Because of its accelerating effect, a 30-year-old person can end up with the liver of a 50-year-old. One doctor, however, has some advice.
We talk about it less than the heart or the lungs, yet the liver is an essential organ. It is the metabolic pillar of our body: it filters toxins, stores energy, renews cells, regulates all internal chemistry. The liver is a silent organ because unlike other parts of the body, it does not have pain nerves. When he suffers from premature aging due to an unbalanced diet, he does not prevent it. It becomes dirty, ignites and ages quietly, only showing symptoms of disease when it is too late.
In hepatology, the real age of the liver is measured by its stage of fibrosis (hardening of the liver), ranging from F0 (a new and flexible liver) to F4 (advanced cirrhosis). Under standard living conditions with a healthy lifestyle, the transition from one stage to another is a slow process that generally takes between 15 and 20 years. But certain foods act as real biological accelerators. By causing chronic inflammation, they force the liver to produce stiff scar tissue at an abnormal rate. Because of this “accelerating” effect, a 30-year-old adult can end up with the liver rigidity of a 50-year-old person. Because of these foods, the liver literally gets 20 years ahead of its biological wear and tear.
So what is this food that ages the liver? It is thought to be harmless, even excellent for your health because it is a so-called “lean” meat, but chicken can become an enemy of the liver depending on how it is prepared. The problem does not come from the meat itself, but from its crispy skin, browned or scorched by cooking at high temperatures (grilled in a pan, roasted in the oven, fried, etc.). It is precisely this chemical reaction, which makes the exterior of the chicken crunchy or caramelized, which generates what are called “Advanced Glycation Products (AGEs)”.
The work of Professor Helen Vlassara, carried out on 549 foods, is clear: the cooking method changes everything. His research shows that grilled or fried chicken contains 10 to 20 times more EFAs than boiled or poached chicken. They also validate that lean meats, such as chicken, are extremely sensitive to the formation of these toxins as soon as they are exposed to dry heat (oven, pan). The danger becomes real when consumption is more than twice a week. AGEs saturate the liver’s filters. “We don’t just eat these toxins, they become a part of us, damaging our tissues in the same way that time does“, explains Professor Vlassara. The advice is not to ban chicken but to change the way you cook it by opting for example for marinade. By letting the meat rest in lemon juice or vinegar for only 30 minutes before cooking, we create a protective barrier which halves the formation of AGEs. Favoring moist or gentler cooking allows you to maintain a young and supple liver.
Removing the skin drastically reduces the risks, but it is the brown crust (the chemical reaction born from grilling) which remains the real accelerator of old age for the cells. In fact, a grilled chicken breast, even without skin, contains many more age toxins than a poached or steamed chicken breast.
