nutrients such as iron, copper, folate, and vitamins B12, K, E, D, and A.  These nutrients are stored in the liver so that they can be used to help the body get rid of toxins.  When you eat liver, you are consuming a nutrient dense source of food with many great vitamins and minerals that can be used to boost your health.

For optimal health, the body doesn’t want to trap those toxins inside.  Instead, the natural detoxification systems work to remove those toxins and get them out of the body as quickly as possible.

Liver Compared with Muscle Meat

The high amount of nutrition available in liver can be very beneficial for your health.  In fact, there are certain nutrients present in liver that can’t be found elsewhere.  Liver is one of the most nutrient dense foods that you can eat, and you are providing your body with a wide range of nutrition in each bite.

It is interesting to consider the fact that many people prefer to eat muscle meat, and discard the organs.  In traditional cultures, they actually ate the organs first, and then discarded the muscle meats by giving them to the dogs.

Grass-Fed vs. Conventionally Farmed Liver

Just because the liver doesn’t store toxins, doesn’t necessarily mean that the liver meat is free of toxins.  You need to consider the environmental factors in which the animal was raised, because those factors might cause toxins to build up in all parts of the animal.

For example, a cow or chicken that is raised in a factory farm is exposed to many toxins, especially since the animal is crowded into a small indoor space with many other sick animals.  These animals are given genetically-modified and pesticide laden feed, as well as antibiotics and hormones.  The animal’s natural detox functions can’t get rid of all of the unnatural and harmful poisons that the animal is exposed to, so those poisonous materials begin to build up in all parts of the body—including the liver.

On the other hand, grass-fed and pasture raised animals have a much lower exposure to these harmful products, and their livers are stocked full of the good nutrition that they receive from their high quality food source.  It has been found that meat from an animal raised in a pasture has 2 - 4 times more omega-3 fatty acids, compared with an animal that was raised on a factory farm.

Because of the drastic differences in nutrition, pasture-raised animals are a better choice for your dinner table. If you are planning to eat liver, or any other type of meat for that matter, then it is always best to buy products from pasture-raised animals.

Knowing your food source is key if you want to get the most nutrition out of the food you’re eating.  That being said, real food is always better than processed foods, whether it’s conventional or pasture-raised .  However, if you have a choice, always opt for pasture-raised animals if you’re eating any kind of meat.  And if you really want to optimize your nutrition, throw in some pasture-raised organ meat to really give your body the nutrients it needs to thrive optimally.

Liver Pate (dairy-free)

I like both beef liver and chicken liver, but the taste of beef liver can be pretty overwhelming so I tend to eat more chicken liver than beef.  Now I’m not a fan of liver texture, unless it’s been cooked on low for a few hours to really tenderize the meat, but I’ve always been a fan of liver pate.  The only issue with typical liver pate is it’s ingredients.  Most liver pate uses thick cream and some type of liquor like sherry or port wine.  And since I don’t eat dairy or drink alcohol, I wanted to make my own liver pate concoction and here’s what I came up with.

Liver pate recipe:

Ingredients

1 pound pasture raised chicken liver
1 large onion, diced
1/2 cup of minced garlic
1 Tbsp fresh thyme (stems removed)
1 large avocado, peeled and pit removed
1/4 tsp salt (or as needed)

Saute the chicken liver, onions, minced garlic and thyme in a sauce pan until the liver is tender.
Put it into a blender along with the peeled and pitted avocado.
Blend until smooth and creamy.

Cool in fridge overnight and you’re done.

I eat this by the spoonfuls or spread it on veggies.  You can tweak the recipe out to fit your palette, but if you’re a fan of pate, it’s a great way to increase your liver consumption!