*Liver detox can make your skin worse. If you haven’t prepared the body for toxin buildup, this step can be a make-it-or-break-it moment. Too many toxins circulating in the body can be a contributing factor to melasma spread. Please follow these steps correctly to prevent the worsening of the condition. Be sure to have finished gut healing and 3 months of heavy metal detoxing before proceeding.*

In Step 5 we will focus on healing and supporting the liver, our heaviest internal organ. The liver removes toxins from the blood supply and provides hundreds of other vital functions. To get rid of melasma you need a healthy functioning liver. Your hormones, toxins, gut, and immune system all depend on this.

After this step, your detox pathways should be open and flowing. Your body now eliminates toxins and hormones more efficiently. With Steps 1-5 complete your melasma may no longer be in its active phase, meaning the inflammation mechanism may be shut off. Though it is possible that your pigmentation may be breaking up or lightening, your melasma can still be inactive without seeing these results. For example, with inactive melasma you can expose your skin to direct sunlight without exacerbating or inflaming it, with the spots remaining unchanged.

Don’t be discouraged if you aren’t experiencing the results and benefits described above. Results will vary and are dependent on a number of factors, including your specific hormones and how long you’ve been dealing with melasma. We still have more steps to do, each building on the last.

The Liver And Liver-Skin Axis.

The liver is responsible for bile production, cleaning toxins out of the blood, breaking down and balancing nutrients, and metabolizing medications. The liver has around 500 processes it assists the body with. The liver directly synthesizes vitamin D, activates and deactivates thyroid and cortisol hormones, and metabolizes steroid hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and androgens. It is the processing system for the elimination of toxins.

The liver-skin axis is a new area of study. The liver plays a central role in sensing and responding to systemic inflammation and produces and secretes inflammatory cytokines. A recent study discovered that LRG (leucine-rich α-2 glycoprotein), an inflammatory marker, plays a role in the development of psoriasis. This marker is mainly produced in the liver and acts directly on the skin. This study revealed the first sign of a Skin-Liver Axis, a bidirectional communication pathway between the two organs. Whether directly or indirectly, the liver plays a vital role in skin homeostasis and the regulation of inflammation.

Gut-Liver Axis.

The gut-liver axis is important for both digestion and liver function. The gut carries the microbiome to the liver, and in return, the liver produces bile for the gut; the two organs are dependent on each other for complete balance. If the gut microbiome is insufficient, or leaky gut is a problem, the liver won’t receive the microbiome it needs to make bile. If the liver isn’t making enough bile for the digestive system, it can’t digest fats and it won’t eliminate the toxins, recirculating them instead.

Fun Fact: The liver is the only organ that regenerates.

Liver Detox. Phase I.

In Phase I, we use nutritional support in the form of vitamins and minerals to prepare the body to metabolize toxins. This is the oxidation, reduction, and hydrolysis phase. The most common enzyme our body will use is cytochrome P450. These enzymes protect your cells from damage by converting toxins into smaller water-soluble molecules for excretion. These metabolites are still active and can turn into free radicals without the proper support. Vitamins like A, B-complex, C, magnesium, and zinc will all be used for this purpose. Please see Vitamins, Minerals & Skin Health article for a more detailed description.

Phase II.

Glutathione supports both Phase I & Phase II liver detoxification. Phase II is glutathione conjugation, amino acid conjugation, methylation, sulfonation, acetylation, and glucuronidation. Simply put glutathione will help to detoxify and eliminate fat-soluble toxins and heavy metals

Phase III.

Phase III is the elimination process, where water and fat-soluble toxins are prepared for removal. This is mostly done through proper gut healing. If you have not done the gut healing first, elimination could be a problem. Making sure the intestinal lining is not leaking into the bloodstream will help prevent any toxins from recirculating when liver support starts.

Conclusion.

You are well on your way to bringing your health back into balance. If you’ve followed these steps correctly you should see some progress within 4-6 months. Next, we will move on to hormone support, focusing first on stress first, then estrogen, and finally thyroid optimization.

Let me know how your process is going! Share a comment or question…

Resources

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8637678/#:~:text=The%20liver%20directly%20synthesizes%20multiple,%2D1

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4856809/#:~:text=The%20liver%20plays%20a%20central,infectious%20or%20malignant%20hepatic%20disease.

https://journals.aai.org/jimmunol/article/206/7/1469/108083/The-Skin-Liver-Axis-Modulates-the-Psoriasiform

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9421440/

https://www.journal-of-hepatology.eu/article/S0168-8278(19)30604-X/fulltext

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6319369/

https://www.xcode.life/genes-and-detox/phase-2-detoxification/

https://health.selfdecode.com/blog/glucuronidation-detox-estrogen-hormone-balance-prevent-cancer-red-meat/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26381025/

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2020.594735/full