Love Your Liver
Headaches, Cravings and Tiredness Usually Pass in the First Days of a Liver Detox
From Dr. Jarod Ward's 21-day Love Your Liver cleanse | Crown Chiropractic
The first days of a liver cleanse can bring headaches, tiredness, aches, itchy skin, cravings and more trips to the bathroom. All of these are common, and they usually pass. Dr. Jarod Ward talks through what his patients notice, and what changes for them, in this clip.
Six liver detox symptoms are common in the first days
- Headaches. Often the first one, and often caffeine leaving your system.
- Tiredness or a foggy feeling.
- Aches.
- Itchy skin.
- More trips to the bathroom.
- Cravings for sugar, bread or your usual snack.
Day one itself usually feels fine, even a little exciting. The changes above tend to show up over the next few days and usually pass. Call us at (239) 441-2275 if they last longer.
The headache usually runs on a caffeine clock
In a review of caffeine withdrawal research, symptoms typically started 12 to 24 hours after people stopped caffeine, peaked between 20 and 51 hours and lasted 2 to 9 days. Headache showed up in half of people in the experimental studies. So if your last coffee was Sunday morning, a headache could start by Sunday night or Monday morning and feel strongest Monday into Tuesday.
Dr. Jarod cuts caffeine anyway, because he sees it as one more job for the liver: "caffeine is a toxin that the liver has to clear out of the blood." His full reasoning is in Why Is a Liver Cleanse So Strict?
Cravings are common once sugar and processed food leave your plate. Dr. Jarod explains that the liver stores extra sugar as glycogen, and the body uses that stockpile before it turns to fat:
"But why would the body burn fat if it has rooms full of sugar ready to burn, right?"
Dr. Jarod sees energy, skin, digestion and sleep change in his practice
Many of the people Dr. Jarod works with feel like they run at 60 or 80 percent of what they could be. In his words, they describe a familiar pattern:
"They don't feel like they have as much energy as they used to, their joints kind of hurt a little bit, they're stiff in the morning, their skin seems lifeless, maybe they got a little bit of acne, maybe dry skin, they feel bloated after they eat, they don't have a bowel movement every day, or when they do it's loose or way too difficult to pass."
He adds sleep to that list: waking up a lot during the night, or never feeling well rested. Of all of it, he says, "all of these I have seen get completely resolved on my three week liver cleanse."
His explanation goes back to the liver as the body's filter:
"When you deeply nourish the organs that are fighting hardest for you, everything else gets better. ... And when you clean a dirty fish tank, right, it feels less dirty, it feels less sludgy, it feels less inflamed."
What your liver does all day, from filtering your blood to building hormones, is in What to Expect on a Liver Cleanse Diet.
Signs your liver may need support, from Dr. Jarod's list
When patients describe these, Dr. Jarod thinks about the liver:
- Tiredness
- Joint pain and headaches
- Acne on the face or back, dry or oily skin, dark circles under the eyes
- Bloating, constipation or diarrhea
- Hair falling out
- Body odor, or stubborn body fat
- Waking up between 1 and 3 a.m. most nights
- Painful or heavy periods, lots of cramping, irregular cycles
- Night sweats, hot flashes or low libido
Many things can sit behind these, and lab testing gives a clearer picture of what's going on.
The full plan comes with the cleanse
Love Your Liver is Dr. Jarod's 21-day guided liver cleanse, and it's self-paced. The full meal plan, supplement schedule, shopping list and daily texts come with the cleanse. Join any time and your daily texts and emails start the next Monday.
Prefer to start with a conversation? Dr. Jarod runs functional medicine and lab testing at Crown Chiropractic in Fort Myers. Call (239) 441-2275 to book a consultation.
Sources
- Dr. Jarod Ward, Crown Chiropractic. Liver episode on YouTube, 7:50 to 9:25.
- Juliano LM, Griffiths RR. A critical review of caffeine withdrawal: empirical validation of symptoms and signs, incidence, severity, and associated features. Psychopharmacology 2004;176(1):1-29.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
What are common liver detox symptoms?
In the first days of a liver cleanse, headaches, tiredness, aches, itchy skin, cravings and more trips to the bathroom are common. They usually pass. Call Crown Chiropractic at (239) 441-2275 if they last longer.
Why do I get a headache on a liver cleanse?
Often it's caffeine leaving your system. In a review of caffeine withdrawal research, symptoms typically started 12 to 24 hours after people stopped caffeine and peaked between 20 and 51 hours, and headache showed up in half of people in experimental studies.
How long do liver cleanse side effects last?
Most first-days symptoms usually pass within the first few days. Caffeine withdrawal symptoms in research lasted 2 to 9 days. Call Crown Chiropractic at (239) 441-2275 if anything lasts longer.
How do you feel during a liver cleanse?
Day one usually feels fine, and the first few days can bring headaches, cravings or tiredness. Dr. Jarod Ward says that in his practice he has seen energy, joints, skin, digestion and sleep improve over his three-week cleanse.
What are signs your liver needs support?
Dr. Jarod Ward thinks about the liver when patients describe low energy, achy joints, headaches, acne or dull skin, bloating, constipation or loose stools, waking between 1 and 3 a.m., and hormonal shifts like hot flashes or irregular cycles. Lab testing gives a clearer picture.
Love Your Liver
Give your liver 21 days to catch up.
Dr. Jarod's guided liver cleanse runs on real meals, pro-grade supplements and a daily text or email. Join any time and day one starts the next Monday.