Everyday Tips for a Healthy Liver

Your liver is a powerful organ, in charge of over 500 essential jobs, from filtering toxins to aiding digestion and regulating cholesterol levels. But in today’s world, the liver often faces constant challenges, from poor diets to high alcohol consumption and environmental toxins. Fortunately, there are simple, everyday choices you can make to support liver health and reduce your risk of developing liver problems. Here, we outline essential lifestyle habits to help you maintain a healthy liver.

Why Your Liver Health Matters

Your liver helps detoxify the body, metabolize nutrients, store energy, and regulate hormones. It also plays a central role in the digestive process by producing bile, which helps break down fats in your food. When the liver is damaged, whether by alcohol, excess fat, medications, or viruses, these essential processes can be disrupted. Over time, untreated liver damage can lead to serious complications, including scarring of the liver (cirrhosis), liver cancer, or liver failure. Whether you're trying to prevent issues or you are already managing a liver condition, protecting your liver is essential to your overall health and wellbeing.

Eat a Liver-Healthy Diet

Your diet has a direct effect on your liver’s health. A liver-healthy diet includes plenty of fruits and vegetables rich in antioxidants, whole grains, lean proteins including fish, chicken, tofu, and legumes, and healthy fats such as those found in nuts, seeds, and olive oil.

A liver-healthy diet is not just about foods you should eat, but also includes foods to avoid. Avoid processed foods high in sugar and trans fats, which can contribute to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), previously known as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Excess sugar gets converted into fat, which can build up in the liver over time. Reducing added sugars, refined carbs, and fried foods can help prevent or reverse liver fat accumulation.

Limit Alcohol Consumption

Alcohol consumption is one of the most common causes of liver damage. When you drink alcohol, your liver works to break it down and filter it from your bloodstream. When you drink more alcohol than your liver can process, liver damage can occur, leading to alcohol-related fatty liver disease, inflammation, and eventually cirrhosis.

Heavy drinkers are at a greater risk of developing alcohol-related liver disease, but even moderate drinking can cause liver damage. To protect your liver, it is recommended for women to limit alcohol to no more than one drink per day and for men to limit alcohol to no more than two drinks per day.

If you have other risk factors, even small amounts of alcohol can increase your risk of developing liver problems. If you’ve been diagnosed with any form of fatty liver disease, it’s best to completely avoid alcohol.

Maintain a Healthy Weight

Obesity or excess weight, especially around the abdomen, increases your risk of MASLD. When fat builds up in the liver, it can lead to inflammation and liver damage.

If you are overweight, check with your doctor to develop a plan to help you maintain a healthy weight. Your plan may include:

• Eating balanced meals with proper portion sizes
• Staying active with regular physical movement
• Reducing sugary drinks and high-calorie snacks

Aim for gradual, sustainable weight loss if needed. Even modest weight loss, such as 5–10% of your body weight, can significantly improve liver fat levels and liver function.

Be Cautious with Medications and Supplements

Many over-the-counter medications, especially in high doses or when mixed with alcohol, can harm the liver. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) and statins (to help lower cholesterol) are common examples of this. Always read labels carefully, never exceed the recommended dose, and do not take these medications with alcohol.

Herbal supplements can also pose a risk for liver damage. The major supplements known to be a risk include anabolic steroids, green tea extract, ephedra sinica, ashwagandha, turmeric, circumin, and multi-ingredient nutritional supplements (MINS) in which the culprit is often unknown. Talk to your doctor before starting new supplements, especially if you have existing liver concerns.

Prevent Viral Hepatitis

Hepatitis B and C are viral infections that can cause long-term liver inflammation and increase the risk of cirrhosis and liver cancer. These viruses spread through blood and bodily fluids.

To prevent hepatitis B and C:

• Get vaccinated against Hepatitis B (there is no vaccine to protect against Hepatitis C)
• Avoid sharing needles, razors, or personal items
• Practice safe sex
• If you’re at risk or unsure, get tested for Hepatitis C

Early diagnosis and treatment of Hepatitis B and C can prevent long-term liver damage.

Reduce Exposure to Environmental Toxins

Certain chemicals and toxins can damage your liver cells over time. These include household cleaning products, insecticides and pesticides, industrial chemicals, and aerosols and fumes from paint or glue.

To reduce exposure to environmental toxins:

• Use protective gear (gloves, masks) when handling chemicals
• Work in well-ventilated spaces
• Store products safely and out of reach of children
• Choose natural or non-toxic alternatives when possible

Coffee and Other Liver-Friendly Habits

If you’re a coffee lover, there’s good news: coffee appears to protect and support liver health. Studies show that drinking 1-4 cups of coffee per day may help reduce liver inflammation, remove damaged cells, and lower the risk of liver disease.

Other liver-friendly habits include:

• Staying hydrated to support detoxification
• Getting regular exercise (at least 30 minutes most days)
• Avoiding smoking, as it can worsen liver damage
• Managing conditions like diabetes or high cholesterol, which increase liver disease risk
• Washing produce to avoid pesticides and toxins

When To Talk to Your Doctor

If you’re experiencing symptoms of liver damage such as fatigue, abdominal pain, jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes), dark urine, itchy skin, loss of appetite, nausea or vomiting, bruising easily, or unexplained weight loss, it is time to check in with your doctor about your liver health. These signs could point to underlying liver problems. However, liver problems don’t always cause obvious symptoms. Routine checkups can also help catch issues early, even before symptoms appear.

If you have risk factors for developing liver disease – if you’ve been exposed to toxins, are a heavy drinker, have a condition such as obesity, high cholesterol, hepatitis, or diabetes, or have a parent or sibling who has a genetic liver disease – ask your doctor about regular screening for liver health.