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Herbal Treatments
I was diagnosed with Hepatitis C back in 2005. I spent about 3 years driving around the country to many doctors who promised to cure this illness with different alternative medicine ie herbal medications and many other things. Although in some cases these treatments and/or herbal medicine did lower the ALT liver levels it was only temporarily and definitely did not cure it. I ended up doing the Interferon/Riboviron treatment in the end and was thankfully cured.
For those thinking which path to take please do not waste your time and money with herbal treatments and give yourself the best chance there is. I only had side effects the first day and was absolutely fine after. Good luck and God Bless!!!
For those thinking which path to take please do not waste your time and money with herbal treatments and give yourself the best chance there is. I only had side effects the first day and was absolutely fine after. Good luck and God Bless!!!
Hi! I don't exist on juice, but I try and juice everyday (organic kale, beets, spinach, cukes, whatever!) and it makes a huge difference in my health. Tonight a girlfriend and I had a juice party - we do this a lot - kale, spinach, ginger, cukes, rutabaga, lemon, ginger, cilantro. Two red wine glasses full of green green juice.
Maybe iron is a problem. All I know is that 15 to 20 minutes post-juice, you can feel that stuff in your blood. You relax, you get alert, your blood pressure drops, you just feel GOOD.
Pollan in "In Defense of Food" theorizes that green leafy vegetables exposed to sun (they make anti-oxidants to protect themselves from the sun) contain substances about which nutritionists and doctors have no idea, substances that are good and healthful in ways we don't understand. He arrives at this conclusion based on an examination of 100 years of nutritionists pronouncing how things are, only to be proven wrong - we are still in that same process.
I think his theory makes sense.
As to my liver, I am cirrhotic and have been since 2009 or so. Damage progressed very rapidly in the six months of treatment (6/08 - 12/08) and the year following. I had auto-immune hepatitis from INF and my doctor just shrugged - ha! Spleen enlarged.
I feel a ton better now than I did in 2009 - 2011, when I thought I was going to die. I really really got hammered by INF. Many body systems were injured. I felt 20 years older in December, 2009 than I did in January, 2008. I never had any problems from Hep C that I could tell. I was lost in my mind, too. I am much better now, but still have significant impairments such that even if the Hep C had been cleared (it was not) I would not have considered treatment a good thing.
Anyway, I started juicing and watching my diet (or trying to - I am not a saint about it) in late 2010 or so, in order to fight psoriasis and arthritis. The crazy thing was that my liver enzymes have been normal a number of times since then.
I asked my doctor :"Hey doc, can they be normal because I just don';t have that much liver left to be damaged?" He said no, I would otherwise be very sick if such was the case.
The docs gave me INF to ramp up my immune system. Then they gave me Enbrel to slow it down. My enzymes went very high. I told my rheumatologist that they were all out of their minds, which I still believe. Whereupon he told me to read In Defense of Food and take tumeric.
I did not take the tumeric until recently, when I had to quit taking NSAID sulindac due to heart palpitations like i used to have before i quit smoking. I take 1500 mg in the am and 1500 mg in the pm.
I also recently started using neem oil for the psoriasis and i HIGHLY recommend it.
I do not know if it is happenstance or just a cycle or what, but since I have started using neem oil and taking turmeric, my arthritis symptoms have just about completely disappeared. My psot=riasis has calmed way down, also. It's literally amazing. The neem is for psoriasis, but I understand that the Indians (from India) drink it and I suspect it goes into my system through my skin. It is an amazing substance. It is also an organic insecticide!
They say tumeric helps the liver, too.
So there it is as I know it!
Good luck!
Maybe iron is a problem. All I know is that 15 to 20 minutes post-juice, you can feel that stuff in your blood. You relax, you get alert, your blood pressure drops, you just feel GOOD.
Pollan in "In Defense of Food" theorizes that green leafy vegetables exposed to sun (they make anti-oxidants to protect themselves from the sun) contain substances about which nutritionists and doctors have no idea, substances that are good and healthful in ways we don't understand. He arrives at this conclusion based on an examination of 100 years of nutritionists pronouncing how things are, only to be proven wrong - we are still in that same process.
I think his theory makes sense.
As to my liver, I am cirrhotic and have been since 2009 or so. Damage progressed very rapidly in the six months of treatment (6/08 - 12/08) and the year following. I had auto-immune hepatitis from INF and my doctor just shrugged - ha! Spleen enlarged.
I feel a ton better now than I did in 2009 - 2011, when I thought I was going to die. I really really got hammered by INF. Many body systems were injured. I felt 20 years older in December, 2009 than I did in January, 2008. I never had any problems from Hep C that I could tell. I was lost in my mind, too. I am much better now, but still have significant impairments such that even if the Hep C had been cleared (it was not) I would not have considered treatment a good thing.
Anyway, I started juicing and watching my diet (or trying to - I am not a saint about it) in late 2010 or so, in order to fight psoriasis and arthritis. The crazy thing was that my liver enzymes have been normal a number of times since then.
I asked my doctor :"Hey doc, can they be normal because I just don';t have that much liver left to be damaged?" He said no, I would otherwise be very sick if such was the case.
The docs gave me INF to ramp up my immune system. Then they gave me Enbrel to slow it down. My enzymes went very high. I told my rheumatologist that they were all out of their minds, which I still believe. Whereupon he told me to read In Defense of Food and take tumeric.
I did not take the tumeric until recently, when I had to quit taking NSAID sulindac due to heart palpitations like i used to have before i quit smoking. I take 1500 mg in the am and 1500 mg in the pm.
I also recently started using neem oil for the psoriasis and i HIGHLY recommend it.
I do not know if it is happenstance or just a cycle or what, but since I have started using neem oil and taking turmeric, my arthritis symptoms have just about completely disappeared. My psot=riasis has calmed way down, also. It's literally amazing. The neem is for psoriasis, but I understand that the Indians (from India) drink it and I suspect it goes into my system through my skin. It is an amazing substance. It is also an organic insecticide!
They say tumeric helps the liver, too.
So there it is as I know it!
Good luck!
Hi -
Regarding your December 19th post:
I too suffer from interferon-induced psoriasis. Am thankfully SVR after HepC tx, yet I remain cirrhotic. Anything more that you can share of your experience with juicing?
By chance are you cirrhotic too? And if so, has juicing helped to maintain (or to hopefully improve) your liver's condition?
Many thanks for any input!
Pug
Regarding your December 19th post:
I too suffer from interferon-induced psoriasis. Am thankfully SVR after HepC tx, yet I remain cirrhotic. Anything more that you can share of your experience with juicing?
By chance are you cirrhotic too? And if so, has juicing helped to maintain (or to hopefully improve) your liver's condition?
Many thanks for any input!
Pug
Iron is a HUGE concern for Hep C sufferers...viruses and cancer need iron to thrive and replicate...HIV and HCV are two of the ones that favor iron, as well as cancers. Anyone with liver disease or infections or viruses that affect the liver need to absolutely be concerned with iron. Excess iron loads into liver first and although there are two types of iron, heme and non-heme (non-heme from fruits and veggies and grains, heme from animal protein) the non-heme iron is not readily absorbed, so a diet rich in plants and less on animal protein is a very good idea...reduction or elimination of mostly red meats is a good idea. The more we can do to keep our liver functioning the best it can under the circumstances with an active virus which affects its function, the better...whatever that means.
Herbal remedies will not cure the virus, but it can certainly aid in helping the endocrine and gastric system draining and promote circulation throughout the body. Everything goes through the liver, so the less stress we can give it the better. Meds are hard enough on it, and in anticipation of my husband beginning treatment (he may decide not to treat, and wait for new drugs) he is on a prescribed regimen of a series of herbal drops that will bring his liver, kidneys and other organs to function the best they can in his circumstance. In a month we will retest his liver enzymes and see how they have reacted to the herbs treatment. Anything that helps bring down the inflammation is a victory in our book. A week into it and he already feels somewhat better...his abdomen bloating and swelling and energy levels are much better. When the liver isn't functioning, everything backs up into body and system, so if you can find something that helps that, wonderful.
Juicing is something we are going to get into again...also "clean eating"...we did that a time ago for about 2 years and felt great...nothing processed, refined, preserved...real food (if there is such a thing anymore!!!!). Life took a curve in the last year and we got away from it but now we have a good incentive to return to it! Iron from plants and grains is much less absorbed and is a healthy source of other vital nutrients and minerals and vitamins we need. Vitamin C helps body absorb iron so if taking supplements it is best to do so about 4 hours away from food. Other supplements that include iron are not a good idea either. There are supplements you can find without the iron. Others have mentioned that as well recently on this site.
Back to the iron issue, more people do not realize just how much this affects health...so many are wandering around not knowing the excess iron, from all kinds of sources...genetic (1 in 9 people of European descent are actually carriers of a mutated gene known to cause the body to store excess iron), environmental, lifestyle (diet, smoking...cigarettes contain high levels of iron)...is building to toxic and unsafe levels. Excess iron promotes free radical and oxidation activity which promotes cancer cells growth, auto-immune disorders, inflammation and infections, neurological and hormonal disorders.
As I said, iron loads onto liver first and does play a role in the Hep C treatment aspect as well. My husband's genetic condition he has that makes his body store iron, is doing as much or more damage to liver as the Hep C virus. At this point, he couldn't even begin treatment if he wanted to with his iron levels the way they were. Those had to come down first. And it will complicate his treatment if he decides to go ahead with it. Ribavirin is shown to raise the iron levels in the liver altering response to treatment.
So, I am glad for you that you have found something that helps you get through your situation. I'll let you know how my husband does with his herbal treatment in the coming weeks. Thanks for your perspective on going "green"!
C
Herbal remedies will not cure the virus, but it can certainly aid in helping the endocrine and gastric system draining and promote circulation throughout the body. Everything goes through the liver, so the less stress we can give it the better. Meds are hard enough on it, and in anticipation of my husband beginning treatment (he may decide not to treat, and wait for new drugs) he is on a prescribed regimen of a series of herbal drops that will bring his liver, kidneys and other organs to function the best they can in his circumstance. In a month we will retest his liver enzymes and see how they have reacted to the herbs treatment. Anything that helps bring down the inflammation is a victory in our book. A week into it and he already feels somewhat better...his abdomen bloating and swelling and energy levels are much better. When the liver isn't functioning, everything backs up into body and system, so if you can find something that helps that, wonderful.
Juicing is something we are going to get into again...also "clean eating"...we did that a time ago for about 2 years and felt great...nothing processed, refined, preserved...real food (if there is such a thing anymore!!!!). Life took a curve in the last year and we got away from it but now we have a good incentive to return to it! Iron from plants and grains is much less absorbed and is a healthy source of other vital nutrients and minerals and vitamins we need. Vitamin C helps body absorb iron so if taking supplements it is best to do so about 4 hours away from food. Other supplements that include iron are not a good idea either. There are supplements you can find without the iron. Others have mentioned that as well recently on this site.
Back to the iron issue, more people do not realize just how much this affects health...so many are wandering around not knowing the excess iron, from all kinds of sources...genetic (1 in 9 people of European descent are actually carriers of a mutated gene known to cause the body to store excess iron), environmental, lifestyle (diet, smoking...cigarettes contain high levels of iron)...is building to toxic and unsafe levels. Excess iron promotes free radical and oxidation activity which promotes cancer cells growth, auto-immune disorders, inflammation and infections, neurological and hormonal disorders.
As I said, iron loads onto liver first and does play a role in the Hep C treatment aspect as well. My husband's genetic condition he has that makes his body store iron, is doing as much or more damage to liver as the Hep C virus. At this point, he couldn't even begin treatment if he wanted to with his iron levels the way they were. Those had to come down first. And it will complicate his treatment if he decides to go ahead with it. Ribavirin is shown to raise the iron levels in the liver altering response to treatment.
So, I am glad for you that you have found something that helps you get through your situation. I'll let you know how my husband does with his herbal treatment in the coming weeks. Thanks for your perspective on going "green"!
C
I know one guy who went on an all juice diet and it messed up his digestion big time. We need the fiber. Don't get me wrong, I have a juicer and use it.
But it's healthier to eat the whole plant~ think big salads. My juice is in addition to my meals, not in place of them.
If you have liver damage, avoiding too much iron is important. I'm sure not all greens have the same amount of iron though.
I stopped using cast iron pans and didn't eat spinach although some say it's okay.
Personally, I think it's about dietary balance~ all things in moderation.
Rambleon~ Herbs are merely plants, some have medicinal properties.
I used herbs and supplements while I was cirrhotic.
Turmeric, a common spice, is actually a root, and is supposed to be great for our livers.
My general thought was it couldn't hurt and it could help.
But it's healthier to eat the whole plant~ think big salads. My juice is in addition to my meals, not in place of them.
If you have liver damage, avoiding too much iron is important. I'm sure not all greens have the same amount of iron though.
I stopped using cast iron pans and didn't eat spinach although some say it's okay.
Personally, I think it's about dietary balance~ all things in moderation.
Rambleon~ Herbs are merely plants, some have medicinal properties.
I used herbs and supplements while I was cirrhotic.
Turmeric, a common spice, is actually a root, and is supposed to be great for our livers.
My general thought was it couldn't hurt and it could help.
I have read warnings on this site, too , about too much iron from greens juicing. I don't know if that is a big concern or not for hep c sufferers.
Hi! Merry Christmas.
I was speaking more of kale, spinach, beet greens, red lettuce, cucumbers, stuff like that. Juicing a head of red lettuce is refreshing, tastes pretty good, and real anti-inflammatory.
You are right, sometimes the super greens (ie - kale juice) will upset your stomach. A small bit of ginger and an apple or some carrots cut that chlorophyl taste.
Here's my favorite, but I can't drink it anymore from psoriasis, and its actually not a juice. In summertime, a tomato, a lime, a half a jalapeño, two or three garlic cloves, water all in a magic bullet or a blender.
blend it drink it. 15 minutes later you are absolutely buzzed with energy in your blood. I mean, high.
The greens do the same thing, but with a little less rush and not such a peak.
I was speaking more of kale, spinach, beet greens, red lettuce, cucumbers, stuff like that. Juicing a head of red lettuce is refreshing, tastes pretty good, and real anti-inflammatory.
You are right, sometimes the super greens (ie - kale juice) will upset your stomach. A small bit of ginger and an apple or some carrots cut that chlorophyl taste.
Here's my favorite, but I can't drink it anymore from psoriasis, and its actually not a juice. In summertime, a tomato, a lime, a half a jalapeño, two or three garlic cloves, water all in a magic bullet or a blender.
blend it drink it. 15 minutes later you are absolutely buzzed with energy in your blood. I mean, high.
The greens do the same thing, but with a little less rush and not such a peak.
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