Around offal their own mythology has developed: they de-accumulate in themselves a lot of harmful substances throughout their lives, they become clogged and littered, so they should not be eaten. Even foie gras. Especially foie gras, because the liver is just a bunch of impurities filtered out during life!
The devil is not so scary
“”, – says the nutritionist Alla Shilina… The liver is involved in the synthesis of hormones, amino acids, in the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats and vitamins … And, of course, in the detoxification of toxins. However, the liver is not at all a mechanical filter that, like a water cartridge, traps toxins that enter the body or that have arisen in it.
Liver cells secrete enzymes that destroy harmful substances: the same is done, for example, by blood cells, which produce their antibodies to destroy bacteria. Harmful substances are not stored in the body, but are rendered harmless, split, transformed and excreted: otherwise we would not have held out for a long time.
Offal is suspicious
What is our suspicion based on? The fact that a cow or chicken, which are raised in an ecologically unfavorable area, drink water spoiled by civilization and breathe polluted air, can indeed accumulate toxic substances in their tissues, including in internal organs. The same goes for fish. “, – He speaks Alla Shilina… – “.
Depending on the method of elimination of this or that toxic substance from the body, either the kidneys, or the liver, or the lungs are affected to a greater extent. ” As well as bones and bone marrow. This happens if the environment is so polluted that the body cannot cope with its neutralization. That is, in the case of poisoning that disrupts liver function. However, the liver has a very effective defense mechanism, which is why, with its help, poisons are converted into harmless substances that are safely excreted from the body.
And besides, a certain part of toxins is destroyed during cooking: stewing or frying, in soup or in pate. Of course, modern agriculture leaves little chance for us to get an environmentally friendly product that honestly deserves the prefix “bio”. However, when trying to separate “clean” food from “unclean”, the first to be sent to the link should be vegetables and fruits – which are all full of pesticides (). Why doesn’t it occur to anyone? Apparently, because vegetables and fruits have a strong reputation as the flagship of healthy eating. Or maybe because there are much more adherents of “liver cleansing” in Russia than fans of bio-products.
By-products and diets
One name offal hints that this food is shabby, not too valuable. Nevertheless, medicine has a different opinion on this matter.
Alla Shilina: “Especially A, B2, B12, PP, choline.”
However, one must remember that there is a lot of cholesterol in the liver. And also the fact that the tongue, heart, kidneys, liver contain purines – and, therefore, are contraindicated in diseases such as gout.
“With high acidity”, – specifies Alla Shilina.
Alla Shilina – Herbalife