I know what you’re thinking, because I had the same reaction. Even though I’m an omnivore (eating both plants and animals) I had a really hard time embracing the fact that liver was going to be a part of MY ideal preconception nutrition and fertility diet. Just to clarify… I don’t have to eat liver in order to conceive, I am choosing to eat liver because I believe that it is one of the most nutrient dense foods available and I want to use it to help build my nutrient stores prior to pregnancy. Not too long ago liver and cod liver oil made a regular appearance at meal times – if you don’t remember, just ask your parents. With childhood obesity, autism, asthma, allergies and diabetes being at an all time high, I feel a stronger pull now, more than ever to get back to the basics and take note of the strategies that healthy traditional cultures used for my pregnancy.
photo credit: TAYLOR149The nutritional wisdom of our ancestors has been lost in our modern day society. Traditionally, every native culture has sacred foods that are fed to newly married couples, pregnant women and children. These foods contain a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals that nourish growing babies and children. One of these foods is LIVER. Since this valuable information is missing from mainstream fertility and pregnancy literature, I’m going to highlight these sacred foods through Fertility Food Fridays!
Over the next 6-12 months I am making a conscious effort to create a nourishing home for our baby. In an effort to add more traditional, nutrient dense foods to our diet I ate liver for the first time this week… and it was good!
Quite simply because it contains more nutrients, gram for gram, than any other food. Liver is nature’s most concentrated source of Vitamin A and contains all the B vitamins in abundance (including vitamin B12 and the coveted folate or folic acid). It is an excellent source of high quality protein and a highly usable form of iron which is especially important for women during their childbearing years. It’s also rich in trace elements such as copper, zinc and chromium. I plan on writing a separate post about the benefits of cod liver oil so stay tuned!
Dr. Mary Enig wrote a great article on Vitamin A for Fetal Development which I highly recommend reading along with Vitamin A Saga, especially if you’ve been told to avoid liver during pregnancy. Since I want this blog to be about my personal journey through fertility and pregnancy, I’m going to forgo delving into this debate and recommend that you make an informed decision based on your own research.
I only recommend eating liver from organically raised, grass-fed animals. It’s best to pass on liver from animals grown conventionally which will have accumulated toxins from pesticides, hormones and antibiotics. Luckily a pound of organic livers will often cost you less than $5 so it’s an affordable way to add more nutrients to your diet. Since this is such a powerful superfood a 4oz serving once or twice per week is all you need. We picked up our first pound of frozen liver from Forstbauer Family Natural Food Farm at the Vancouver Farmers Market.
My husband (Vancouver Nutritionist) came up with a creative way to ease into our liver-eating adventures. He put the liver in our food processor and then fried it up with some onions and spices before adding it to our favourite Curried Chickpea Chili Recipe. It was delicious! My first time eating liver was a success – I couldn’t tell the difference between the liver and the ground bison that we normally would have used. I was pleasantly surprised!
Since we always make enough dinner for leftovers the next day we plan on incorporating half a pound of liver into our meals once a week so that we are both consuming approximately 2oz of liver twice a week. That should be easy to do!
WordVixen says
August 27, 2010 at 4:29 pmI really like liver the way my mother makes it- cooked hard and smothered in gravy and onions and served with mashed potatoes. But. To get the most nutrients out of it, I have to stop eating it cooked hard. :-/
I found some veal liver at the grocery store the other week (3 slices for less than $1.50). I soaked one in milk, and froze the other two in milk (figuring that the milk would keep the liver from getting freezer burn AND they’d automatically soak as they thaw), then tossed it in seasoned flour and lightly fried it in coconut oil and bacon grease. It really wasn’t too bad! Because it’s from veal, it was super tender, and there wasn’t a strong flavor.
I also have “beef liver”, which I assume means that it’s from a full grown cow and not a calf, from a grassfed cow/bull/calf that’s in my freezer right now. That one I intend to take over to my mother for her special treatment, though I have considered trying it in a slow cooker and sliced thin like a nice roast.
We’ve been trying to get pregnant for 3 years, and I’ve only just discovered Real Food/Nourishing Traditions about 2 months ago, so I’m trying to over feed nutrients (is that possible?) to make up for the deficit as quickly as possible.
Crystal - Prenatal Coach says
August 27, 2010 at 5:05 pmThanks for stopping by and offering some tips! Next time I’m going to try marinating the liver in yogurt and see how that goes!
I really hope that your journey into the realm of real food helps you conceive. I wish you all the best!
WordVixen says
August 27, 2010 at 8:34 pmThat’s actually a great idea! I have a cup of fat free (I know, I forget if I didn’t notice or if I was rushed) honey, Greek yogurt that I don’t know what to do with. I’ll bet with a little cumin and garlic it would give the liver a whole different dimension!
Elizabeth @nourishingcreations says
August 27, 2010 at 7:01 pmHello Crystal,
I’m so excited to be following your new blog! I’m a real foodie, and i’m also at the time point in time as you are, we are trying to decide when to conceive our next child, and I want to, and have been trying to get my body ready before we decide when (within the next year sometime). I feel like i’m just “starting” to think about having another child, so i’m excited to follow your posts and get new ideas on how to fill my nutrient stores.
I prefer pastured chicken livers, and we’ve been sauteing them in butter, with onions and garlic and salt and pepper. Then putting them in the food processor, and spreading the pate on crackers. And eating with a few slices of oranges. I’d love more ways to enjoy beef liver, the flavor is so much stronger, so on occasion we’ve just cooked up a little tiny bit to throw in with regular ground beef. (grass fed)
I love that you are blogging openly and honestly about your experience in getting your body ready, I kind of want to do the same, on the blog i’ve been creating, but I’m kind of nervous/shy about it! But it’s so important to share that information with those who need it! So thanks for sharing with us!
Crystal - Prenatal Coach says
August 27, 2010 at 7:54 pmHi Elizabeth,
Thank you for your support! While it’s still a little bit scary to be putting myself out there like this I’m excited about the challenge and ready to share my story (as it unfolds) with the world – or whoever is interested enough to follow along lol
Sounds like you are on a similar journey, very exciting! Please pop in and say hello, it would be great to have a real foodie support system 🙂 I’d love to get YOUR feedback and tips as we go along! All the best to you and please let me know if you do start blogging about your journey.
Tracy says
August 28, 2010 at 2:44 amI just discovered nourishing traditions and the real foodie lifestyle 3 months ago. I am 2 months pregnant and wish I had known much of this previously. I have been suffering from morning sickness and would love to know if eating liver would help it. Do you know anything about that? Is there any benefit in eating liver even now…when I am already pregnant? Will I still have a healthy babe even if I did not consume liver pre-conception?
What else do you think I can do about the all day nausea?
Crystal - Prenatal Coach says
August 29, 2010 at 3:29 pmHi Tracy,
Congratulations on your pregnancy! Not to worry, you can definitely still have a healthy baby even if you didn’t consume liver during the preconception period. It’s MOST important to consume an adequate amount of nutrients during pregnancy. I’m starting to build my nutrient stores in advance because I have the knowledge and the opportunity to ‘plan’ our first pregnancy.
While I can’t give you any personal recommendations because I don’t know your health history, I do believe that organic liver is an extremely nutrient dense food that can be safely consumed during pregnancy in small amounts (ie. a 2-4oz serving 1-2x per week.) The b vitamins in the liver may very well help with your morning sickness if you can find an easy way to consume it! You could also try making your own ginger tea by steeping fresh ginger in hot water for nausea. Hope that helps!
Dana says
September 4, 2010 at 6:50 pmWatch that ginger consumption though. Susun Weed says it can encourage menstruation and does not encourage the consumption of large amounts of it early in pregnancy.
Gabriela says
August 31, 2010 at 11:58 amHi, I am very happy to have come accross this blog via facebook, as I am beginning the process of getting my body ready to conceive my second child.
I have eaten liver my whole live, I live in central america, and here it is very common to eat this types of food, mainly as you said on your blog, because parents make kids eat it to ensure good nutrition.
I like to prepare it cutting it very thinly, seasoning with salt, pepper and a little worstershire and just caramelizing it, until it’s cooked through with some thinly sliced onions, green peppers and garlic. If you are not used to the taste or texture it might be a bit overwhelming, but it is very good. It’s a good idea to take off the outside membrane of the liver, since this tends to get very tough when it is cooked.
eating liver is also a very good way to keep you hemoglobin levels up during pregnancy. Maybe after you have gotten used to the taste you can try it this way.
Crystal - Prenatal Coach says
September 3, 2010 at 9:00 pmHi Gabriela, thanks for your valuable tips! I wish you all the best as you prepare your body for your second pregnancy! I look forward to journeying with you 🙂
Karen says
September 11, 2010 at 8:16 pmI’ve been on a Gaps diet for the last 15 months. I am now 2 months pregnant with my 3rd child, and nursing my 2 year old as well. I learned a technique from the people on GapsHelp Yahoo Group that makes it pretty painless. In fact I look forward to it! I purchase about 5 lbs. of grassfed beef liver from Whole Foods, and it is pre-sliced. I then freeze it for 2 weeks to make sure there are no parasites, since I consume it raw. Others have convinced me to try it by sharing their experiences with it helping more with energy levels and vitality. So after thawing it out, I cut the slices into daily portions and refreeze between natural unbleached parchment baking paper. When I’m ready to eat some I pull it off the parchment paper and let it thaw a tiny bit. Maybe 15 minutes or so. Then I chop it into tiny bits which is easy when mostly frozen. Then I put some on a spoon, dunk it in a mug of warm homemade beef broth (salted/seasoned) and swallow a spoonful. It might go down smoother if allowed to thaw more first. But if you want to hide the flavor completely it’s better more frozen. I think of it as liver pills. Very expensive if you buy them in capsules. I end up taking about 1/2 cup daily with 1 cup broth and I feel great! No morning sickness at all, and I have tons of energy. I don’t know if it’s possible to take too much so I’m curious if anyone knows about this?
Crystal - Prenatal Coach says
September 13, 2010 at 11:10 amHi Karen, thanks for all the valuable information! While I’ve also heard of this method of consuming liver, I have yet to try it. As for the amount that you are consuming, I highly recommend that you read the two articles I’ve linked to above entitled “Vitamin A for Fetal Development” and “Vitamin A Saga” and speak to a qualified health care professional about your specific needs since I cannot provide any medical advice. The Weston A. Price Foundation’s diet for pregnant and nursing mothers recommends 3-4 ounces of liver, once or twice a week. I think this definitely warrants some further research because 1/2 cup is approximately 4 ounces so you may be consuming too much. It’s a difficult topic to navigate due to the wide spread information available about vitamin A toxicity in pregnancy (although I suspect this is an issue with synthetic vitamin A and not natural vitamin A.) I hope that helps! So glad to hear that you feel great and you’re not experiencing any morning sickness!
Karen says
January 22, 2011 at 3:56 pmI wanted to post a follow-up to anyone wondering about high levels of liver consumption during pregnancy. I did not carry that pregnancy successfully. I actually miscarried at 8.5 weeks, so I would say it is very possible that too much liver can have a dangerous affect on unborn babies. Now that I could be pregnant again, I’m still eating liver, but only 4 oz a week. Of course we don’t know what the cause of the miscarriage was, but I’m not taking any chances this time. Thank you Crystal for your reply!
Crystal - Prenatal Coach says
February 4, 2011 at 9:12 pmI’m so sorry to hear about your loss Karen. As you said, there are many possible causes for miscarriage (most of which are out of your control) so it’s hard to pin it on the over-consumption of liver but I appreciate you coming back to share that info with us. I’m happy to hear that you still feel good about eating liver, just less of it this time around. Wishing you all the best! Sending you *baby dust*
Amy E says
February 24, 2011 at 7:20 pmI know this is an old post but I just recently found your blog. I did not grow up eating liver so I had to teach myself to make it in a way that I would like. I make liver and onions and think it’s great. First caramalize the onions in butter with a little bit of honey, transfer them to your plate. Then sear the liver on one side, flip it and add balsamic vinegar to the pan, which quickly reduces in the hot pan. Pull the liver off when it’s still rare and pour the balsamic vinegar reduction over the liver and onions. Wonderful with a glass of red wine! Now if I could only get my husband to try it 🙂
Joanne says
February 20, 2013 at 9:44 amI have been looking for new ways to get more liver into my diet. I am going to try this! Thank you.
Justyna says
July 27, 2015 at 2:41 pmTo better absorb the iron from the liver I have read that you need vitamin C. I will try to eat orange just before or tomatoes with it. I am only eating liver pate from the farmers market as the fresh liver in the shops is not organic. I hope this will work for me. I really enjoy it wchich is a good sign as there is not many foods that taste good anymore. My body forgot how to digest food. I have morning sickness & low energy for the last 4 weeks. I am 9 weeks pregnant. I think fermented cod liver oil + enzimes + good bacteria {capsules} help me with digestion & the nouseaus feeling. Sometimes is hard to swollow pills but every time I stop my day is worse. I think I will supplement with niacent aiodine as well as it is recomended. I want more pleasant pregnancy. Any tips? xo