The beautiful liver
The liver is a large organ located beneath the ribs on the right side of the body. It is the largest solid organ in the body. Its size DOES correlate with its critical function in removing toxins from the blood, playing a role in the life cycle of red blood cells, helping to maintain blood sugar levels and hundreds of other functions.
Most people don’t think of the liver as a key player in reproductive and hormonal health, but it IS.
The liver helps regulate the levels of hormones in our body, such as sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone), thyroid hormone, and other key molecular communicators.
One of the buzz words in the world of period health, fertility, and pelvic health is “Hormone Imbalance” and “Estrogen Dominance”, Estrogen dominance can wreak havoc on your reproductive system, leading to unpleasant pre-menstrual symptoms like sore breasts, spotting between periods, mood swings, and painful periods. The delicate balance of hormonal communication and ebb and flow in your body can be disrupted to the point of affecting fertility and a person’s ability to conceive or maintain a pregnancy.
The almighty LIVER is the powerhouse that, when it functions optimally, can help keep these levels in balance, breaking down excess estrogen so we can poop it out (ideally once or twice a day!) However, when our liver is sluggish, or functioning below optimal levels, it can contribute to estrogen build up.
There are numerous ways you can help encourage smooth functioning of your liver (consuming bitter herbs, for example), but a highly underestimated way to improve liver function is to massage the liver. A gentle manipulation of the liver on a regular basis is critical to make sure the large organ is moving properly, isn’t stuck to its neighboring organs, and is receiving good blood flow in and out of it.
As a fertility and pelvic health specialist, I always incorporate liver massage and mobility into sessions. No, it’s not an organ that directly participates in ovulation, menstruation, or pregnancy, but it is a key part of the control system that orchestrates all of these reproductive events. To ignore it would be ignoring critical systems involved in good reproductive health and fertility.