Liver: a superfood for fertility and pregnancy

Liver was once a staple in the American diet. As our collective dietary habits change, we see a push for plant-based diets. Most people who do eat meat, eat mainly muscle meats forgetting the wisdom of the past. Eating the whole animal is not only healthy for us, it is better for the environment to eat a nose-to-tail diet that includes offal. 

Liver is often referred to as nature’s multivitamin. It is rich in choline, iron, folate, vitamin B12, and fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K. All of these are important in a nutrient-rich diet, but especially so for pregnant women and those trying to conceive. 

Choline and folate have many benefits including encouraging healthy fetal brain development and reducing the risk of neural tube defects. Naturally occurring folate in liver is a more absorbable form than folic acid. Up to 60% of people can not convert folic acid into a usable form due to a MTHFR mutation. 

Iron deficiency has been shown to delay cognitive development in infants. Liver is a great way to increase your iron intake. Liver is a good source of heme iron which is animal based iron. It is absorbed easier than plant-based irons. For example, plant-based sources of iron like spinach, have anti-nutrients that can further impair absorption. 

Vitamin B12 is a crucial nutrient in normal fetal development. B12 is only found in animal foods, and while you can get it from muscle meat or eggs, liver has an exceptional amount of B12.  In fact, liver has 200x more vitamin B12 than muscle meat. Deficiency in this vitamin is also important when breastfeeding because it can lead to deficiencies in the baby. Deficiency of B12 in infancy can lead to developmental delays, motor problems, and stunted growth.

Vitamins A, D, E, and K are all fat-soluble vitamins that can be difficult to get into our diets. These vitamins being fat-soluble guarantees that you will absorb more nutrients than from plant-based sources. Some nutrition professionals cite that vitamin A is toxic to fetal development, but that is based on old research that has only studied the effects of synthetic forms of vitamin A. Research now shows that vitamin A from natural sources like liver is beneficial while pregnant. 

Now that you understand the benefits of liver for pregnancy, trying to conceive, and during breastfeeding, you may be wondering how to include it in your diet. My favorite way to eat liver is to cook it with muscle meat. I love to mix it with my ground beef and make tacos. There are many creative ways to eat it! Some people even choose to blend it into their morning smoothies. If you can not handle eating it just yet, consider looking into desiccated liver supplements.