Hep C Discussion Forum

Greg · Guru

RE: Any advice on foods?

neonpatrick · Member

Foods are very essential source of our life and are very important for the health. Foods like fruits and vegetable contain mostly all the nutritions which our body require for proper and healthy growth. Fruits and green leafy vegetable are very good for the health. Green tea is also very good and helps in burning the fat. Sea food and meat is very beneficial for weight gain and are very good for the skin looking healthy ,fair ,shiny and glow.

ty · Guru

Hi Marge,

You seem to be going through the same phases that most of us went through, so no need to worry about the venting. I agree that you should see a Doc who specializes in Hep C, my regular pcp wasn't familiar with the tx and more importantly the sx.

My gastro is downtown and it's well known that I don't care to drive on treatment, so once I was set up to do the tx I only had to go down there once since I've started, and that was just to see if my eyes were yellow, lol. The rest of my consultations are over the phone and I even order my meds that way. I go to the center that's close to me for my blood work and to pick up the meds.

Let them know that that driving could be a problem on tx and perhaps they can work out something, it will probably be easier for them as well.

Yes, bananas are our friends. It's the one thing that I could always eat, when I wasn't feeling well. Take care, ty smile

Cinnamon Girl · Guru

That sounds good Marge, take it step at a time and you will get there.

love Jill xxx

cloudguard · Senior Member

Great to hear things are a little better. doviine.

Cloudguard

doviine · Member

Thanks Elizabeth, Greg, Jill and James.. . Appreciate the support and encouragement.

Better today.. banana caused no nausea - less vertigo. The trunk pain both sides, front and back is, and has been, mild.

Sonagram showed no gallstones. HIDA test was suggested. AST=29 ALT=30 ... actually down from 40's on both since December ('10).

Am definitely going to check on Dartmouth.. thanks James.. amazing what a little encouragement can do.

I'm beginning to see a pattern of over-reacting in myself. Going to slow it down..

keep reading.. day at a time.

James10500 · Guru

Hi Marge,

It's better to find a Doc that does treat Hep C, meaning a Gastroenterologist or a Hepitologyst. Most PCP docs know nothing about Hep C and are as confused about it as the general public. I think Dartmouth has trial programs that may be cost free, it might be worth the trip if you have insurance issues.

It gets frustrating at times that's for sure. Just keep battleing you will prevail !!

James

Cinnamon Girl · Guru

Hi Marge, I really feel for you and wish you all the best of luck with finding a more suitable doc. Don`t worry about venting your feelings here - we understand what it`s like and how difficult things can be.

love from Jill xxx

Greg · Guru

Hi Marg,

Sorry to hear about your visit with the pcp, hope that all will turn out ok for you, maybe a more understanding doctor will help, maybe if you could get to Dartmouth as you said it's the closest good place it might be the best option at the moment. I know you said it's not doable, but maybe just this once to ease your fears. I hope I haven't given you a wrong answer or solution, just looking at your situation from a different angle.

Take care keep us posted.

Greg

bethland · Senior Member

Hi Doviine

its ok , very hard not to go on when you are worried about your health.Good luck with finding a doctor that can refer to hep c problems as well,is really the best thing for you so that you can gain a clear picture of where you stand .

elizabeth

doviine · Member

doviine wrote:
still venting I guess.... Really, I'd like to move back to my home state Pennsylvania.. have not had a good experience with health care in NH.. and know many others who haven't either. The closest "good" place to go is Dartmouth-Hitch**** which is an hour and a half away.. not doable in my situation...

Sorry, I went on anyway

ummm... the hospital is Dartmouth H-i-t-c-h-c-o-c-k......... geez, let's see if this works.

doviine · Member

still venting I guess.... Really, I'd like to move back to my home state Pennsylvania.. have not had a good experience with health care in NH.. and know many others who haven't either. The closest "good" place to go is Dartmouth-Hitch**** which is an hour and a half away.. not doable in my situation...

Sorry, I went on anyway blankstare

doviine · Member

Hi all.. have not read this entire thread yet... just need to vent a little. Although I did not focus on hep c between 1994 (besides bx '03) and now, I have made major changes in habits and diet when not feeling well. Quit smoking, drinking, changed my diet 2x.. first to more healthy, then to gluten/additive free last March.

I was feeling very good after quitting wheat for 11 months then this past January had a 6.5 week episode of back pain/sciatica for which I took medication with no regard to hcv. It hurt that much. Now 3 weeks after stopping ALL meds and even supplements, I can't eat anything without feeling sick. I am hungry but have not experienced the sensation of thirst for at least over a year.

I'm bummed.. I was happily eating a wide variety of foods. Now I can't take part in this topic (hopefully temporarilly).

Saw new pcp today.. he did not agree with my concerns that my symptoms of nausea and some mild pains could be related to hep c. He thinks is gall-bladder, said "we won't do anything now" but if it continues he will order a sonogram of gall bladder. He also informed me he does not treat hep c.. and encouraged me to make an appt w/hep c doc?? I am going to do that but he's more $$ and intimidating. The stress. The pain is mild and right now I'm barely eating but drinking a lot of water and some fruit juices.

Thanks for reading

Sigh.. I could go on but I won't ... I just need to be patient I guess and ... look for another doc.

Catie · Veteran Member

Thank you for the advice Elizabeth =))

Gregs appetite seems to be along similar lines

And I just happen to have a sister who is the Head of Dietetics at the ****** Base Hospital - she has a great interest in clinical dietetics and many years experience under her belt so I thought her insights might be useful - she suggests both how to eat and what to eat

I have edited out the formula names and suggest you ask your doc or nurse about the best ones to try if you are interested. Her comments are only suggestions.

"The important thing is to make every bite and drink count. I know we usually promote water but with weight loss it is important that there are calories in fluids. use cordial, soft drink, coffee on milk.

The supplements I recommended are

****** powder which can be added to cereal, porridge, milk or just made up on water.

(It is important to have 2 glasses (400 - 500ml) daily as well as meals. It is best to have a high carb snack last thing at night like an ***** drink or banana smoothie made on milk & ice cream.

******* Hospital formula is the other one I would recommend.

They are both complete foods as in have all the vitamins and minerals.

Do not bother with high protein formulas, these are good along with normal foods as per the information sheets. (I have these information sheets on file but and will upload them if/when our Moderators ok them - Cate)

Variety is the key plus good taste.

love *********

ps if Greg cannot eat well during the day for what ever reason, there is nothing stopping him having a midnight snack as long as you don't mind sounds of munching in bed Cate. or crumbs for that matter!!"

Hope you are all having an UP day Cate =))

-- Edited by Catie on Friday 11th of February 2011 09:37:45 PM

Greg · Guru

DGiga wrote:

Sorry everyone, I am trying to post a picture of my new kitty but I am having trouble. Hope they showup. If not I'll keep trying. I've posted pic before but they came from a camera. The pics am trying to post were sent to me in e-mail from my daughter. When I push upload it says "Sorry, only images.

Hi Dee,
With those images you might have to right-click the image first and select "save image as" to save an image to your hard drive in order for you to upload it to the forum. See how that goes. Look forward to seeing the results.
Good luck
Greg

-- Edited by Greg on Friday 11th of February 2011 09:05:40 PM

bethland · Senior Member

hi there
i found porrige was great , bananas, homous ,kidney beans and chocolate ...
also i almost lived on yoghurt .
I went completely vegetarian and used to buy big hunza pies from the gourmet deli and cut them in halves ,made with mashed potato and pumkin, spinich and corn ..that was about the extent of my vegie intake .

I understand where you are coming from Catie with the nutrition, tho i am not sure that to many of the goodies from food get absorbed and certainly plenty get killed off by the drugs .
Sort of survival mode ..
you end up eating what you can..
I have always wanted to ask Steff about absorption of nutrients while on tx but i always forgot.
sorry if i not making sense its been a weird day i dont seem to be able to make decsions, prob need a sleep .

elizaqbeth

ty · Guru

Hi Fnzol, Welcome to the forum! Your thinking on eating after the pills was right on for me as well. I went out for a large dinner the other night and had to take my ribas when I got home. I was too full to eat so I thought I would just wash them down with so much water that they would catch up with the food. That did did not work well at all and my stomach paid the price, LOL. Take care everybody, ty smile

DGiga · Senior Member

Sorry everyone, I am trying to post a picture of my new kitty but I am having trouble. Hope they showup. If not I'll keep trying. I've posted pic before but they came from a camera. The pics am trying to post were sent to me in e-mail from my daughter. When I push upload it says "Sorry, only images.

ChinsUp23 · Veteran Member

Fnzol,

I'm going to try your technic in a few minutes, thanks.

The thing about raw fruits and veggies is it doesn't take any effort to prepare.

Greg · Guru

Hi Fnzol,
Appreciate your advice looks like I will have to experiment a bit as well. Also a big warm welcome to the forum, I'm new here only a couple of weeks and have found everyone here just fantastic, hope your well and your journey is easy.
Take Care.
Greg and cate

Greg · Guru

Hi Jill,
If I can eat vegemite I'm doing ok!

Cheers
Greg

Fnzol · Member

I've found that I'm more likely to get indigestion from the ribavirin if I take the pills later during a meal, than if I eat just a couple of bites, get the caps down, and then finish the meal. I did quite a bit of experimenting at first to see how I could minimize the upset.

In my experience, getting the caps into the gut early, and putting the bulk of a meal on top of them does more to mitigate indigestion than any other strategy. I'm now in week 14 and I rarely get upset stomach from them anymore. Doesn't matter whether it's fatty foods, fruit, dairy, whatever. Just get 'em down quick and cover 'em up works for me.

(Edit: spelling)

-- Edited by Fnzol on Wednesday 9th of February 2011 11:24:02 PM

Cinnamon Girl · Guru

Hi Catie and Greg, yes I totally agree about the frequent small snacks. I`ve had food fads all through tx so far, not all of them healthy I have to say, but at times it`s been a matter of eating anything rather than nothing. I find a hearty soup very useful if I can`t face eating much, esp home made ( I love lentils and all sorts of veg), and natural yoghurt usually goes down well too if I`m feeling queasy. I often have a glass of milk with my ribas which seems to help to avoid getting indigestion.

Personally I think the main think is to eat as healthily as you can but also be kind to yourself and don`t deny yourself the odd treat that you fancy!

Hi to Chins and welcome also from me. Your diet is very interesting and sounds very healthy. I like the sound of it especially all the lovely fruit.

Good luck all of you, hugs Jill xx

Greg · Guru

Hi Ty and Chins,
Chins first off welcome to the forum, you've found a great site and some very special and caring people here. Guys thanks for the advice it seems we have to adjust to quite a few things during tx.

Chins you've won me on the roast chicken an MAYO sandwich. Ty how are you travelling? Hope you both are ok and take care.

Cheers
Greg

Catie · Veteran Member

Ahh thank you Chin smile

I should have been more specific - it is animal fats that seem to upset Greg - he can tolerate plant oils in moderation thank goodness

We too enjoy organic food as much as we can - the flavor alone is a freat reason! and there are many other considerations as well - luckily for us organic food is very readily available here - fruits, vegs and meats, as well as grocery products - even one of the local farms is organic - how lucky are we!!

Not sure that Greg could eat as much as in your daily menue - he does try but just can't force much down at the moment - under 'normal' circumstances he is a light eater - with a loss of appetite he is rather struggling to force things down

So to try and keep up his intake we are switching to 5 or 6 snacks a day - for instance he can eat and egg and slice of toast - or a bowl of muslie - but not both at once so we'll split them up

Thank you again for your hele and advice and very good luck with your treatment =))

ChinsUp23 · Veteran Member

I am on a very strict organic whole food balanced diet. Below is what I ate yesterday to give you a reference. I want to mention something first however, fat, let me rephrase, good fat, is essential to a healthy diet. If you can us a tablespoon of olive oil either as a cooking supplement or directly on the food he will be much better off for it. Also, all water is dionized/filtered.

Breakfast (pre ribo meal)
2 scrabbled eggs (organic, non-steriod/non-preservitives) cooked with a tablespoon of olive oil and a heaping fork-full of fresh homemade salsa
1/2 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup blueberries
6oz of almond milk

snack
2-bananas dipped in almond butter (substitute for peanut butter) Our local organic grocery store has several freshly grounded nut-butters
1/4 cup blackberries

lunch (this is my only cheat meal cause I love bread and mayonnaise)
sliced baked chicken sandwich (whole bread, organic mayo, 2-3 oz of chicken, mixed greens, 1/2 tomato and a tablespoon of MAYO!)

snack
4-5 dates
1/4 cup blueberries
1 tablespoon of almond butter

dinner
mixed green salad with oil/vinegar
1/4 cup strawberries
1 extra small new-potato microwaved w/1 teaspoon of whole butter and 1 heaping fork of salsa

snack (pre-ribo meal)
2-bananas dipped in almond butter

All meals are preceded by minimum of 12oz of water.

6 days since starting tx and I've already lost 10 pounds. I'm sure its mostly fluids but I know this diet works.

Reference:
The Schwarzbein Principle II
by Diana Schwarzbein, M.D.

She will de-myth the fat-bunk

Catie · Veteran Member

Thank you TY - I thought small meals might be the go - easier to digest and doesn't give your stomach a chance to be really empty - at least thats my theory LOL - if Greg likes the idea I'll adjust the menu =))

ty · Guru

Hi Catie, I've found it easier to eat small meals every two or three hours. It seems to make my stomach feel less upset. I, like many people on tx, craved certain foods and could only eat those while I had that craving.
I do eat very high fat foods with my ribas, that seems to make me tolerate them better. (I drank eggnog with them during season, now it's bagels with butter!) Everybody is different, but for the last two months I have been able to eat healthy again, although I'm losing about a pound a week. Oh well... Hang in there, ty smile

Catie · Veteran Member

Hiya smile

I'd like to help Greg maintain good nutrition if possible - to that end ...

Anything with fats/oils or any spice (fresh herbs are ok) seem to have a disastrous effect on his digestion - both things are easy to cut out but I wondered if anyone has some comments on what kinds of foods are best tolerated by someone on treatment - and what is a good idea to avoid - and what is most enjoyable as his appetite has all but vanished as well which is understandable

Also are four or five snacky kinds of meals a day easier to cope with than three bigger ones?

It is probably different for everyone but if there are any clues to maintaining at least good basic nutrition I would be most grateful to hear them

All suggestions gratefully received =)

-- Edited by Catie on Tuesday 8th of February 2011 09:41:04 PM

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