Primally Inspired Real food, Natural Remedies, Holistic Living
Friday Favorites – Frozen Raw Liver Pills
Ummmmm, say what?! Before you think I’ve completely lost my mind, promise me you’ll at least hear me out on these frozen raw liver pills.
And just for the record, liver used to give me a major case of the heebie jeebies. Now I’m completely singing it’s praises. Literally. I’ve been telling everyone and anyone how much of a dramatic difference consuming liver has made in my life. I haven’t gone coo-coo, I promise. I can’t wait to tell you why I love this so much.
I’ve heard throughout the years that liver is so good for you, but truthfully, it’s always been pretty disgusting to me. I don’t like the taste or texture one bit. So taking these raw frozen liver pills is the only way I can get some liver in my life. If I can do these raw liver pills, anyone can.
But first let me tell you why you should be eating liver and then I’ll tell you my experience since making and taking the “pills.”
Liver from healthy animals (pastured, grass-fed, etc) is, gram for gram, the most nutrient dense food humans can eat. Because liver is kind of like a filter to filter out, clean and neutralize toxins, it’s equipped with mega doses of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to do it’s job properly. And just to clear a common misconception: liver does not store toxins – instead it stores a multitude of vitamins to do it’s super important job of cleaning the toxins from the blood so they can be expelled in the body.
I consider my liver pills my real food multi-vitamin. Here’s a little summary of some more reasons liver is so awesome, taken from the Weston A. Price Foundation:
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An excellent source of high quality protein.
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Nature’s most concentrated source of vitamin A.
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All the B vitamins in abundance, particularly vitamin B12.
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One of our best sources of folic acid.
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A highly usable form of iron.
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Trace elements such as copper, zinc and chromium; liver is our best source of copper.
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An unidentified anti-fatigue factor.
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CoQ10, a nutrient that is especially important for cardio-vascular function.
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A good source of purines, nitrogen-containing compounds that serve as precursors for DNA and RNA.
I have been taking my liver pills for a little over 3 months now. I noticed some pretty dramatic results, but I wanted to make sure I was 100% positive it was the liver doing these wonderful things and not some other factor(s). After 3 months, I’m convinced it’s the liver. I’m even going to go as far to say that taking these liver pills has given me the most dramatic difference diet-wise to date than anything in my life before. I know that’s a pretty heavy statement, but it’s 100% true.
Here’s the major differences I have noticed:
No more mood swings or PMS
My daily mood swings pretty much became extinct after following a Paleo/Real Food diet because I wasn’t on a blood sugar roller coaster anymore (hallelujah – read more of my story here). But, I would always know when “that time of the month” was coming because about 3 days before that time, I would get very irritable and moody. It was like clockwork. I didn’t even have to track my period because the day I got irritable I knew that time was coming 3 days later. But since I’ve been taking the liver pills, I have no more PMS symptoms. In fact, the first month that I was taking the pills, my period crept up on me and totally surprised me. I chalked it up to I had so much stuff going on in my life that maybe I just didn’t notice that I wasn’t irritable. But then it happened the next month and the month after that, too. I realized that this was no coincidence anymore. My painful cramps and ovarian cysts that I had every month disappeared, as well. After researching some more on liver, I found out that the abundant doses of bio available vitamin A,D and K were all contributing to optimum hormone production. It made sense to me now – my hormones were benefiting dramatically from these liver pills! And healthy hormones mean better sleep, less weight gain, better response to stress, and on and on the list goes.
Dramatic increase in energy
I’ve always been a fairly energetic person. Except in the winter. I suck in the winter. I thrive on sunshine and Vitamin D from the sun. I wrote a post back in the dead of winter about needing to supplement with vitamin D pills during the cold months. I get tired, sluggish, and an obvious lack of energy in the winter. My vitamin D pills do help, but nothing like the liver pills. These liver pills are like drinking a Red Bull energy drink. And I mean that in a good way (no shakes or sugar rush, obviously). I noticed a dramatic increase in energy after taking these pills for one week. I ditched my Vitamin D pills and use solely these liver pills. I seriously can’t believe the difference!
Crazy increase in cardiovascular stamina
All you athletes and competitors better listen up for this one. You won’t believe this! I told my husband that I think the liver pills are giving me crazy energy – like superhero energy. We love to go on long mountain bike rides together, but I had a hard time keeping up with him the whole time. Not speed wise, but cardiovascular wise. Long distance cardio is and always has been a challenge for me. I like to tease and say my muscles are all made up of fast twitch muscle fibers because I excel in sprinting and high intensity interval fitness. However, long distance running or biking? Forget about it. I’m not very good at long distance stuff at all. But ever since I’ve been taking these liver pills, I can seriously just go and go. I feel like the energizer bunny and I’m not even kidding. I can more than keep up on our long mountain bike rides now. I also take cardio kickboxing once a week. It always kicks my butt, gets my heart rate pretty high, makes me sweat a lot and I just love pushing my body like this. But ever since the liver pills, my cardio kickboxing class is like a walk in park. I barely break a sweat anymore. And my lifting? Let’s just say I had to go out and buy bigger kettlebells because my other ones are too easy now (so serious!).
I know you are probably reading this and thinking I’m full of you-know-what right now and saying this is too good to be true (hey, I probably would be, too). But I’m 100% serious. This was such a dramatic difference that I went online to see if anyone else had this type of experience because I almost couldn’t believe it myself. Could these little liver pills really do this? Low and behold, what I was experiencing is valid and many others experienced this same type of thing! In fact, there’s even a name for it. Liver contains something scientists call the “anti-fatigue factor” and it’s still a mystery to them.
Check this crazy research experiment out and it will all make sense (at least it did to me):
The experiment divided laboratory rats into three groups. The first ate a basic diet, fortified with 11 vitamins. The second ate the same diet, along with an additional supply of vitamin B complex. The third ate the original diet, but instead of vitamin B complex received 10 percent of rations as powdered liver.
After several weeks, the animals were placed one by one into a drum of cold water from which they could not climb out. They literally were forced to sink or swim. Rats in the first group swam for an average 13.3 minutes before giving up. The second group, which had the added fortifications of B vitamins, swam for an average of 13.4 minutes. Of the last group of rats, the ones receiving liver, three swam for 63, 83 and 87 minutes. The other nine rats in this group were still swimming vigorously at the end of two hours when the test was terminated. Something in the liver had prevented them from becoming exhausted. To this day scientists have not been able to pin a label on this anti-fatigue factor.
I am totally like one of those little rats in the last experiment swimming away in water without getting tired! Isn’t that so crazy?
So now I’m hoping you can see why I am so excited about these liver pills! And I noticed all these differences before doing the research that confirmed my same results – it’s not just “in my head.”
Okay, so now you may be wondering how to make these liver pills. The most important thing is to get some good quality liver. The cool part is that liver is so inexpensive because most Americans don’t eat it. I got my pastured, completely grass-fed beef liver for $2 a pound!
How to make your own frozen raw liver pills:
If your liver is frozen, thaw it slightly, but don’t thaw it completely. If it’s not frozen, place it in the freezer until it hardens a little. This will make the cutting process so much easier. Next you want to cut it into little pea-size pieces – about the size of a regular pill. This is very tedious and time consuming, but it will make a ton of little pills, so you’ll be set for awhile! Once you have all the pills cut, you want to flash freeze them so they don’t all clump together and make it close to impossible to break apart. You flash freeze them by placing them in a single layer (make sure they are not touching each other) and freeze them for 15 minutes. Once they are flash frozen, you can store them in an airtight container or bag. Keep them in the freezer. Easy peasy.
I take 3 or 4 of my raw frozen liver pills every day. I swallow them frozen and down them with liquid just like I would any other pill.
If you are scared about consuming raw meat, know this: Parasites and other pathogens are eliminated after being frozen for 14 days.
If you have any questions, let me know and I will do my best to answer them!
So…you then just swallow them whole like a pill? Can’t stand liver but could so use the benefits!!
Yes! Just swallow them whole with some liquid just like a regular pill!
What if you were to blend up the liver and put it into capsule form and freeze it as a capsule? Any thoughts on this?
That’s exactly what I was wondering! My blender always saves me from the evil (but healthy) foods I can’t actually make myself eat, lol! What do you think, Kelly?
My first thought also! However, I often times hear that blending at any speed can start to break down nutrients, and can quickly start heating whatever the blended item is. There’s probably something more powerful and significant to leaving it raw. Although, if it makes it easier for you to swallow the liver, more power to you. It’s still a 100 times better taking it not completely raw than not taking it at all.
Great post! I’ve heard about the wonders of raw liver but (obviously) found it difficult to eat. I, too, am one of those people who throw all my favorite health foods into my smoothie. However, let me warn you that raw liver should not be one of those! Ewww. Tastes like a bloody smoothie–and no, I’m not using British slang. Even using a small amount, the taste is not greatly disguised. Frozen pills… may have to try that.
I actually just got some from my local grass-fed butcher. I chopped it all up into maybe Brazil-nut sized pieces. Put them into ziploc bags with 7 each and froze all but one. Put one into my dog’s food everyday. Excellent source of inexpensive nutrition! And of course, he’s not bothered by the raw liver flavor.
Hi, I am on the GAPS diet and have a very sensitive stomach and several food sensitivities, gluten, grain,dairy, seeds and nuts. I avoid meat that has been roasted, generally because its too tough to digest. Would you still reccomend trying these raw liver pills?
Hi there! Do you take cod liver oil as well?
Hi Nic, I do in the winter!
Do you get the benefit if they are in chunks rather than ground up?
yes, definitely!
Ithought things that are liquefied are most easily absorbed?
I am totally trying this. Like, I am going out right now to buy some liver. I can not even wait!!!!
haha!!
This is very interesting. I would normally never try things like this, but I’ll definitely consider this. Is grass-fed liver just at your normal healthy grocery store/co-op?
About freezing pathogens, I did just see this on NPR:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/04/04/176242166/freezing-food-doesnt-kill-e-coli-and-other-germs
Hi Sierra! I buy it at my local organic, grass-fed only farm. If your liver isn’t grass-fed, I would definitely eat it cooked and not raw.
If non grass fed liver is all I can get I should cook it in one piece and when its cooled follow the instructions as shown to flash freeze etc. …..is that right?
Yes, you got it!
There are online stores that offer grass fed meats. A great one is US Wellness Meats. I’d say go with grass fed or nothing at all. It’s pretty critical when eating organ meats particularly liver.
that is only meat that is allowed to thaw before consuming
Organic, humanly raised grass fed (beef) of course, but chicken or beef?
Thanks
Lora
Lora, any is wonderful. Beef beats out chicken liver as far as nutrients go. But they both are wonderful!
I found a comparison chart here (scroll about halfway down the page and you’ll see it): http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/liver-files
Just FYI – I noticed they are comparing unequal amounts of chicken and beef liver in the chart. When you compare them equally, chicken liver is nearly as good (but you’re right, beef liver is still better ;)).
Good eye!!
I am willing to bet that rabbit liver is equally good if not better. I raise meat rabbits and I have heard how nutritious they are but haven’t been able to bring myself to eat liver. I can close my eyes and swallow pills lol
Yes!! Perfect!
But NOT wild rabbits. Their livers should not even be touched because they carry a disease that humans can be harmed by.
Hi there 🙂 Question for you since I didn’t scroll all the way down before trying LOL I got chicken liver from the store that is certified humane and no antibiotics etc, but not pastured.. I made the little pills and took 4 this morning.. My question is, do I panic now or later LOL
After reading your ‘definately cooked’ comment I downed kefir whey and lacto fermented pickle juice in hopes the probiotics would help counteract any potential pathogens.. But now I am worried. Any ideas on what the chances are it could be bad? Took them about 45 min ago. I appreciate your help, and my apologies for the tinge of panic to the message 😉
I wouldn’t worry, Dianne! 🙂 Personally, I would still take the certified humane and no antibiotics raw livers with probiotics/kombucha/sauerkraut. If there was a BEST, BETTER, GOOD Option, you still got a good option with no antibiotics and certified humane. Or if you are uneasy, just cook them up and then next time find pasture raised livers. And if this makes you feel any better – more pathogens are found on and make people sick eating raw spinach than any other food 😉
Do you just swallow these whole, or do you have to chew them up? This would be a deciding factor for me!
Theresa if you read the article, it clearly says “I swallow them with liquid just like I would any other pill.”
I updated the post after her question once I realized I didn’t specify that. Hope you don’t think you’re going crazy, Theresa because it wasn’t there when you originally read it lol 🙂
Swallow them whole just like any other swallowable pill. There’s no way in heck I could chew them up – I’d definitely gag! LOL
Where are you purchasing the liver? I’ve been anemic my entire life and am willing to try anything that will work 🙂
I have read wonderful things about taking liver for people who are anemic! I bought the liver from my local grass-fed farm. If you don’t have a local organic farm, Tropical Traditions and US Wellness Meats both have grass-fed liver online. Good luck 🙂
I don’t know if you have a Whole Foods near you, but I was able to buy 2 pounds of grass fed beef liver from my WF’s butcher counter for about $5/lb. Not as cheap as $2, but really easy to find! 🙂
Do you take all 3 or 4 at once or spread them out throughout your day? Have you noticed any difference between taking them once or taking them at different times in the day?
I take them all at once, usually in the morning with my breakfast. Sometimes I’ll take them twice day but I haven’t really noticed a better or worse difference when I take them twice a day. For me, these supply an all-around daily energy increase – not a big dose of energy right after I take them.
@Theresa, I found this right at the end of the article 😉
“I take 3 or 4 of my raw frozen liver pills every day. I swallow them with liquid just like I would any other pill.”
Have you noticed any changes with your sleep pattern since you have so much more energy now? Interesting stuff! Thanks!
Thanks for bringing this up! I should have touched on sleep since I bragged so much about all the energy I have. I don’t want people to be scared thinking they’ll never get any sleep if they take these because it’s completely the opposite!
Sleep is a completely hormonal process. Because liver dramatically helps our hormones and our hormone production, you will actually sleep better! Melatonin is the hormone that regulates our sleep and it depends on proper production during our waking hours to release properly at night.
I didn’t touch on this in my article because I never really had a sleeping problem so it wasn’t like I noticed a crazy, dramatic difference. I do wake up full of energy, but when it’s time to sleep, I sleep very well. I’m willing to bet that if anyone does have a sleeping problem, liver should really help because sleep is hormone driven.
Hi Kelly!
I finally have it! My liver is defrosting in the fridge. I just received the package yesterday from a very caring farmer/butcher in Ontario. I had to make a large order of beef though because the liver can’t be shipped alone. So now I have a freezer full of ground, stewing beef and a few roasts. I also gave some steaks to my family.
I’m excited to try these pills… I have a sleep disorder… Narcolepsy. Not the sudden sleep attacks like most people know it as. Just a slew of disordered sleep symptoms which leave me feeling excessively fatigued and unwell. A few years ago I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I just never feel fully awake or strong enough to carry myself. I have also gained some weight since I got a desk job five years ago. But exercise hurts me a lot! So maintaining my weight is difficult. I also suffer from really bad PMS symptoms. It hits my whole body and interferes with my plans.
I’ve been eager to try these liver pills since I first started reading your blog. I will write a post on my own blog in 4-6 months about whether the liver pills help me feel better. And how much it changes my energy, sleep & hormone cycles. I will also direct people back to your post where I got the original idea and thorough information.
Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Angélique
Hi Angelique! Woohoo! So glad you were able to find some 😀 And I hope you will keep me posted — I’m crossing my fingers that this will be a big help to you and will be a positive step forward in your health! Can’t wait to hear back from you in a few months! xoxo, Kelly
Would eating cooked liver give the same benefits? I actually really like cooked liver.
Yes eating cooked liver is wonderful and one of the best things you can eat! Raw liver has a small advantage because of all the enzymes you get. Cooking destroys these enzymes, but you are still getting all that wonderful nutrition no matter how you eat it!
I wish I actually liked cooked liver – maybe one day!!
Perhaps making liver pate with ample amounts of bacon, mushrooms, butter and fresh herbs would do the trick for you! It does for my husband who hates liver but loves my pate.
Beth- would love ur recipe for this pate!
I too would love the recipe…
a great recipe for cooked liver.
for the record, I HATE the way most cooked liver tasted, so I was thrilled when I found this way of cooking it. I’m not sure if I developed it, or if I found it somewhere.
cut liver in roughly 1 inch square pieces. A bit tedious, but it’s best.
fill a plastic sack with flour and salt to taste. put liver pieces in there to coat and then place in pan, heated with lots of coconut oil and butter, melted and hot, and cook over medium. By the time you have all the little pieces in there, it’s time to take a fork and turn them over. Don’t overcook. Stay at the stove. Let them get a little crispy.
Before you do all this, cook up a batch of sliced onions, and cook till caramelized, in the same fats mentioned. Have sour cream handy for the next step.
After you take the meat out of the pan and put it on the plate along with plenty of the cooked onions, deglaze the pan with a whopping spoon(or spoons) of sour cream. Mix with the crusty bit and fat in the pan. YUM. Pour over your liver and onions, and you will think you died and went to heaven. I’ve had TEENS say, it tastes like steak.
If you are a bit put off by a strong smell when washing/cutting up the meat, soak it in water with vinegar for a while and it will be more pleasant smelling. Enjoy!!
Thank you, Linda!!!
what type of liver should i be looking for chicken, beef ? – what do you mean by flash frozen? have you found taking liver pills to help with skin and hair ? also do i need to wait the whole 14 days after freezing before ingesting them? thanks!
Crystal – any liver from pastured animals is really good! I choose beef because I can get it very easily from my local farm and it contains slightly higher nutrients than chicken livers. Flash frozen just means freezing it in a single layer for a quick time (15 minutes) before putting it in your permanent container. If you don’t do this, the liver pills will all stick/clump together in your container and it’ll be so frustrating trying to get them out. My liver was already frozen when I bought it from the farm, so I didn’t wait the 14 days. Almost always, beef liver will come already frozen.
For the skin/hair – my roots are growing crazy fast!!! Even my hair stylist took notice. Ahhh!!! I know that means my hair is healthier, but that means I need to get my hair done more often :/
I must be in a difficult mood, haven’t eaten enough liver. Just want to correct you on “flash frozen”. Here’s Wiki’s definition: “Flash freezing refers to the process in various industries whereby objects are quickly frozen by subjecting them to cryogenic temperatures, or in direct contact with Liquid nitrogen at -320.8F or -196°C.
For example, flash freezing is used in the food industry to quickly freeze perishable food items (see frozen food). In this case, food items are subjected to temperatures well below water’s melting/freezing point (32°F or 0°C), causing the water inside the foods to freeze in a very short period without forming large crystals, thus avoiding damage to cell membranes.” What you are suggesting is freezing “IQF”, Individually Quick Frozen. Sorry, I was in the food business for >20 years and couldn’t resist:)
Do you take liver raw because it has the highest health benefits? What about powdered like in the rat study?
Yes, raw liver has the best health benefits. You’ll still get great benefits when it’s cooked, but nutritionally speaking you can’t beat out raw liver and the enzymes you get when consuming it raw. If cutting up raw liver isn’t your thing, these powder and pills are such a great option (I take these while traveling) http://amzn.to/1yjQXx8 They are sourced from grass-fed, pasture raised animals!
Liver gives me serious full body shivers! But I’m willing to try this. I just bought my liver, cut it up, flash freezing it right now. But will wait s few weeks before taking them. Not only for bacteria reasons, but I’m water fasting right now.
Good for you for being brave enough to try it! I should have mentioned in my post that I stared at that hunk of liver in my freezer a good few months before I was brave enough to do anything about it! Although, if I knew how great I would feel, I would have done it way sooner!
whats water fasting?
Darlene, A water fast is consuming nothing but water for a designated period of time.
I vomited the last few times I tried liver (even battered, fried, and dipped in ketchup, with my nose plugged), so I was really nervous about this. The first time I took the liver pills (with my nose plugged) I gagged a bit but managed to keep it all down. The next time I put a paper clip on my nose so it could stay completely plugged the whole time and had some food ready to cleanse my mouth with before unplugging my nose. I’m on day 6 and it didn’t seem too bad today.
If it makes you feel any better, I’ve been doing this for over a year now and I still gag on these pills every once in awhile. LOL! Glad it’s getting easier 🙂
what type of liver should i be looking for chicken, beef ? – what do you mean by flash frozen? have you found taking liver pills to help with skin and hair ? also do i need to wait the whole 14 days after freezing before ingesting them? thanks!
Did you ever tried desiccated liver pills (usually from NZ grass-fed beef) ? I wonder if you would have the same result! I’ve been taking those since then 80’s. But I will definitely try this.
Actually I was going to do the desiccated liver pills after hearing a seminar about the wonders of liver because I never liked liver but wanted the benefits. Then I came across a book (Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon Morrell) that suggested cutting up frozen raw liver and taking it in pill form. I’m thinking the desiccated liver pills would be very similar results since it’s grass-fed beef liver. Have you noticed a difference energy wise since taking the pills?
Yes I have this book also, it’s a good one! TBH my energy levels are really great so I cannot honestly say I see a difference with or without the liver pills. I eat organic/BIO, grass-fed, wild game meat/fishes, raw free-roaming eggs, raw grass-fed milk, no grains, lots of vegetables, fruits in season,lots of sun without sunblock etc. So with this pretty clean diet I think I have plenty of A, D, E, K, B-6, B-12. But I remember when I started taking those in the 80’s (when food pyramid was promoting grains/carbs and we didn’t knew better) that I saw a huge difference!
I was wondering if there are any studies that show benefits for pregnant women and liver consumption. This sounds like the perfect prenatal vitamin. Is there any concern with the liver being raw?
got my beef liver from whole foods today but it wasnt frozen so i flash froze like you said, should i wait the 14 days to start using it ?
Hi Crystal! I think I would, but it’s completely up to you and what makes you comfortable. I get mine from a farm I know and completely trust so I am not too concerned about the 14 day thing. But that’s me!
I was wondering if these would be good for women during pregnancy? They seem like the perfect prenatal vitamin. Is there any concern with the liver being raw?
Hi Jon! Yes, this is the perfect pre-natal vitamin and is strongly recommended for pregnant women (and their babies when they’re born!)by the books and nutrition seminars I’ve attended. The Nourishing Traditions Book of Baby and Child Care by Sally Fallon Morell (founder of the Weston Price Foundation) recommends pregnant women eat liver in some form (either cooked or raw) at least twice a week during pregnancy. The high doses of Vitamin A and K are critical for the development of the baby’s bone structure, teeth, blood and brain. Not only will the liver help build a healthy baby, but it will give the pregnant mother strength and stamina for her pregnancy.
If a woman was concerned about it being raw, I’d just cook it. Either way, it’s amazing for both mom and baby!
Thanks you so much for blazing this trail and showing us how it is done. I am so grateful for your blog.
Could you do the same thing with beef heart?
Yes!
I somehow got turned onto this article via FB. I just want to say thanks! I read this article a couple days ago and went out to the farmer’s market today and got some killer grass-fed buffalo liver. I followed your directions and am seriously looking forward to seeing what these “pills” can do for me. Awesome blog!
Buffalo liver is even more amazing! I wish I could find some around me! I hope you experience similar results as me 🙂
Hi Kelly – Thank you so much for this article! I showed my partner and he is convinced as well as I! We can’t wait to try it!!
I was wondering about the 14 days of freezing and whether I should wait or not before taking the pills? I bought some chicken liver as it was all that i could find and it was not frozen when i bought it. Am thinking of waiting just to be on the safe side. What are your thoughts?
Hi Bec, awesome! I hope you both experience similar experiences I have 🙂
Here’s my personal view on the 14 days thing. I didn’t wait 14 days. But my beef liver was already frozen. Honestly, even if it wasn’t frozen, I wouldn’t have waited the 14 days because I know and trust my farm completely. I also have done a lot of research/statistics on e. coli and other parasites of grain fed vs. completely grass fed (industrial vs. grass fed)and I am not at all worried about my liver from my farm. The statistics are so low on grass fed meat that it doesn’t worry me in the least. But that’s just me.
If you have any hesitations, I’d wait, though! lol, that probably didn’t help you at all! 🙂
Thanks Kelly! I dont really have the same trust in my meat sources as you to eat it raw unfortunately. I am finding it really hard to find somewhere in Australia that stocks pasture-fed chicken. I researched the Chicken Assoc website of Australia and that says that even organic chickens here are grain-fed, just not with the pesticides and insecticides that broiler and free-range chickens are subject to. Makes it so hard living in the city sometimes when farmer’s markets are in the same location every 4 weeks and you end up driving half way across the city in heavy traffic every weekend to get to one! Sorry – rant over!
I actually had another questions as well. I have been hearing many things about Fermented Cod Liver oil lately. It is recommended in the Auto-immune 30-day plan in the book ‘Practical Paleo’, which I intend to start in the next few weeks. What are your views on this and do you think that these liver pills would replace that? Sorry for the essay i have written here! Probably should have just emailed you! Bec 🙂
Hi Bec! Cod Liver Oil is good stuff (especially fermented!). This is a supplement I try to remember to take at least twice a week (it doesn’t taste good so I “forget” about taking it a lot! lol. But truthfully since I started taking the liver pills, I’ve REALLY slacked on the cod liver oil). Personally, I don’t notice a huge, dramatic difference like I did the liver pills, but I know it’s having a positive impact with my immune system (I haven’t had a cold or flu in over 8 years!), my moods, reducing inflammation and my hormone health. I think the really important thing for people to remember is to get a good quality cod liver oil and fermented cod liver oil is the absolute best. Taking an inferior version can actually do more harm than good (can cause more inflammation) because the oil can easily go rancid through the filtering and processing. Most companies use a chemical or heat process to extract the oil – by doing that, it voids out almost all the nutrients and then damages the oil. Then when we consume the damaged oil, it causes oxidative damage and inflammation in our body. So if you’re going to spend the money on a cod liver oil, personally, I’d definitely make sure it’s a good one.
I think women thinking of conceiving in the next year or two, pregnant and nursing women and babies, children should most definitely be consuming a good quality cod liver oil and taking liver. Building up your Vitamin A stores is key for producing a healthy, strong, smart baby and cod liver oil and liver will definitely do that!
Here’s an article by Chris Kresser about which brands he recommends (I go back and forth between the Green Pastures Fermented one and a brand from my Amish natural health store that is in a dark bottle in the fridge called Vit-Ra-Tox Old Fashioned Cod Liver Oil). http://chriskresser.com/the-definitive-fish-oil-buyers-guide
I basically stopped taking the cod liver once I started taking the liver pills and I most likely will not buy another bottle once my cod liver oil runs out (unless I decide to get pregnant!). I noticed much more of a difference with the liver pills so I’ll stick with them and just make sure to eat good sources of fish a few times a week.
Hope that helps! 🙂 Kelly
Hi, I noticed your write up about the Lancaster Co. Farmers market. I live in Delaware co. Pa. I buy bison from Backyard Bison ( seeFB page) a local rancher in SE Pa. His animals are humanely raised , grass fed and pastured. He visits local Farmers Markets. I know he goes to Phoenixville, Havertown, and other markets in the area. I make my bone broth with the bones I purchase from his ranch. It is delicious. You can seethe full list of meats on his FB page.
That’s great to know, Diane! Thank you! I know a lot of people in your area so this will be great information to pass along. Thank you!
Hi, I live in your area and am wondering where do you buy your meat? I have been buying it frozen from Locust Point Farms but am interested in knowing if there is another option.
Thanks.
Hi Jodi, I buy mine from Locust Point, as well! Rumbleway Farms (in Conowingo) is another option, but I find them more expensive. I go to Haass Family Butcher down in Dover, DE every once in awhile, too. While no one there has confirmed it’s 100% grassfed or pastured (I always get waited on by the teenagers down there and they don’t know too much. lol), I can tell just by looking and the taste of the meat, that it’s good quality. They are by far the most inexpensive I’ve found anywhere. Haass is also where Locust Point and Rumbleway send their meat to get butchered and packaged.
Thank you. THANK YOU!!!
I’ve been anemic my whole life; can’t really tolerate supplements as they make me terribly constipated. Liver is SO horrible to eat that I can rarely bring myself to do it. This is so clever! I’m great at taking pills, so I’ll start this right away.
PERFECT!!! 🙂
Do you know or think it’s safe to take these raw while pregnant? We’re warned not to eat sushi, isn’t the frozen thing the same concept?
Hey Crystal! All the books that I’ve read say not to worry about raw liver while pregnant IF you get it from grass-fed, reputable sources. I definitely wouldn’t consume it raw while pregnant if you get it from a store – even if it says organic. Organic just means it wasn’t treated with hormones or antibiotics (which is great!), but unless it specifically says grass-fed, it’s most likely still industrialized beef from feedlot cows. I’ve seen the statistics of eating raw liver from grass fed cows from reputable farms and you have a better chance getting ill from raw fruit/vegetables from a store than you do from grass fed only meats from a reputable farm.
BUT, if it’s something you are not comfortable with or doesn’t sit right with you (and I totally get that – everyone has their own comfort level), just eat it cooked. You can make pills like these from cooked liver, too and you’ll still get the benefits.
what about hep c? isn’t that a risk eating meat raw?
To be safe I would cook it. Adelle Davis, very famous Naturopath from the 50’s in her book Let’s Get Well, advises that liver is one of the best foods you can eat and advises to cook it one way or another, it is better to be safe than sorry. It is very beneficial cooked so why not just cook it. As far as giving you energy, “hell yes, it sure does”.
Years ago Weight Watchers used to recommend you take a desiccated liver tablet when you are on one of their diets, I did this and remember doing an hour step class and feeling so energised from the Liver Tab, I could have kept going.
Now cant get this product in Australia, it is banned. I am planning on doing the drying of the liver, in the oven thing on a slow cook, like beef jerky, but I will be cooking it.
I’ve been following your blog for a while now–love it! This was well timed for me. I’ve really wanted to get into organ meats but they just give me the heebie jeebies. This is a brilliant solution!
I got some liver today, just finished flash freezing it. I will certainly report back on positive benefits in a few weeks, too 🙂
A note to those also about to try this: Don’t let it sit in your fridge/thaw too long. Aside from how much grosser it got to handle, it was also harder to work with, and took longer to flash freeze (which is pretty obvious, I suppose). So, if you’re kinda iffy on it (like me) take note 🙂
Perfect and thanks so much for pointing out that tip, Laura! Mine got fairly slippery and gross to handle at the end, too and yuck yuck yuck! I was kinda grossed out and thankful that yucky job was over with. At least the beef liver makes a ton of pills so I don’t have to deal with it for another few months!!
Do you have an Instagram? I just posted my liver “pills” on you and did a #primallyinspired hashtag since I couldn’t tag you. Anyway, I am hoping these produce the same wonderful results as you! I am training for Tough Mudder and live in low elevation and will be doing it in high elevation. Hoping to pump up the red blood cells so I don’t die! Can’t wait to see how this works!
Hi,
When I mention to people that liver is good to eat they always tell well it is high in cholesterol and if you have cholesterol, what do you do?
Thanks,
Bonnie
Hi Bonnie! My answer is going to be kind of long so I hope I don’t bore you 🙂
Old studies told us that eating foods high in cholesterol gave us high cholesterol. Then the media went crazy telling people don’t eat high cholesterol foods and it scared people into not eating really nutritious foods like eggs, meat and liver. BUT these studies and theories have been proven not scientifically true! Eating foods high in cholesterol do NOT give us high cholesterol and it’s such a common misconception so I can see why people still think this.
The majority of our cholesterol is produced inside our bodies by our liver. Only a very small percentage actually comes from our food! In fact, most of the cholesterol from food can’t even be absorbed by our body.
Our liver has an important job of making sure we always have the right balance of cholesterol in our body. Cholesterol is actually a good thing – it helps manage our hormones, repairs our cells and aids in the digestion of food. The crazy thing is when we eat more cholesterol, it means our liver makes less. When we eat less cholesterol, our liver needs to make more to get that right balance. The reason your liver would produce abnormally high levels of cholesterol is from systemic inflammation – the liver is forced to pump out more and more cholesterol to manage inflammation, fight infections and repair your damaged tissues.
And there’s a few causes of systemic inflammation, but the most common are refined sugars and processed carbs. I’ve seen so many people follow a real food diet (with plenty of eggs and liver!) and totally get off all cholesterol medication. Some other causes of inflammation are stress and not enough sleep.
So the most important thing for people to do that have abnormally high cholesterol numbers are to minimize the inflammation in the body and the best way to do this is to ditch the processed food and eat real food…..and eat plenty of liver 😉
**Just want to put a disclaimer on here: I am not a doctor and I am not trying to treat, cure, or diagnose**
Thank you so much for your information on high cholesterol. Yes, I have a lot of stress in my life and I have to try to control it. Also, I love white rice and bread but its hard to stay away :(. Thanks again!
This is so interesting. I’m pretty sure my body could benefit from eating/taking these liver pills. However, I’m concerned about my ability to digest them. I don’t eat much meat as of now, mostly because I have gastroparesis (slow stomach emptying). I know there are a lot of digestive enzymes that are released when you chew food and it seems swallowing these whole would bypass these wonderful enzymes that are produced in your saliva from chewing. What are your experiences in digesting these liver pills? Thanks!
Hi Lauren!
Here’s my take on this issue: We should thoroughly chew cooked foods so those beneficial enzymes that were destroyed in cooking are released in the chewing process. But when liver is raw like this, it already contains all those great enzymes. I don’t have a problem at all digesting this raw liver, but if you think this might be an issue for you, I would suggest washing it down with some kombucha. I usually take my liver pills with kombucha for an added double whammy 🙂
This is really timely for me to bump into this information since I just had 4 iron labs and I’m very low across the board. Thyroid is off, too, and that’s tied in with the low iron, so this might help!
I’m in SE Michigan and I’ve got to research where to get the liver, I might have to order it and not sure how that will work in hot weather, but the only thing I’m concerned about is that I’ve read freezing doesn’t kill 100% of parasites, there are some that survive it well enough to make you sick. Off the top of my head I’m not sure what specific bugs they are, but I’m definitely going to consider consuming it raw/frozen, and it’s good to know I can do it cooked. Maybe even medium-rare would be enough so that it’s not turned into leather. I remember being forced to eat liver when I was little and 35+ years later it still makes me gag just thinking about it. 😉
In SE Michigan, check out John Henry’s at the Royal Oak Farmer’s Market. They will also deliver. Their website is: http://www.johnhenrys.net.
Thanks, Lauren!
Thanks for posting this – I have a feeling John Henry is going to be my new best friend.
Go to http://www.eatwild.com. Click on the tab in the top left that says “shop for local grass fed meat, eggs & dairy”. It will direct u to a U.S. map. Click on your state and it will give you all of the places to obtain humanely raised, grass fed meat along with their location and contact info. Awesome resource! 😀
BTW…Kelly- LOVE ur blog and love watching ur videos in the “Real Food For Busy People” class. U r so stinking cute and ur energy is infectious! U inspire me! Thank u! 🙂
Awww, thank you Kris!!! Made me blush lol 😀
I’ve purchased dessicated liver from Radiant Life, 6 pills equals an ounce of raw liver. What I’m trying to figure out is how much liver per day or week is ideal to consume. I can’t seem to find dosage information anywhere!
Angie, The Perfect Health Diet recommends 1/4 lb. (or 4 oz.) of liver a week, so, using their guidelines, you would need to take 24 pills a week.
I tried this once using grass fed organic lamb liver and had an upset stomach, did I do something wrong? Any advice? Xx
Do you think raw liver would be safe to consume while pregnant? I have some liver that meets the above requirements, and has been frozen for more than 14 days, but am still worried it may have negative effects for the baby. Thoughts??
I am 5 days in on this liver pill process….and people do look at me like I’m cray cray when I tell them what I’m up to….lol….It is important to make sure your frozen pills aren’t too big to swallow because you got tired of cutting them up. I would like to know, like Angie….what the perfect dose is per day or week in ounces as I’m a tiny bit worried about Vit A overdose.
LOL! You totally hit the nail on the head about not making the pills too big. I got so impatient and sick of cutting those darn little pills that they started getting bigger and bigger as time went on. lol. Now I have to gag down those big ones. Not fun!!
But to answer your question – the recommended dose for beef liver is about 4 ounces 1-2 times a week. That 4 oz. provides us with about 50,000 IU Vitamin A. Chicken livers have a lower vitamin A count so you can eat them more often. I’ve been taking 3-4 pills a day and that equals about 1 serving of beef liver per week.
Vitamin A overdoses are not something you should worry about if you are eating Vitamin A from real food sources. The studies from Vitamin A overdoses are based on big doses of synthetic vitamin A. To my knowledge there is only one example of Vitamin A toxicity from real food sources and that was from a group of Artic explorers that were consuming millions of IU of Vitamin A every day from polar bear and seal livers.
The toxic dosage that you should worry about are consuming 100,000 IU per day for many many months. That equals out to consuming almost a pound of beef liver every single day for many months in a row. (haha, that’s never going to happen over here!!)
Thank you so much for your detailed answer! Loving your website and just made the browned butter choc chip cookies…..LOVED them ….they were/are a hit!
Woo!! Thank you so much for your kind words – I loved waking up to such a nice comment this morning 🙂
What about pig liver? Pastured, but also fed organic, non soy grain. Due to be butchered in a few weeks.
Yes, from pastured pigs, that’d be great!
I would like to order some of your liver pills. Don’t see anywhere to place an order.
Thank you so much for posting this, I just got my hands on about 9 lbs of liver from my half cow I purchased LOL! I was scratching me head wondering what to do with it. Now, what can I do with the rest of the organs 😉
Loved this post and have always considered incorporating more aspects of a “zombie” diet of eating organ meats due to their high nutrition superfood qualities. But it’s as you’ve said, liver tends to just be a bit gross to handle, am glad someone’s devised an alternative intake method :).
My only question on this would be volume. By popping 3-4 pill sized pieces, would that be a substantial enough amount of liver? I can’t imagine it to equal more than 1oz as opposed to a general 4-6oz serving of liver and onions (pretty sure my roommates aren’t going to like me and the lady cooking this up and smelling up the apartment lol).
Thanks for this post!
Hey Tim!
The recommended dosage of liver is 4-6 oz just 1 or 2 times a week. I’m figuring that taking 4 of these pills daily x 7 days a week equals out to roughly 4 oz of liver (of course, this depends on how big or small you cut the pills, too). So I would get the recommended weekly dosage of 1 serving of liver. If you have issues like adrenal issues or autoimmune conditions (chronic fatigue, fibro, etc.), I would double the dosage so you’d be getting 2 servings of liver a week.
Hope that helps a little!
PI, that helps immensely! I was thinking “a liver a day keeps the doctor away” but this makes a lot more sense. I can’t imagine anyone in any context or setting eating 4-6oz of liver on a daily basis lol.
thanks for the prompt reply! It’s very much appreciated.
If you were to do this with a beef heart, would you do the same 3 or 4 “pills” a day?
Took my first liver “pills” this morning!!
You go girl!!! You’ll be bouncing around in no time at all – maybe even do one of my workouts 😉
LOL I knew you were going to say that!! I sure hope so. Need something to pep me up our “June Gloom” isn’t helping. Luckily it isn’t too bad this year.
Hello! I am so excited to try this! The only thing I am confused about is what kind of air tight container are you supposed to use? Can I like put them in a zip lock bad and squeeze the air out myself? How do you keep them from stinking together once in the container? Thank so much!! Look forward to hearing back so I can start doing this, so I’ll be checking my email lol!!
A zip lock bag is perfect!
Flash freezing them (freezing them in a single layer for 15 minutes before sticking them all together in the zip lock bag), will prevent them from sticking all together in the bag.
Good luck with it!!! 🙂
Hello, I deff have to wait 14 days before eating it if I’m going to eat it raw right ? & also does it stay good forever in freezer ? & also, cooked liver pills would not have same benefit for energy etc. I guess right ? Thanks
Hi Peter! If you aren’t concerned about pathogens, you wouldn’t have to wait 14 days. I got my liver from a very reputable source and truthfully, I wasn’t concerned about waiting 14 days. I would think it would stay good in the freezer for about a year (like any meat). Cooked liver has amazing health benefits (one of the best things we can eat if it’s from a healthy animal!), but I’ve heard from multiple people that raw liver does wonders for their energy levels that cooked does not. I know a lot of the B vitamins get destroyed in the cooking process, which could be why the cooked liver doesn’t have the same energy benefits. Hope that helps!
Yes it does thanks !!
This post and all the responses are amazing info. Question: MY iron #’s are super low and I do have inflammatory disease.. I bought frozen chicken livers.. had to thaw out to cut them- Is it OK to refreeze them?
Thanks for your awesome info!!
I was 25 + yrs veggie- and ate some – though fried just last night.
With tons of ginger, garlic, lemon & salt.
T
Sorry for above post- I reread your page..I saw you did thaw a little and refreeze. I guess I was asking is it SAFE to refreeze. I had always heard not to do that. Can you include some info on that?
Have you put them in a smoothie? If so, can you include a recipe where you didn’t notice the taste?
Again, THX
Hello! I went and got my grass fed liver from whole foods market, yesterday and I’m ready to do this! But, how do you keep them from sticking together after their cut and in the freezer I’m wondering? thanks!
Never mind lol! I seen my question I posted before got answered already 🙂
oh good 🙂
Would you get the same effect from dehydrating the liver? I know I read somewhere from someone who did that and encapsulated it (or is that what dessicated means?) I wasn’t sure if low-temp dehydrating would still preserve the enzymes that are beneficial.
I was wondering the same thing, what if we dehydrated it?
I really want to try this but don’t know if I could swallow them lol. Do you know if they make a powdered liver pill similar to what the mice ate in the above study? Thanks for this great info!
whats water fasting
I am going to try this but i am worried that it is going to taste bad.
You can’t taste it, I promise! You might gag, though. lol. I still gag when I take them 🙂
Will you have the same desired results by having cooked liver on a regular basis!
Hi Joyce! Cooked liver is amazing nutritionally (one of the best foods we can eat!), but I have heard from so many people that consume both cooked liver and raw liver pills that they don’t get the energy like they do with the raw liver pills.
Have the liver pills replaced any/all other vitamin supplements you may have been taking? Just curious if I should continue taking a multi vitamin and my B12 supplement?
Also, am I reading correctly that you do NOT recommend using liver found in the grocery store unless I plan on cooking it??
Thanks so much!
Hi Kristina! The liver pills have personally replaced all the vitamin supplements I was taking. Raw liver is especially loaded with B vitamins (which is why people notice a big energy increase) 🙂 Some of the B Vitamins get destroyed if you cook it, but you can be sure that raw liver is loaded with them!
And I would NOT eat raw liver from a grocery store unless it’s been cooked. Hope that helps!
Thanks for sharing this!
you take 3 or 4 liver pills daily, any guess at the weight amt?
Katie, 3-4 pills a day x 7 days a week equals to about 4 ounces of liver a week. The recommended dosage for liver is about 4 ounces one or two times a week. Hope that helps!
What about lamb’s liver? Other than chicken liver, that’s the only other one that I like.
Yes, lambs liver is wonderful!
Thank you for this article! I noticed the comments above about liver during pregnancy, but I’m wondering about taking while trying to get pregnant? I’ve got a whole host of fertility issues and hormones and thyroid are part of the equation. Based on your article I’m thinking liver could help regulate some of my hormones. Any thoughts on this?
YES YES YES!!! This would be amazing for so many reasons to take if you are trying to get pregnant! I can’t stress how important this would be for you and you would be so smart to start taking it now. Vitamin A can take awhile (depending on how deficient you are) to store in the body so it’s super important to build your stores up BEFORE you get pregnant for a very healthy baby. And it will help so much with hormones/thyroid, too. If it were me and I was in your situation, I would double the dose (by taking about 6-8 “pills” a day, which would equal out to about 2 servings of liver per week). I wish you the best 🙂 🙂
Thank you so much for the encouragement. I started today – took 8 pills and I didn’t gag to death. Actually, it wasn’t that bad. Just took them with a big glass of water and it was much easier than I thought! Thanks for the encouragement and support!
I spoke to somebody at whole foods & he said their liver is 100 percent grass fed but not organic, is that ok or does it have to be grass fed & organic ? I’ve been looking everywhere but can’t find it anywhere where I am or close even ….
If their liver is 100% grass-fed that’s great. That means they were out on pasture eating grass like they are supposed to which is just what you want 🙂
Thanks very much cause I don’t wanna eat something raw that can make me sick, ill purchase & eat that one.
I have access to good quality liver, however it is only available for purchase every 2 months. If as a family we were to consume 12 “pills’ a day how much do you recommend me ordering? It comes in 1 pound pig, just curious how much I should order to last us 2 months before I can can more. Thanks!
I think a 1 lb pack would be adequate. If you have the room in your freezer, get 2 to be on the safe side.
Are you still feeling these benefits all these months later? I’m very interested in this. My female cycles are HORRIBLE and I want something natural to get it squared away. Off to call our local butcher.
Yes, yes yes! I can’t tell you how much I love them and how much of a difference they’ve made. In fact, we moved a few months ago and in the crazy transition of moving, I wasn’t able to make liver pills until 3 weeks after we were settled. In those 3 weeks, I definitely didn’t have the energy I was used to (to be fair, it could have been just being exhausted from moving), but I got my horrible PMS symptoms that month, too, which I haven’t had since I’ve been consuming the liver. As soon as I got those PMS symptoms, I was like “I can’t wait one more day – I need my liver pills!” haha 🙂 After I started taking the liver daily again, the PMS symptoms the next month disappeared and haven’t been back. For me, this has been life-changing. I get emails weekly from others thanking me for introducing them to raw liver. It seems to work wonders for hormonal problems.
I CANNOT find anyone who has grassfed beef livers. Who knew it would be this hard. I’ve called the local butchers, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, etc. We’re surrounded by beef so where is everyone hiding it? 🙂 I may have to try to find it on Tropical Traditions – though I tried and wasn’t successful and gave up.
Bummer!! Try http://www.localharvest.org/ put your zip code in and see what comes up. If you’re surrounded by beef, I would think there should be some good grass-fed liver around! Good luck!!
Sorry to keep bugging you. Can you tell me what I should expect to pay? I finally got one butcher to respond but his price is $2.20/pound and I sort of wonder if what he has is truly grass fed because it’s so cheap. I’ve got my feelers out with some local ranchers. It’s too bad I’m not closer to my great grandpa, I’d get it for free from his ranch.
I pay $1.90 a pound for my grass-fed liver, so that’s right on target! Isn’t it cheap?!! That’s because in America no one else eats beef liver. It’s a delicacy in other countries, though and even reserved for pregnant women and infants because it’s so nutrient dense 🙂
I’m very interested in this. Wondering if there are any commercially available “Liver Pills” that you are aware of. Something I can buy at a local health food store? Would they be the same?
Thanks
Rob, I get my desiccated liver pills here: http://amzn.to/1yjQXx8
They source from pasture raised, grass fed animals. I love having this option of desiccated pills when I am traveling.
Thanks!!! May go that route first. I’ll post back with what i discover
Is there any word out there about ingesting beef/chicken liver helping human livers?
I actually have about 4lbs of gf beef liver sitting in my freezer that I purchased from my local farmer. I’ve been working up the courage to cook it up with some onions and choke it down.
I will be trying this and ignoring the fact that it is, indeed, raw.
Thanks.
So, I have the bite-sized “pills” frozen and ready to go.
Are they supposed to have a smell? They don’t have a very pleasant smell.
Thanks.
Hi Libby, mine don’t really have a smell, especially when they are frozen.
Is it an “off” or bad smell?
It doesn’t have a smell when frozen, but when it thawed out some for me to cut it up I noticed it had a strong “animal” smell, I can’t tell if it is a bad smell since I really haven’t ever smelled raw liver before.
Curious if you still do this daily?? I just started. The only other supp I take is the Green Pastures Fermented Cod Liver Oil. I am using myself as a human guinea pig (so to say) to see what kind of results I get. I dont have a problem swallowing 4-5 of the liver pills once frozen. SO easy! How long did it take for you to notice any difference? I know everyBODY is different so just curious! 🙂 -clare
Hi Clare, Yes, I swear by these liver pills and they continue to make such a positive impact on my health. I won’t go a day without my liver pills 🙂 A few months ago, we moved and I was without liver for a few weeks while we were transitioning and I noticed a HUGE difference. In fact, it was the first month since taking the pills that I got my PMS symptoms back. Right after that painful and moody cycle, I couldn’t wait to find a good source and make them. Ever since then I refuse to go a day without them (and I’m back to no more PMS – yay!). I would say I noticed an energy increase within the week and the other positive differences about 2- 3 weeks when I first started taking them. Hope that helps!
I’ve had this page saved for some time since I’ve seen it and am really curious to try it……trying to take better care of my health in general and watching what I eat or trying to, and this would be as a good a thing to do as anything else for sure. Question though…..how long would a pound let’s say of liver last you if you were taking it daily as you do? I don’t have a ton of money to afford a lot and still do all the other things I want to, and though I know liver is cheaper than other meats, was curious if you could give an idea of how often I’d need to buy more liver once I started this. Thanks so much for sharing this in any case what an easy way to get some great nutrition in your diet.
Hi,
I am so excited to try these “liver pills”! I have 4 kids (and 3 miscarriages). I have struggled with autoimmune issues most of my life. I was diagnosed with hypothyroid disease and I’ve been anemic for quite some time. I did not want to be on medication for the rest of my life so I have made some drastic diet changes and I eat the way you eat now and have been for 2 or 3 years now. I successfully went off the thyroid medication just by changing my diet which I am thrilled about! I am in my 40’s though and my hormones are still not right, I can tell. I found your website and fb page and I have been loving all your recipes. Then I stumbled across this and I am hoping this makes me feel better. I have not had much energy lately. I have very heavy periods along with all the other symptoms you mentioned. I think even though my diet is fantastic and I feel better than I did a few years ago, the vicious cycle of heavy periods and being anemic (and stress) are just hard to attack. I’m hoping these precious little pills do the trick for me. I don’t mind cooked liver so the thought of this doesn’t gag me. It’s the raw thing that I will have to get a grip on – ha ha. I do drink raw milk from pastured, grass-fed and finished cows though so why not eat their liver raw too!!
Hi Karie!
Wow, it sounds like you are doing such great things for your health!! That is so awesome to hear. Please keep me updated, too – I’d love to hear if it’s making a difference for you like it did for me.
And I can relate with a lot of what you are saying. My diet was great and I experienced so many positive changes from primal/paleo, but getting this hefty dose of vitamins from the raw liver seemed to really be my ticket for the hormonal issues. I told a few people in the comments above me that I haven’t had any PMS symptoms since taking the raw liver, but when we were moving to a new state, I didn’t have my liver pills for about 3 -4 weeks (too much stuff going on and didn’t know where to get grass-fed liver in my new area). And my PMS symptoms came back. After that, I immediately made it a priority to source grass-fed liver and I haven’t had PMS symptoms since then. Isn’t that crazy/awesome?! I love these little pills and am hoping you will have the same success with them 🙂 Keep in touch!
The raw liver is helping me a lot and I have only been taking them for 10 weeks. It still sounds very crazy to me to say I eat raw liver. HAHA
So far I have noticed better hair, nails and skin. Especially my nails, they grow fast and hard. Just like when I was young. It’s incredible.
I don’t have dizzy spells any more which is huge! My PMS and cycle are definitely better and better each month. Hopefully the hormones are balancing. Being almost 45 years old is a tough age with all the hormonal things going on but I can definitely tell things are getting better. My overall mood and attitude is getting back to normal. I feel happier.
I am trying to get exercise back in my life and it’s easier than I thought it would be. I don’t get dizzy and tired like before.
I thought I was healthy before….but these little “multi-vitamins” were just what I needed to fine tune everything!
Thanks so much!! I look forward to seeing even more improvements with my health and well being as I continue to eat raw liver. 🙂
Karie
I’m sure going to try this but wish there was common object, such as a coin, perhaps a dime, in the picture so I could see the approximate size of the liver pills.
Do you throw them all down at once? Thinking one gag would be better than 3 or 4. 🙂
Joann, the first time I made them, I made them much too large and had a really hard time getting them down. I now make them very tiny, about the size of an aspirin or any other regular pill and I can get them down just fine. I put 1 or 2 in my mouth at a time. I’ve never been a good pill taker (I gag), so I have to make them tiny for me. If you are good at getting pills down, you can probably get away with making them a bit larger. Hope that helps!
Hi Kelly! Do you also take CLO? I currently take CLO with butter oil added and would like to also make these liver pills (my grass fed beef liver is in the freezer!)… just wondering if there’s any potential for Vit A or other vitamin overload. Is that a silly question?
Also by chance did you spend part of your childhood in a chicago suburb? I did and we lived near a girl with your same name. 🙂
So ive been using the frozen liver for awhile now and will retest my ferritin next week. Im hopeful my levels have come up! What I wanted to share was that one morni g while making my green smoothie I threw th re frozen liver pills in and never knew they were in there. Granted I have a blendtec so not sure if this could be successfully acvomplished with a lesser blender but it was so easy. Now I dont have to cut my frozen lever up I to tiny pieces either. Its easier to cut them into larger more manageable chunks. Again a blendtec or vitamix may be necessary to completely blend them up but for anyone else its worth a try as well.
Love that idea – thank you Ali!! I’m due to make new pills (ugh) and am dreading the process so I will try this! And please keep me posted on your test results. I’m very curious to know if your levels came up (crossing my fingers for you!)
Great article. This the first I’ve heard of this.
How would you travel with these liver pills. They would thaw.
Thank you!!!
Thanks for the post! I will be purchasing my liver from Whole Foods. Do you (or anyone)think their liver is safe to eat raw or should I try to find it somewhere else?
Cheers,
Natalie
I wish I could help you out on this, but I’ve never been to a Whole Foods (gasp!) so I’m not sure about any of their products. I totally live out in the boonies and don’t have any near me! I hope someone else can help answer your question!
Hi. Thanks for this post about the liver pills. I have an organic beef liver in the freezer and wasn’t sure what to do with it, as my hubby doesn’t like beef, but I like to eat organ meats at least once a week. Will try this and hopefully he will take some as well!!!!
I recently had fresh venison liver. They brought the animal off the mountain and I was making brunch and one of the hunters said that he only eats fresh never frozen liver and asked if I would cook a couple slices for him with the brunch. I sauted some slices for him (and one for me) in green butter with only a little spice. . . It was amazingly sweet. I had never had absolutely fresh liver (the animal being dead maybe three hours). I asked my daughter who is a biochemistry professor and she said it was probably because the liver is where glycogen gets stored, but after a while the post partum enzyme activity would use it up. I would have never thought that liver would be sweet. Just wanted to share the experience. Have enjoyed your website so much – have made many of the recipes. I live on a small island in Southeast Alaska.
I have dabbled in eating paleo, but got serious about a year and a half ago. They have a yearly health fair here where you can get your blood drawn and get some basic testing done for a minimal fee. After eating seriously paleo for one year I brought every value that was high back into normal range except my cholesterol, which is still very high, over 300. I was able to cut my triglycerides in half, bring my GFR back into the 90s, etc. I figured it took me 50+ years to get into the state I was and it would take longer than one year to normalize everything. I am not too concerned with the cholesterol as I believe like you said earlier that cholesterol is an inflammatory marker. I had cut out everything that is inflammatory for that whole year before the re-test. Is there something I am missing? I have not been able to make a dent in 40 pounds I want/need to lose and after recently readjusting my diet to cut out just about all natural sugars as well – fruit and honey, etc., the scale finally started to move. I still have high, but in the normal range, uric acid which I now know is a marker for fructose sensitivity. It is very hard to not eat fruit – I have always loved it. I am now reduced to only berries and grapefruit and even that not on a daily basis. Hoping you might have some idea what my help with this situation – stubborn high cholesterol and extra pounds that won’t leave. . .
Anyway, again, thanks for this website and all you do!!!
Hollie Levine
Wrangell, Alaska
So, you only take 3 or 4 tiny pills a day? I figured that, in order to get the maximum benefits, that one might be taking 3-4oz of the stuff, a few times a week.
Any tips for flash freezing?
I tried twice, once for 15 minutes and once for 30 minutes… both times the pills stuck together in a big clump 🙁
Ryan, did they stick together on the flash freezing part or the final container that ends up in the freezer?
they stuck together in the container after
any tips?
I have been taking prenatal vitamins did about a year and began the liver pills this week. I take Garden of life raw vitamin code which has 5,000 IU of Vitamin A as beta carotene. I also take a teaspoon of cod liver oil daily. Do you see any problem with this?
I love your post. It only further confirms my need for this. I have fms and we’re also ttc. Anyways I’ve been searching for pastured liver for a while and I’m getting my first order in three weeks. However tonight I’m cooking an organic chicken. I saved the giblets hoping maybe i could start with this liver? Or should i wait for the pastured only? Thank you!!!!
Hi Amylou! I think I’d wait for the pastured chicken (since you’ll know for sure it came from a good source). Organic is the 2nd best option so it’s up to you. If it were me, I’d think I’d wait, but I’d definitely still use those giblets – I’d cook them up, puree them and put them in a gravy! 🙂
Hi, you may have already answered this, but if I can’t swallow the bits of liver, would it be just the same to include 3-4 in a smoothie made with Kefir and fruits and/or vegetables?
Yes, my mom has been throwing 4 into her smoothies every morning and can’t even tell. I think that’s a great idea!
Thanks for this, Kelly! Sounds worth a try – and I’m not sure I could feel worse!
Thanks for all that you write and share – everything I’ve made is lovely and well
received by my family and friends. The church ladies beg for these recipes!
All in health!
Gelaine, your comment made my day – thank you so much for your encouraging words 🙂
(O_O) I finally have an excuse to buy liver from my local food coop! I hadn’t before because the hubs gets grossed out at the thought. Hooray!
LOL! My hubby was the same way, but now he’s a total raw liver fan like me. He saw the difference it made in me and wanted to try. Now he’s hooked 🙂
Hi! Sorry if this question has already been asked, but how long was it before you started to notice the difference after taking the liver?
I noticed an energy increase within a week or two and the hormone differences within a month or two. Depending on how deficient you are in certain vitamins or minerals, it could take a week or even up to a few months.
Thanks for this idea. My eight year old son has terrible teeth that started decaying the second they came in. He can swallow vitamins, so I plan to put the frozen liver in a capsule to cancel the gross-out factor.
Also, it looks like maybe you’re using a non-stick cookie sheet in the photo. I’m sure you know these leach toxins, especially when they’re scratched as the one in the photo is. I worry about this stuff so I use parchment paper over the cookie sheet. It makes removing the liver pieces so much easier too.
Thanks for your awesome blog!
Maybe someone already shared this, but I wanted to pass along a website that sells and ships quality grass-fed meats to your door…an amazing option for those who can’t get local grassed meats. It’s U.S. Wellness Meats, and the website is http://www.grasslandbeef.com.
Does cooking vs none cooking change any of the nutrition values? Aka benefits? Are there any side affects?
T
Hi Steph! Cooking liver destroys some of the B vitamins, but liver from healthy animals no matter how you cook it or not cook it is one of the most nutrient dense foods you can eat. Many people say consuming raw liver gives them a lot of extra energy that cooked liver does not. Cooked or raw – it’s a great food to incorporate in your diet. Side effects are a strengthened immune system, more balanced hormones, and extra energy 😉
Oh also did you take a multi-vitamin along with taking the liver?
Thanks a bunch!:)
nope! The raw liver is my multi-vitamin 🙂
I use a supplement called Perfect Desiccated Liver. It comes from a family owned company that I trust and it is only sourced from grass-fed cows that never come into contact with chemicals. So far I’ve noticed that it has made my nails and hair healthier.
Do you think these frozen liver pills have the same benefits as a freeze dried supplement?
Where do u get the desicated liver capsules?
Ember, I get mine here: http://amzn.to/1yjQXx8
They are sourced from grass-fed, pasture raised animals 🙂
For people who want to lose weight and lower their cholesterol- go on a gluten free diet. I lost 80 pounds and my high cholesterol is gone. My doctor even refused to have it tested because there were no indications of it, and the insurance wouldn’t pay for the test. The gluten free diet is the only thing I did differently. Also get your thyroid tested I have been on synthyroid for years. If it comes back normal, get tested for thyroid resistence. your test will be normal but your body can’t use it.
I did start doing this and it seemed to really help me to be more emotionally stable. I was wondering if I am taking this do you think it’s necessary to take the fermented cod liver oil too? This is just a lot less expensive. Thanks!
Hi Lizabeth! I take FCLO when I feel a cold coming on and that’s it. Personally, the liver pills make much more of a noticeable difference for me than FCLO ever did so I stopped the daily FCLO and just do liver pills. I still take FCLO, but not everyday – just when I feel my immune system needs a little extra support.
Thank you so much for your informative blog. I have been low on iron for quite some time. My ferritin level is at ten and iron from drugstores does not seem to help. I will try this. I just bought some liver (100% grass fed and certified irganic). I’m just going to leave the liver whole liver flattened in the freezer in a zip-lock bag and then cut off a piece as needed the equivalent of 3 pills and swallow it. That should be ok, no? I so hope this will help with my energy level and mood swings.
That sounds like a great way to do it, Vera. I hope this helps you like it does me!
Ok… I so want to try this…. but. Not sure yet, might take me forever to try it, lol! Um, can you just cook the liver (I’m thinking ground it up, add it to some other ground meat & add it to a ground meat recipe of some sort)? Or do you think it would have any nutrition left in it?
Thanks so much for this post!! I am always anaemic no matter what I do so will def be trying this, do you think buying the capsulated liver would work just as well? I just make so many thing from scratch that sometimes it’s just nice to be able to but something : ) and would also be a little easier for me to swallow thanks very much, Katie
Hi Katie! Yes, I totally hear you on that. In fact, I have a post coming up either this week or next about how much I’ve been loving the capsulated liver. I get mine here since I know for sure they source from grass-fed, pasture raised cows: http://amzn.to/1yjQXx8
Thanks so much, i found these after your post but because i live in Australia all the good brans i have come across are american and cost $40 delivery!! crazy. If you or anyone else knows a good brand i can source in Australia that would be soo helpful, really keen to get started on these.
Thanks again
Katie
Does it matter what kind of liver? beef, pork, etc?
No, any liver from healthy animals is excellent. Beef has slightly higher nutrients than pork and chicken, but any are full of vitamins and vitamins.
My mom shared this blog with me and I found it very interesting, especially since I suffer from Ovarian Cysts and my only options to prevent them is take birth control pills or get pregnant. However, I tend to have a sensitive tummy so I was curious if when you first started taking these if you had ANY side effects. Upset stomach, gas, nausea, etc? Also, is it better to take on an empty stomach or with food?
P.S. I saw you mentioned the capsulated pills, have you switched from the raw/frozen to the capsules, if so then I would have the same questions regarding side effects and efficacy. 🙂 Thanks so much for your feed back!!
Thank you for this post! Do you think the raw liver pills would help with energy even for a person with adrenal fatigue and autoimmune thyroiditis? It’s a challenge because I can’t drink coffee anymore because it just exhausts me more than if I hadn’t. Tea did nothing for me for energy. I know over time I will gain energy back, but I’m hoping the liver will give me the boost I need to get through each day with two young children. Also hoping it helps balance the hormones effected by these glands as well.
Laurie, yes!!! I would double the dosage to take 8-10 “pills” a day and I suggest that for anyone dealing with adrenal/hormone/autoimmune issues. And depending on how deficient you are in certain vitamins, it could take a few weeks or a few months to notice any differences, but those big doses of vitamins and minerals in that liver are so beneficial to hormones and autoimmune conditions. Take care and I wish you the best!
Hi Kelly! Thanks for this wonderful info!!! Just wondering if the desiccated liver capsules would offer the same benefits as the raw liver pills? When you take them when you’re traveling, do you notice the same or different benefits as the raw liver pills? Sounds like a time-consuming process that maybe I can avoid with the capsules? Thanks!
Ugh! I just finished cutting up the liver into “pills.” I wasn’t expecting it to stink! 😛 Is that normal?
Hi Kelly!
Very excited to try this for many reasons. I purchased the only calves liver that I could find: in the freezer section at Whole Foods. Farm raised, no antibiotics, mothers milk, free to roam, etc. By the time that I cut the liver slice into pill sized portions it was completely thawed then I did the flash freeze and them put them in a container back in the freezer. Just to be on the safe side, I’m giving it the 14 days in the freezer. My question is this, is it OK that it was frozen, thawed and then frozen again? I’m a little nervous about the raw element and want to make absolutely sure that I do this correctly to avoid any issues. Also (my apologies if you’ve already answered this) did you have any negative “side effects” initially (digestive or otherwise) or was is all good and smooth sailing? I know everyone is different but I was just curious. Thanks so much, I really enjoy your blog!!
Hi Heather! I’m excited you are trying this and I hope you have similar results as me 🙂
You will be fine with the freezing thing – they thaw so dang quickly!! I can’t even put the little pills in my hand for over 15 seconds or they’ll thaw on me. And I know it’s been drilled in our head to be nervous about raw meat, but that’s based on statistics on factory farmed meat where they are so unhealthy and fed grains which makes their stomach a breeding ground for bad bacteria. It’s a totally different story when it comes to pasture raised, healthy animals – in fact, raw produce has a greater chance of giving you bad bacteria than raw meat from a healthy animal. And raw meat is consumed in almost every culture around the world. So I hope that eases your nervousness a little bit 🙂 And if you want to be extra cautious, take your raw liver with some fermented food or probiotics. This will populate your digestive tract with good bacteria to ward off the super slim chance of any bad bacteria.
I didn’t have any digestive side effects at all. But if you find that you do, you may want to take it with a small dose of fermented food (spoonful of sauerkraut or sip of kombucha) or take it with your probiotic.
I’d love to hear an update if you experience success with this 🙂
Thanks for the reassurance Kelly! I was actually thinking about taking the pills with a shot of Kefir, so it sounds like I’m on the right track. I will definitely let you know how it goes. Thanks again for all of your advice 😀
I am super excited to have found this information. Thank you for sharing it! I’m on day two with the liver pills, taking 4 twice a day. But can you reassure me… is it normal for the liver to stink? Or could something be wrong. I don’t want to consume spoiled raw liver. It is from grass-fed and was frozen when I bought it. Thank you.
Love this post! I just bought two frozen beef livers from my local farm and was afraid to try eating them. Two questions, I already take fermented cod liver oil which is high in vitamin A. Should I take less liver so I don’t overdose on A? Or is it safe in higher amounts since it’s naturally sourced? The second question is, while I have beef liver now, it was a special one time offer from my local farm. Normally, I only have pastured pork liver available to me. I know there tend to be more problems from pork with bacteria/parasites. Would you trust raw pork liver, even if it was pastured?
Meant to say “only if it was pastured”
I’ve been taking these for about a week & I’ve noticed that my normally too huge appetite has Been less too which is great….I’m wondering if this is the effect of the liver also ? & can there be such thing as taking too much ? Cause I’ve been taking like 10 little pills a day & feeling a decent enervy boost thru out the day but not huge & thinking maybe I should take more, I have an underactive thyroid.
Hi Peter! That’s great! That could definitely be because of the liver. Liver is a great source of protein and fat (healthy fat) and you are getting great nutrition from it. When your nutrition and energy needs are met, your brain sends a signal to your body that you can stop eating. So it doesn’t surprise me that your appetite is less. Unless you start eating a pounds of liver a day (which then I’d just think you were crazy lol), you’ll be ok taking more. All the studies done from Vitamin A toxicity were based on synthetic doses of Vitamin A (and even then, you’d have to consume pounds of liver a day for years to even get close to the harmful levels!)
I wonder if this would work with wild salmon… I love fish but don’t really cook it often. Hmmm…
Yes, for sure!
Just a thought – what about drying out the “pills” in a dehydrator instead of freezing them? Would that be just as good?
YES YES YES!!! We are always on the same page 😀 I have a post scheduled in the next few weeks about this!
Great! I look forward to it! 🙂
Do you wait the 14 days before you eat your liver pills?
Hi Barb, I didn’t wait because I fully trusted my source and the liver was already frozen when I bought it.
My issue is Iron and getting TOO much, being a guy.
How much would be too much ?.
Thanks
Started swalowing finger length slivers yesterday. I can already tell a difference in energy.
Great news!!!
I bought 1/4 grass fed beef and got a bunch of stock bones, liver, and heart for free. Wasn’t sure if I could figure out a way to prepare the organ meat that I would like, so I was excited when I saw this. Cut a package up last night and am looking forward to having my daily dose of liver pills. Now I just need to figure out what to do with the heart besides feeding it to the dog. Any suggestions?
Nice!! You can do the same thing with the heart, too – I do!
I’m so excited to try this! I split some grass-fed beef with a few friends a few months ago, and I was the only one brave enough to take the liver. I ended up with so many packages of liver in my freezer, but was unsure how to prepare it. It terrifies me! I’ve been researching recipes of ways to mask the flavor, but this seems like the perfect solution for me. I can pop a few liver pills every day, and I think what I have will last me the entire year! Thanks for the post. 🙂
Sweet!!!
I saw all the info about this on a paleo Instagram profile. I can’t believe I’ve never heard of this! It just resonated with me as I remembered years ago trying desiccated liver pills and I could tell a difference -how much better must this be! We immediately went to Whole Foods and found grass fed beef liver. I have to say cutting that up into little pieces ranks right up there with one of the most repulsive things I have ever done
Nice! And I have to agree with you about the repulsiveness of cutting up liver. Blech!!
This is awesome. I can’t stomach the flavor of liver no matter what it’s prepared with, so I’ve made up some pills today because of your post! I was worried that swallowing them, I’d get a little of “that taste” (blech), but I didn’t!
My father-in-law is a hunter and is going to bring me some deer liver next time he gets a kill. I’ll definitely freeze it for 14 days, but I wonder how wild deer liver may be nutritionally different from grass-fed organic beef liver, if at all. Maybe some of your readers might know. Google is not finding much for me 🙂
Just purchased my first liver! When I was cutting it up I noticed a few white, fatty bits and also some darker spots inside. Are these parts ok to eat too or should I be cutting these parts out? Can’t wait to try these!!
Hi Amber! They are ok to eat!
Hi, I’m really interested in trying this out but I don’t have access to organic and grass-fed meat. Is it okay to use conventional meat or is it harmful?
What about pig liver?
Yes, pasture raised pork liver would be great!
Hey I love your post and could so use the benefits but I have been trying to cook with liver and have been so turned off by the taste. SO my question is what if I broke the liver apart like you mentioned and encapsulate the small cut piece? Do you think that will work? Thanks!!!
Yes, for sure!
Just saw this, back in 1985 I started breeding/showing dogs. I’d cook livers in butter with loads of garlic spreading garlic powder when turned then slice in small pièces and dry in microwave/oven. In the ring we had to keep in our mouth these pièces to bait the dog in position, that’s how I got to luv liver lol! My children would steal this dried liver stored in freezer! Today (stopped showing in late l990’s) I have B12 dificiency anema diognized last yr. I have to take suppléments, but when I eat chicken liver, I buy Koshers, I’m ok for several days without pills. After reading this post, I’m going back to buying whole livers, a trick for slicing whole frozen livers, I’d use an electric knife, sliced it up and put back in freezer taking only one slice out at a time to cut up and prepare. No gooy stuff lol!
Love that cutting tip, Joanne!!! Thank you!
I chopped up some calves liver in small pieces while still frozen and quickly refroze. It still stuck to everything,knife, cutting board, etc. After thawing a bit I could slide my knife behind all the little bits of liver but they were still stuck to each other. After getting all the little bits of liver loose they started to melt again. I grabbed a 1/4 cup of flour and coated each little pill quickly like coating them to fry. I just tossed the whole bunch with the flour and sifted off the excess. They didn’t stick to each other at all and looked much more edible. This is how I am making my liver pills from now on. Chop a few at a time when frozen, toss with a little flour and put in a baggie. What do you think?
I bought some grass fed beef liver from the farmer’s market a little less than a year ago, and not ever knowing what to do with it, its been in the freezer since. Can I still do this pill thing with it?
Yes for sure!
Hello I have a question I have high collesterol and read before that liver has very high amount, what do you think thank you
I read this article a week or so ago and I actually got excited about liver. I know how good it is for you, my mother used it eat it once a month when I was growing up,but I could never stomach. After reading this, I was on a mission to find grass fed liver, and living in Hawaii makes that particularly difficult. But I found it and I just took my first “pills”. I am so excited to reap the benefits of liver without the taste. Thanks so much for posting this!
Be careful about Amish animals food. In my area Amish use soy and corn feeding animals in winter. All soy and corn in the market is
85% GMO. They produce own food for animals,but they do not purchase organic seeds it is too expensive. I have few Amish friends and I see what they are doing.
I also noticed that they spry cabbage with roundup in summer to
protect from bugs.
If they use soy and corn to feed animals and chicken, it means that milk eggs meat is GMO contaminated, and animals produce modify proteins.
approx. what size pill are we talking about?
Jamie, I cut them about the size of a regular pill (like an ibuprofin). I made the mistake of cutting them too large the first time and they were hard to get down. If you are a good pill taker, you could get away with cutting them bigger.
Would it be ok to take these liver pills daily in ADDITION to raw garden of life vitamin code prenatal vitamins, or should a person perhaps slack on the prenatals when taking the liver pills? I was taking the liver pills off and on before pregnant now I’m not sure what I should do?!
You said you tapered off of cod liver oil pills when you started the raw liver pills. For pregnancy, is raw liver in conjunction with a prenatal vitamin enough for a growing baby? Or should I still take cod liver oil/fish oil? I’ve just found out I’m pregnant and I’m trying to decide what supplements to take.
Hi Maria! Congrats!!! If it were me, I’d add in the cod liver oil, too if I found out I was pregnant. Those the the most important vitamins for a growing baby and mama 🙂
Hello! I’m wondering if you or anyone else noticed a difference/improvement in digestion and elimination after taking these. I’ve been doing this for less than a week and I noticed an almost instant difference. My digestion has been terrible (all those years of eating grains and junk food!) but now things are moving along quite nicely. This is gross, but my bowel movements are very dark now, reddish black…any thoughts on whether that is good or bad? I definitely feel better but was semi-concerned about that change.
I have just begun to incorporate liver into my diet. I managed to get some amazing 100% grass fed organic liver and was very tempted to try the raw liver pills, however I have been very ill with ME (commonly known as CFS in America) and my immune system is in a dreadful state. It is a known neurological and immune system illness which affects the whole entire body, and boy does it affect every single aspect of your being. At the last moment, I was quite worried about raw liver and any potential parasites etc. I know this could be rare, but with a highly compromised immune system, my body is not like normal folks and can have huge over reactions to the slightest of things. So instead, I have made a paleo grass fed liver pate (with unsalted raw butter)and am having a small amount of this twice a day. My question is can this be just as effective as raw liver? I cooked the liver incredibly gently and not for very long, to try to preserve its properties as much as possible. So far, after a few days I have noticed a considerable difference in the poisoned and foggy feeling that leaves me bedbound in chronic pain. Its early days, but I’m very hopeful that I can still hugely benefit from all the amazing properties of grass fed organic liver, whilst removing any potential risk to my very fragile health.
That’s wonderful to hear, Karen! To answer your question: liver from pasture raised animals,no matter how you eat it – cooked or raw – is the most nutrient dense food and will be incredibly effective! I hope you continue to see great results!
Thank you very much for your reply! For now, I will continue to eat the liver in homemade pate and maybe further down the line, I will be able to try it raw. Many thanks 🙂
Um, THANK YOU? I just ordered some grass-fed liver and have been dreading the actual eating of it. This idea will be a life saver! You so totally rock – THANKS!
Sweeeeet!!!
I LOVE liver the way I cook it. Would never eat it otherwise. Fry up some no-nitrate bacon (cut into bite size pieces), when the bacon is fully cooked, add A LOT of chopped onions and brown them. Once the bacon and onions are ready, add diced liver and toss it around until browned all around. This is fabulous! Since this recipe is tedious and time consuming, I will be adding frozen raw liver pills to my dietary repertoire. Thanks Kelly!
I am working up to try cooked liver, Debbie! Your recipe sounds like something I would like!!! Thank you so much!
did u notice in positive changes in digestion??
My digestion was healed when I went gluten-free/paleo so I didn’t notice a difference one way or the other when I started taking the liver pills. Some people did tell me they had a little bit of trouble digesting these pills (gave them gas). I asked a nutritionist about this and she said if someone has impaired digestion, they might have a little trouble breaking down the fat in the liver and it could cause gas. She suggested to drink some lemon water or kombucha (or probiotic) before taking the pills and there should be no problems.
(Disclaimer: may be gross! sorry) My husband has been taking these for a few days now and has noticed what seemed to be bloody stools. I don’t take the pills myself, so I cannot say for sure it’s the raw liver, but it is my guess. Have you ever heard of anything like this? Thanks!
I tried to read through the comments but there are so many! I made my liver pills a few weeks ago. I take about 2 a day (some days I forget) I have been keeping them in a glass container in the freezer but the top is getting freezer burn… Is this ok? And do you have any tips for preventing this. THNX!
Hi Mary! Yes, it’s ok! Freezer burn is not harmful – it’s just the result of the liver coming in contact with air in the freezer. The only thing freezer burn will do is impact the taste, but since we are just swallowing them, it really doesn’t matter.
If the liver is frozen for 14 days, why does conventional liver need to be cooked???
Hi Kelly,
First off, I love your blog, I learn so much from you!
I bought some grass fed, organic liver from a farm, but they only sell already frozen meats. I cant get it at any other farm. So what should I do, cook it and then (flash) freeze again to make the pils? I hope you can help me out, as I cant wait tro try this! I have crazy ass PMS and cramps, but the sight of liver, and thought of having to eat it makes me curl over too! Lots of love, Claudia
Hi Claudia! Thank you for such a sweet comment – you totally made my day!! My liver was already frozen from my farm store, too, so I just thawed it a little bit (just to make it easier to cut) and then cut the pills. Then I flash froze the pills so they wouldn’t stick together and then once that was completely frozen, I put them in a freezer safe container. I hope these help you like they do me! PMS SUCKS!!!
I really want/need to do this but I can’t seem to find any grassfed beef liver locally. I was able to find some beef liver from a local farm who does not use antibiotics or hormones. They feed with corn and grain though. I can order grassfed beef liver online at a higher price. Is the difference significant enough that I should opt for the online grassfed liver?
Hello! I loved your article 🙂 I am going to be purchasing some dessicated liver pills for myself and family. But, I was wondering if you think its alright for me to give them to my kids..They are ages 2 and 4. And if so, how much would you suggest I give them? I am ordering these ones- http://amzn.to/1yjQXx8
Hi! I just took my first “dose”. How long were you takin the pills before you noticed a difference ?
Thanks ,Mary
Hi can’t wait to try this. I’ve been taking liver powder every morning and love it but I’m ready to up my game. How big should I make the pills do you think?
Thanks
Hi James, Just make them as big as you think you can swallow. Mine are a little bigger than the size of an Advil pill.
Thank you! Just started on them today. Hopefully we have as much success as you have had.
Hi!
I am SO excited about this blog, thank you so much for sharing. I actually started, and have been doing the frozen liver pills for 5 days! I feel AMAZING – though it’s also because I am doing a full detox/cleanse at the same time. I am so hopeful and curious to see if this helps what has been debilitating and worsening PMS. Fingers crossed!
Just wondering – do you know if it’s overkill if I do whey protein while taking the liver pills? I’d like not to have overlap in products to save $, so I am asking if anyone knows – do they address/provide different things?
Thanks!
Cat
Hi Cat! I’m so happy to hear this! I have my fingers crossed that it helps your PMS as much as mine. I mainly use these liver pills as my real food multi vitamin since they are packed full of bio-available vitamins and minerals. Whey protein serves a different purpose (protein, muscle repair, etc), so I don’t think they are really interchangeable.
Hello,
I am able to obtain some local, grass-fed but grain-finished beef. Is this OK to freeze and eat raw or should it be cooked like regular grain-fed, feedlot beef? Thank you!
Hi Shelly! If it was a farm I trusted, I would personally go ahead and do it raw. But it’s up to you and what you feel comfortable with. You could always wash it down with some kombucha to populate your gut with some good bacteria to play it safe.
Hi Kelly!
I’ve been trying this as my husband raises grass fed beef. I actually eat the liver sometimes, but sometimes it’s just too much and the liver pills is a perfect solution. I take about the equivalent of a little more than a tablespoon. Do you think that’s enough? Not enough?
That’s perfect!
That’s exactly how I ate my placenta – little pieces of raw placenta, frozen and than swallowed 🙂
I noticed the same things (mood swings and PMS gone, and massive energy) when I first started taking fermented cod liver oil with butter oil. I would love to get chicken or beef liver in my diet too (I also can’t stand the taste/texture) so I am going to give this a try!
Thanks for sharing!!!
Very cool about the placenta!!
Hey! I am ECSTATIC to let you know that I had my 1st cycle I can ever remember, EVER, with ZERO PMS!!!!!! It was just like you described. I went to the bathroom and was completely surprised to see my cycle had begun! Seriously, people, if this can help me, it can help anyone! I have never known anyone w as bad PMS> it was ruining my life! I feel so free and hopeful this will continue:)
But I will say I am not sure which thing helped this the most bc I made so many changes this month including:
– raw liver pills
– chinese herbs prescribed by acupuncturist for pms
– gaia adrenal formula
– vitamin b
– no sugar, caffeine, processed, gluten, dairy
– more vegetables and fermented foods
– all grass fed and organic meats
– adding whey, maca, hemp, etc. to smoothies
– DIM vitamin
Thank you so much for this post!!!
Wooooo!!!! Welcome to the no PMS club 🙂 🙂 It sounds like you’ve taken some really amazing changes to your health, too! So awesome!!
Your Freudian slip shows you are not telling the truth. You claim the liver gives you tons of energy to “seriously just go and go” when a few sentence earlier you said “Long distance cardio is [present-tense] and always has been a challenge for me.”
I’m not sure what motivation I would have to lie about taking raw liver lol. I’m just sharing my story and how adding raw liver has totally helped me in many aspects of my life – it’s a night and day difference for me. Long distance cardio is still much more challenging to me than sprints or HIIT, but my times and distances for longer distance cardio pre-liver vs. after liver speak volumes.
What is your feelings on a pregnant person taking these? I made them today.. haven’t swallowed any yet. 100% grass fed beef liver. I’m very newly preggo – only 4 weeks along. Thoughts?
Hi Jessica! Personally, if I were pregnant, I would seek out raw liver and make sure I took it every day. Historically, in many cultures around the world, they would save liver for the pregnant women and young children in the villages to give the mother energy/nutrients for her pregnancy/birth and for the growing baby. If you feel uncomfortable about taking it raw, maybe you could cook it. Or another option is taking it raw alongside probiotics/kombucha or a spoonful of some other fermented food like kimchi or sauerkraut to populate the gut with beneficial bacteria.
That’s kind of what I was thinking too. I’m not worried about the raw thing… It’s got to be better than the Standard American Diet I consumed during my first two pregnancies. Thanks for replying so quickly.
I finally took the plunge and made the liver pills. I found I could not swallow them when they were rock hard solid (and I usually take several regular pills at a time). So, I have been much more successful by letting them thaw a bit, so they become more flexible. They don’t get stuck in my throat that way. Just wanted to leave that top in hopes to help someone. It’s only been 3 days and my acne prone skin is already starting to clear up! I can’t wait to see what’s next!
Thanks, Michelle! And that is exciting about your skin improvements already 🙂
Alrighty then. I’ve been wanting to try this for a while now, and have had the heebie jeebies having never tried liver ever in my life – but I did it!
I was really grossed out when cutting it up, and found it was hard to get the pieces as small as I’d like. So I gave up cutting and ground it in my meat grinder attachment for my Kitchen Aid. I then poured it out onto a sheet of parchment paper (I did 1 pound of liver, and this fit on a sheet pan nicely). Then I flash froze it for a little while, and was able to cut a couple of nice pieces easily this way. I then placed another sheet of parchment paper on top, and rolled it up, then placed into a gallon ziploc bag. I will just cut small pieces up as I need them now. Easy peasy!
Love that idea, Theresa!! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you! It’s a bit like a fruit roll up. Liver roll up, haha!
Oh that just made me gag a little. LOL! You would think that after a year I would be over my liver heebie geebies, but nope. Still grosses me out!
I have been doing this for over a year now (when I originally came across your post) and it is THE BEST thing I’ve ever done for my health. Most notably, I have a much easier time waking up in the morning and don’t feel like a complete zombie that got hit by a bus. I have used beef up until now, but got my hands on some pastured, organic, soy free chicken livers for the first time ever and came back to check if other people commented that they use chicken too. I use my awesome kitchen shears instead of a knife, it’s about a thousand times more efficient 🙂 These are the ones I love http://amzn.to/1u1RtJV They come apart for easy cleaning!
That is AWESOME, Emi!! So happy to hear! And thanks for the recommendation on the kitchen shears – I have to get some now!
Months ago I pinned this telling myself I would get some liver once I ran out of my current supplements. I am trying to get my nutrients from real foods as nature intended that’s my goal for this yr. Well, that time finally arrived… Lemme just say I have NEVER had liver or any organ in my life lol and of course everything I hear about liver is how awful it tastes. Nevertheless I bought a pound of chicken livers and they weren’t grass fed but I have to start somewhere =) I baked them, watched the blood ooze out and kept reminding myself not to judge this meat before giving it a chance. I was HAPPILY SURPRISED to find it not just palatable but DELICIOUS! Thank you for being you and writing so that others may be enlightened through your experiences. It allows folks like me to achieve health in a multitude of ways otherwise un-thought of ^^
Sincerely a 23 yr old health enthusiast trying to heal her body
Wow, Jameelah that’s so great to hear!! Maybe this will inspire me to put my big girl panties on and just try to eat liver. It’s been almost 2 years of taking these raw liver pills and I’m still such a wimp when it comes to liver. lol
Would like to try this and am curious if I could use freshly caught fish for my liver sorce ( mainly Herring)? Am fortunate to live I area where we can catch fresh herring all year round and I love the idea of using a wild clean fresh fish ! Very excited! Many thanks, Belinda ox
Belinda, that would be wonderful!! I am so jealous!
Awesome! Caught some today and just popped some in freezer. Yay. Few questions then; can I give them to my 4 year old also? thinking in her green smoothies. And how many “pills” would you recommend per day of the fish liver? Would the dosage differ for kids and adults? And lastly being wild fish would you still recommend 2 weeks freezer time before you consume ( feeling slightly eager)? Much appreciation, belinda ox
I would personally for sure give it to my babies (starting at 6 months), toddlers and children since traditionally, the villages would save the liver of the animals they caught for the pregnant women and growing children. The specific vitamins, nutrients and minerals in liver are so important for healthy brain development and a healthy immune system. I find it so interesting that babies usually love liver and will actually reach for it!
The freezing part is totally up to you. If I was in your situation, I wouldn’t even worry about it (but I am known to be a rebel 😉 ).
As far as the amounts, I’m having trouble finding a specific suggested amount for children. I have so many books about traditional foods for babies and children and they all recommend liver, but I can’t find anything concrete concerning the amounts. Most of them suggest grating a small amount of raw liver over eggs each morning. If it were me, I’d pop 2 or 3 pills each day in the smoothie. Hope that helps, Belinda!
I’m finally feeling motivated enough to give this a try. I see that you’ve covered beef and chicken, rabbit and fish. My husband is heading out deer hunting tommorrow- would that be alright to use?
Hi Natalie, Yes, that’d be great. My husband hunts deer too and we save the liver for this purpose.
Thank you so much for sharing this information ! Any thoughts on duck liver? Or as far as that’s concerned would it be safe to say any grass fed or wild animal livers?
Yes, you are right Renee – any grass fed or wild animal is great!
Anyone with an ounce of knowledge of biology knows that the liver is the body’s “garbage processor.” It is poisonous and detrimental to your health to eat liver without properly cooking it. I hope you realize how dangerous this is.
Seem you have been continuing with the liver and Im wondering if you have noticed changes in skin or other visible changes? thanks
Hi Anna! Yes, it’s going on 2 years since I’ve been taking my raw liver pills and I still don’t like to go a day without them. Still no PMS or ovarian cysts, and I still have great energy. I always had pretty decent skin (no acne, just normal skin – not dry or oily), but I do have a definite glow about my skin that I didn’t have a few years ago. Is it from liver? I can’t say for sure. But I have noticed that better skin seems to be a big benefit from consuming liver, at least from the commenters here and from the emails I’ve received from my readers. It seems to be especially beneficial from those that had acne.
I was also decently healthy with no real issues before taking liver, other than my horrible PMS/ovarian cysts. Common success stories from my readers include better sleep and they wake up refreshed and with energy, better digestion, skin, pms, energy, thyroid levels, cholesterol, iron levels, less anxiety and better moods.
thank you so much for your response and for sharing your success! Im going to give it a go~!
blessings!
Is it a big deal that it thaws and then we refreeze it? I couldn’t cut it quickly enough so they all thawed completely. Then when I put them back in they didn’t seem to want to freeze again so i just threw them in a jar and I’l deal with them tomorrow lol
That happened a lot to me, too, Courtney (the part about thawing completely when they were in pill form)! It’s always been ok for me! If they stick together, it’s pretty easy to get them to unstick.
Ok, so I did the liver pill thing on Sunday but was unaware of the need to wait 14 days to eliminate all parasites and pathogens. I took 1 pill for the last 3 days, am I okay or do I need to run out and get a parasite cleanse?
Hi Christal, If you got your liver from a source that you trust and if it was grass-fed, I personally wouldn’t worry about it. I don’t freeze my liver ahead of time. Anytime anyone eats anything raw (vegetables, fruits, etc.) there is a very small risk of getting sick from parasites, bacteria, viruses, etc. If you are concerned, another thing you could do is take your liver with a probiotic like kombucha or kefir, yogurt, or a probiotic pill. That will populate your gut with good bacteria to fight off any pathogens that could be present.
Thank you for your prompt response! I got it from the grocery store and it was not organic. 🙁
So taking the probiotics will kill any parasites I may have ingested?
Hi again Christal! Personally, I still wouldn’t worry about it, but I’ll tell you what I would do if it were me and I was feeling unsettled about something I ate. And if it makes you feel any better, even though it’s not organic, the chance of it containing anything that would harm you is still super slim and like I said before, eating any raw fruits and vegetables carries this same risk!
I would take some probiotics (pills OR yogurt, sauerkraut, etc.) for a few days to help populate my gut with good bacteria to help fight off anything. Also for a few days I would take a small amount of food grade Diatomaceous Earth, commonly known as DE (1/2 – 1 teaspoon) a day mixed in 1/4 cup water. You can read all about DE HERE, but basically DE is a very fine powder similar to the texture of baby powder. It’s made from fossilized phytoplankton. Under a microscope, it’s very sharp and hard – harder than a diamond. That is significant because DE slices through the exoskeletons of pests and bacteria, killing them, but leaves your human digestive tract unharmed. It has a very strong negative charge. As DE moves through the stomach and digestive tract, it attracts and absorbs fungi, protozoa, viruses, endotoxins, pesticides, drug residues, E.coli, and heavy metals which are trapped inside their cylinder shape and then excreted from the body. In addition, any larger parasites that happen to be in the stomach or digestive tract are “cut up” and killed by the sharp edges of DE. I actually take a small amount of DE every day because of the detoxifying abilities and because of the high mineral content. It’s pretty amazing stuff and has done wonders for my hair 🙂 You can find it at a garden supply store or an animal feed store very inexpensively, but just make sure it’s food grade and NOT the type of DE for pools.
If you can’t find it & are interested in it, HERE is an online option.
Also, was this liver frozen when you got it? Most liver at the store is & if so, it’s very likely that it’s been frozen for much longer than 14 days.
Hi again, no the liver was not frozen.
I am extremely interested in the D.E. I have had issues with digestion since starting iron pills. Ughh, it’s been the worst! I am looking forward to tossing the iron pills for the raw liver and the D.E. to help restore my digestive health. Thank you for all of your help and sharing your vast knowledge about the two.
May Jesus bless you!
Christal
Hi again Christal! 🙂 I would love to hear your update after a few months with the DE! I am curious to know if it helps with your digestion – many people have had success with digestive health from daily DE. I wish you the best <3 xoxo and God bless, Kelly
Hi there,
I know frozen raw liver pills is the next best thing to eating actual raw liver or cooked liver but do you know of any supplements that one could buy to take orally? I desperately want to improve my dental health and I have read liver is a great source to do that.
Thank you
Hi Sophie! Yes, perfect supplements makes THIS wonderful liver pill made from the liver of 100% grass-fed beef! I personally have some in my supplement cabinet and take it when I run out of my liver or when I’m traveling. I don’t notice the energy benefits like I do with the raw pills, but it’s still a great source of vitamins and minerals.
Hi Kelly,
I just came across your website last week and have just started taking frozen raw liver pills. I’m hoping for the best as I suffer great fatigue from hypoparathyroidism. I’m also post menopause, which has really crashed my hormones over the past year. I’m a cyclist and I NEED energy! I’m hoping this is all still relevant, as most of the posts were from 2013. I was hoping to read some fantastic reviews!
Also, it appears as if this website http://www.extremenaturalhealth.com/diy-frozen-raw-liver-pills/ has copied your content word for word…..
Kindly,
~deb
Hi Deb! It’s been a few years, but I still swear by the liver pills. It’s been one of the best (if not THE best) thing I’ve done for my health so far! I wish you the best and I hope your experience is similar to mine! Thank you for letting me know about that site, too – I appreciate it!
Hi Kelly
I discovered your little liver pill trick a few weeks ago and have been amazed at the difference it makes! I despaired of ever being able to get the goodness of liver in as it’s 100% yuck to me too. Thank you thank you thank you!!!
I had to share with you a much easier way I’ve found of making the pills, which I just started doing this week. This is a real timesaver and makes neat little pills in a jiffy.
Instead of painstakingly cutting them up into little pieces, I did this instead. I got a silicon baking mat, which has little holes in it – perfect pill size. I blitzed the raw liver (with stab mixer in a small deep bowl), and spread the liver puree all over the mat. It filled the holes up nicely, smooth over with a knife to tidy it up, then flash freeze. Let it freeze really well, like overnight, then the next day you can pop them out and put them in a container or ziplock bag in the freezer.
Personally I couldn’t pop them out of the mold before they started melting. What Ill do next time is cut the sheet into four so each one fits in a sealed container and when they have flash frozen just stack the filled up mats in the container and pop them out as I need them.
I got mine from Kmart Australia, but i believe Kmart in the US doesn’t sell them. But they do have silicon mats /ice cube trays on Amazon so that would do the job nicely. Ive been told the square ones dont go down as easily as the round ones do, so perhaps steer clear of those
I hope this little tip is of some use. It would save that painstaking task anyway!
Thanks again
Jane
Jane, that is an AWESOME tip — thank you so much!!
I am so happy to hear how much of a difference these have been making for you, too! It’s really amazing, isn’t it?!
You’re welcome Kelly – returning the favour with this tip LOL.
This is similar to what I’ve – these are cone shaped though -mine is round. But this should do the trick:
http://amzn.to/1LFIbPN
Perfect!!
I’d rather buy “Desiccated Liver Capsules from Grass-fed beef cattle” that’s already available on the market instead of going through this process. I can however eat raw livers (liver sashimi) with grated ginger added in sashimi soy sauce as long as I can get fresh livers, that is!
Can you recommend a good way to give this to kids? Maybe just shave a bit of raw frozen liver on their breakfast?
That’s what my friends with kids do, Morgan!
Hello.
I have just bought organic liver and it arrived frozen saying it had been packed a month ago (im assuming frozen straight away)
I have thawed it and cut into pills and frozen again. When can i consume it?
You’re good to go, Michael!
Great. I checked with them and it was frozen when it was packed. It is organic from a farm that cares about natural habitat for the animanls .
can it be the liver from a Deer? Or does it have to be like a cow? Can it be from a moose?
Yes, all of those are great!
I just recently started eating frozen liver pills to help with PMS. I noticed that sometimes I feel “light” after eating them. It feels weird. Did you have this experience? The pills are made from grass-fed beef liver from a local trusted farm.
Hi Rachel! I have never felt that way, but I’d love to hear more about it. Would you say it’s more of a good or bad feeling?
So I have to ask you. What did you flash freeze these liver pills on? I tried to use wax paper but when I went to put them in a jar then stuck to the paper and thawed and now are all stuck together in my mason jar. Help! Is there something else I should freeze them on? Parchment paper? Should I lightly oil them in some EVOO or Coconut oil and then try to freeze them again on the wax paper? I don’t own any silicone mats.
Hi Erin! Oh bummer! I use parchment paper. That should do the trick for you 🙂
Erin, I just did the same thing an hour ago, but on foil, and the exact same problem! They stuck, they thawed immediately, like 30 seconds, and now I have a pile of liver pills all gushed together. I didn’t think of oiling them, but they’re back in the freezer. Did you do that? What did you do to save your “pills”, if anything? I am bummed….
I have been trying liver in various forms over the last 6 months. Mainly desiccated tablets, which are great, but kinda pricey. I tried chicken liver (including raw) but my stomach didn’t really agree with that. I was a little impatient and ended up with already frozen beef liver from the grocery store. The pros are: come in pre-sliced packages that make the “pills” easier to handle, and more or less can slice them on demand. Cons: who knows where they really come from.
But I did notice one morning after taking raw liver and wondered if I had accidentally left my contacts in over night. My contact prescription isn’t very strong, and noticed my vision was pretty sharp upon waking. Turns out I did take my contacts out before bed…the liver had just given it an extra boost.
Very interesting, Zac! Thanks for sharing your experience.