By Matthew Sun
There are many different ways to cleanse the liver, but perhaps the best and most popular method is the lemon juice and olive oil recipe.
We recommend reading the liver-gallbladder information page before doing a flush so you have a better understanding of the cause of the problem and how to prevent it happening in the future.
Olive Oil and Lemon Juice Liver and Gallbladder Flush Recipe
This liver-gallbladder cleanse can be performed either over 3 days or 7 days depending on what is convenient. The 3 day method is more difficult to perform and also more inconvenient for many people who have to go to work or take care of a family, but it is possibly more effective as the bowel also gets cleansed along the way. The first part of the cleanse consists of consuming a lot of apples or apple juice, which softens up the gall stones which block the bile ducts which lead to and from the liver and gall bladder. The second parts involved drinking a cup of lemon juice and olive oil which causes the gall bladder and liver to flush bile into the bowel, which pushes out the stones and toxins.
If undertaking the 3 day liver cleanse, then the person should consume as many organic apples, apple juice and apple cider vinegar as they can. No other food or solids should be taken during the 3 days. Be sure that the apple juice is either freshly squeezed from organic apples, or if you are buying it already made, please make sure it is organic, with no additives, such as vitamin C or ascorbic acid or anything else. If you cannot find organic apples, normal apples should be fine, but be sure to scub them with a plastic dish scourer under running water to remove waxes and pesticides before consuming. When juicing the apples, if they are not organic, cut out the core, as a lot of toxins can be in there from the sprays.
If undertaking the 7 day liver cleanse, the person should drink as much freshly squeezed or organic apple juice and apple cider vinegar as comfortable for the duration of the 7 days. Over 1 litre is recommended per day. During this week, do not eat meat, dairy or wheat products. Have no sugar and, if possible, stay away from coffee and cigarettes. You basically want to try to have only alkaline forming foods , This helps to detox the body. On the last day of the 7 days, consume a light vegetarian meal for lunch and have no dinner, except maybe an orange or grapefruit.
Now, whether you are dong the 3 day or 7 day liver cleanse, the instructions are the same. On the final day, around dinner time, drink a cup of prune juice, this will help with moving your bowels the following day, you may also take an enema now if you wish. 1 hour after the prune juice take a good herbal laxative that you know will get you moving, we recommend this one from Bio Colon Cleanse (the herbal capsules that come with the cleanse). Start taking it a couple of days before the final day, and then whatever amount got you moving, increase it by 50%, most people will use about 4.
Some liver flushes recommend taking Epsom Salt (or magnesium sulfate) at this point, do not do this as it is dangerous and can damage the body.
Just before bed measure out 120 mL (~half a cup) of room temperature, unrefined extra-virgin olive oil (or you can use more if you want, up to 240 mL, if you want a stronger flush. But it is recommended to start with 120 mL on your first flush as you may feel sick). Mix the olive oil with the same amount of fresh organic lemon juice (120-240 mL) at room temperature. Squeeze the lemon juice and mix both in a blender. If you don’t own a blender, shake the mixture well in a jar. Then drink it. Hold your nose and gulp it down fast. Or if you really like olive oil and lemon juice you can drink it slowly and savour the flavour :-).
At this point some people may feel nauseated, but don’t worry and just try to hold the drink down, Now go bed and lie on your right side with your knees up to your chest for at least 30 mins, the longer the better.
The next morning, have another cup of herbal laxative and some more prune juice about 30 mins later. Some time on this day you should have a big experience on the toilet. Keep an eye out for the stones, or if you are lucky they may have been liquefied by all the apples you ate.
Have a look at what comes out and look for little green balls or blobs. They are usually light green to dark green and sometimes turquoise. Black stones may appear, but that is very rare in western countries. The stones may range from a thick liquid (if you’ve consumed a lot of apples or juice!) to the size of your thumb. The normal size is a little larger than a watermelon seed to the size of a small coin.
Usually you can see them easily. If you found a lot of stones (approx. ½ cup or more if they were all in a blob), you should do the flush again in another two weeks.
To prevent the problem from recurring, you should remove meat from your diet by adapting to a vegetarian diet.
If the colon is also not clean, it is recommended to perform the liver/gallbladder cleanse below first, as it cleanses the colon first, then nourishes the liver/gallbladder while cleansing it with herbs. 2 weeks after this program then the olive oil/lemon flush can be performed. This is recommended because most liver problems begin in the colon, hence cleansing it first is important.