Liver cleansing

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" Liver cleansing " is a dietary method used in alternative medicine that consists of taking magnesium sulfate , olive oil and grapefruit juice , in some cases partially replaced by other, similar ingredients. As a result, not only the gallstones in the gallbladder but also so-called bile duct stones should be able to be loosened and excreted in the stool. Critics deny that it is even possible to remove gallstones from the body in this way.

There are several fixed sets of rules for performing a liver cleanse. A distinction can be made between “recipes” that come from traditional folk medicine and those that can be clearly assigned to a specific author. The two best-known “recipes” in the latter category are the liver cleanse according to Hulda Regehr Clark and the one according to Andreas Moritz.

According to one study, five out of six subjects suffering from gallstone disease reportedly remained symptom-free for long periods of time after undergoing a liver flush. A decrease in the previously detected gallbladder stones via ultrasound was also found. In two other cases, on the other hand, the chemical analysis of alleged gallstones that had been excreted during a liver cleanse showed that these were by no means gallstones, but rather structures that had briefly formed in the intestine as a result of the reaction of the digestive juices with the ingested substances .

The fact that the procedure is not completely harmless is shown by a case in which there was a stone loss associated with colic, which led to stone-related pancreatitis (biliary pancreatitis ). However, instead of the usual magnesium sulfate, Glauber's salt was mistakenly used.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ PC Royal, Herbally Yours. A comprehensive herbal handbook simple enough for the herbal student, complete enough for the herbal practitioner, Hurricane (Utah), 3rd edition 1982, pp. 117f.
  2. ↑ HR Clark, healing is possible, a revolutionary technique for the treatment of chronic diseases, Droemersche Verlagsanstalt Th. Knaur Nachf., Munich 2000, 595-601.
  3. ↑ A. Moritz, The miraculous cleansing of the liver and gallbladder. A powerful way to improve your health and vitality. Seventh edition, D- 04651 Bad Lausick 2014, especially 111–123.
  4. ^ RL Garrison, Home Remedy May Help Prevent Surgery in Some Patients with Gallstones. Am Fam Physician 1998; 57 (4): 785-786.
  5. ↑ CW Sies, J. Brooker, Could these be gallstones ?, The Lancet, Volume 365, Issue 9468, page 1388, April 16, 2005.
  6. ↑ N. Ewald, P. Hardt, Flushing Stones? "Liver cleansing" and "biliary flushing", DMW, Volume 134 (36), 2009, page 1774. PMID 19718602
  7. ↑ SU Christl, Biliary pancreatitis after alternative medical liver cleansing , The Medical World 2006; 57 12: 596-598.