In this blog post I am sharing some easy but effective health tips from naturopathic physician Dr. Garrett Smith’s Love your Liver course that will help you—even if you choose not to go full gung-ho with this detox program. But first, if this is the first time you’re reading a post of mine about Dr. Smith’s program, you may want to get some background on this subject by reading about my initial discovery of Dr. Smith’s program here, and then read my one-year update on the program here, before continuing on with this blog post.
I totally understand that some people may not want to change their diet and lifestyle too much at first and may just want to get some easy tips that can still make a significant difference in their health. I know it is not always easy or practical to make big changes and not everyone is motivated in the same way. Although I am quite strict on the program, it is because I have a couple very significant health goals that will take some time to resolve, as well as something to prove.
“Something to prove”: this reminds me of 63-year-old construction engineer Grant Genereux, the person who has been on a strict, super low “vitamin” A diet the longest; it will be 10 years in August. During this time, Grant’s health has continued to improve, his testosterone has continued to increase, and his vision slowly but surely has continued to improve. His advanced kidney disease, eczema, jaundice and early dementia has been resolved years ago.
Grant has mentioned, more than once, that he definitely has something to prove: that “vitamin” A is not an essential nutrient—but a poison. (Engineers want to solve problems, it’s just our nature. This personality characteristic should not be held against us.)
Grant has the lab results to prove it, too: three (3) years ago, his serum retinol level was measured to be 0.1 microgram/dl. The typical range is 20 – 80 microgram/dl. This range is determined not by studying what the long-term ideal values should be, but by including the lab results of 95% of the people who are getting tested in the range. Grant’s lab results show he is “severely deficient in ‘vitamin’ A.” Compared to the current population being tested for this chemical substance, he is rock-bottom way off the charts on the lower end of the range.
Note that these test results do not in any way represent ideal nutrition levels or ideal health. Ideal nutrition and health for humans (and pets, too) is NOT the goal of the medical industry. The tests merely show test levels of the current population. (Many of whom may be sick. Well, is it not true, if they are getting tested, they may very well have health issues?)
Grant is hoping his 10-year test coming up around August 2024 will show to be 0.0 microgram/dL. According to the medical profession, he should be dead and blind, LOL.
You Can Make Slow Changes
Perhaps you’re thinking this is not the right time for you to make major changes, because of circumstances you have no control over. Or maybe your health is very good, and you don’t see any need for major changes right now. Or you just want to continue to enjoy certain foods occasionally without worrying about their toxin content. Or, you want to transition slowly, and as you see improvements, you will be motivated to continue further.
In fact, I myself did not change everything all at once. It took me about a month and a half to transition into the Love Your Liver program. For most people, it takes at least that long to get through the course materials and get their minerals right. Dr. Smith wants you understand why he is advising what he’s advising—his approach is backed up by “receipts” and scientific studies. You are much more likely to be compliant if you understand why you are doing what you’re doing.
The Activated Charcoal Detox “Hack”
So, how can you make a significant improvement in your health without getting super strict at first? One easy step (or “hack”) is to take activated charcoal daily.
Here’s a 7-minute video showing the amazing results of taking activated charcoal twice a day. Activated charcoal (as well as other good binders of toxins such as beans, psyllium and oatmeal, for example) is part of Dr. Smith’s Love Your Liver program.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLt-8uF1bkY
The physician in this video (an M.D. of environmental medicine and M.P.H.) incorrectly states that all of his patient’s poisons are in her cells. Most of our body’s poisons actually accumulate in and are stored in the liver. Some poisons are in the cells, that is true, especially in the fat cells, but most toxins are filtered from the bloodstream by the liver and accumulate in the liver. This is because the liver is the body’s waste processing plant, chemical processing plant and waste storage depot. Toxins do not just go poof—and they’re gone. They need to be taken through actual physical pathways out of the body.
Let’s think this through. When you consume activated charcoal, it does not get absorbed into your bloodstream but stays in your digestive tract, right? So how is it supposed to latch onto the poisons that are contained in the fat cells around your stomach or hips? Obviously, the poisons made their way into her digestive tract somehow.
The activated charcoal in your digestive tract binds to the toxins it comes into contact with from the food you eat that day and also any toxins your liver manages to release into the bile that goes through the bile ducts into your small intestine. The toxins in the released bile will then strongly bind to the activated charcoal that moves slowly through your intestines, preventing them from being reabsorbed back into your bloodstream, and then escorted out of your body with your poop. This is how you detox: the toxins go out of your body and down the toilet! This is how your body’s toxin load will slowly decrease over time—and at a safe pace your body can handle.
This is why the woman in the video had such dramatic results in just a matter of weeks—because the activated charcoal took the heavy load of the detox work her body was trying to do but was unsuccessful with until then. If she had been told to sweat the toxins out through her skin, she would have aggravated her skin condition even more, because the skin was never meant to do the heavy lifting of detox that the liver and intestines are meant to do. (Neither are the kidneys designed to do the heavy lifting of detox.)
Why does this doctor not know this? Is it because “those in charge” don’t really want doctors to solve your health problems?
Your Results Will Be Different
Note that your results will be different because you have different issues. Maybe you don’t have psoriasis or hair loss. Maybe you have stomach or digestion issues, other kinds of skin issues, or other health complaints. It does not matter, really, because as you reduce your body’s toxin load, whatever condition you have will improve over time.
Activated charcoal will help in many different situations by slowly detoxing your body, which will begin to actually reverse illness, regardless of what illness you may have, even the “c” word that is ramping up in the population these days. The charcoal will grab onto the toxins your liver releases into your small intestine, keeping them in the intestinal tract and preventing them from being reabsorbed into your bloodstream. You may even see new hair growth, have less pain, and see other reverse aging effects.
Dr. Smith recommends activated charcoal powder twice a day, starting slowly at about half a teaspoon in a half glass of water once a day for a few days, then going to twice a day for a few days, then going up to one teaspoon twice a day. He recommends charcoal powder made from hardwood or bamboo instead of coconut. Coconut charcoal is made from coconuts that are often moldy.
I take my activated charcoal about 60-90 minutes after an early meal and 90-120 minutes after my evening meal (when I take my minerals).
Show Me the Receipts
This toxicity and chronic illness connection is recognized in a Scientific World Journal review study titled, Chelation: Harnessing and Enhancing Heavy Metal Detoxification—A Review. The study concludes:
“Recognizing toxicant contributors to chronic disease and conducting research to evaluate chelation strategies and protocols to assess and address toxic metal bioaccumulation offer potential for inexpensive, safe therapies addressing important root causes of today’s most costly, prevalent chronic diseases.”
Root cause, they say! The scientists in the review study actually acknowledge that toxins have a root-cause role in disease!
By the way, the review paper above mentioned the effectiveness of soluble fiber, psyllium and activated charcoal in chelating heavy metals. However, the authors concluded that cilantro is about as effective a chelating agent as placebo.
It is clear that charcoal is a good adsorbent of heavy metals. But cilantro as an adsorbent? I’d love to see some proof, along with any information on how this green leaf is supposed to latch and hold onto heavy metals tightly. It does not.
Here’s a link to this heavy metal review study, in case you want to examine it in detail:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3654245
The Highly Recommended “Love Your Liver” Course
It is best to get the Love Your Liver program and read through the lessons. Make slow changes, as you are advised in the program to do. It will be easier than you think.
If you are motivated, you may choose to get a consultation package—which comes with hair and blood lab tests, a consultation with your lab results, 6 months of online office hours, and the LYL course included.
I can guarantee that you probably don’t even like many of the foods the Love Your Liver program advises you to avoid, but you’ve been eating them anyway because you were told they are healthy and good for you. Your children will love that they do not have to eat certain foods anymore, too.
Here’s where you can get access to the Love Your Liver course and the LYL network:
https://nutritiondetective.com/pages/membership
This is not an affiliate link and I do not get compensated in any way—except in knowing that I am helping my fellow humans to improve their health and reduce their health care costs.
Please share this blog with your friends and family, and feel free to comment below.
Photo credit: The featured photo, created by Anne’ Phillips, was compiled from Dr. Garrett Smith’s YouTube videos from January 2020 and May 2024, respectively.
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