I have been feeling Nausea, fatigue, loss of appetite and have been gettin anxious and depressed since last week when i found out i had liver damage

There are many causes of liver cell damage:
alcohol consumption, medication toxification,
chemical exposure, mushroom poisoning,
biliary obstruction/malformation/infection,
viral infection, parasite infections,
hereditary disease, auto immune disease,
fatty liver disease and others.

It depends on the cause of the liver damage and
how serious the liver damage is.
Tiredness usually stays all the time in liver disease.

When the liver cells become damage, the immune
system of the body responds to this damage and
causes inflammation to develop inside the liver
(this can cause the liver to enlarge in size).
These symptoms can start to go away, that you
mentioned, if the cause is found and can be stopped
so the liver cells will heal. if not, then the they may
continue. It sounds like the doctor is believing that
it hasn't reached the stage where it cannot be reversed…
which is very good.

Any inflammation of the liver by any cell-damage cause is known as
Hepatitis. Cirrhosis of the liver is advance stage of liver cell damage;
it means that the liver cells have started to die off and formed scar
tissue inside the liver. This is then not reversible. It becomes
a progressive disease where the liver cells continue to die off
slowly or fast (depending on the cause, or if the cause can be
stopped).

To find out you have a disease, is like someone saying your life
will end very soon. you also go through alot of unknowns. What
the doctors will do to you, whether your dreams for your life
will disappear, what is really important in your life and the way
you look at it. It is terrible hard to swallow for anyone. especially,
when you are so young with your whole life ahead of you.
I would not take any medications unless it is absolutely necessary
as most all medications go through the liver, to be broken down,
before going to the rest of the body. Liver patient are told to only
take medications that are approved of or prescribed by their doctors.
It depends on the amount of damage done to the liver cells if a
medication should be discontinues, changed, or have a lower dose
that the liver still is able to convert.
Another thing: It would be best to try and stay as healthy as you can.
Try not to be around others who are sick or they have been around
others who are sick. Wash all fresh fruits and vegetable that people
finger over in the stores, avoid open salad bars where people can
accidentally sneeze or cough into them, use disinfectant wipes on
shopping cart handles, door knobs, Tv controllers, phones,
bathroom fixtures, etc. Becoming sick with something else right
now will weaken your body more and force you to take additional
medications.

I hope this information has been of some help to you. Best wishes.
Hope you soon start to feel much better.

Although the liver is the only organ that will repair itself, it doesn't happen over night.
Depending on what caused the damage and the extent of the damage, it could take a long time to heal.
Your doctor should be able to help you with the nausea, and fatigue. He might also prescribe an anti-depressant if you find you can't cope on your own.

3 months or so. Did he tell you what you have. Is it fibrosis, cirrhosis, or fatty liver. some are reversible some aren't. never drink or do drugs again. Alot of it is tainted.You'll be glad.

Alcohol is a part of human culture and has been so for several centuries. Alcohol consumption is an important part of socializing. there are some cultures where alcohol is banned, but in most places in the world, it is freely available. Alcohol is addictive in nature, but only to individuals who consume this substance daily. most drinkers are social drinkers and are able to avoid alcohol as and when necessary. however, prolonged exposure to alcohol can causes serious health problems and it is therefore necessary that if you are an addict you need to quit drinking on your own.

The liver is an important and very complicated organ of the human body. It performs several different functions on which the life of an individual depends. One such function of the liver is of detoxification. This is the process that is associated with alcohol consumption. when the body detects alcohol in its blood, it begins to process the blood through the liver in order to filter this substance out of the body. Hepatitis is a condition where the liver is inflamed due to some infection or condition in the body. Alcoholic hepatitis symptoms vary from patient to patient. in many cases, there will be mild or no alcoholic hepatitis symptoms at all. This is the case with most people who are in the process of developing this condition. as the condition progresses, these individuals will experience alcoholic hepatitis symptoms. the most common alcoholic hepatitis symptoms include pain in the liver area and impaired liver function. This may cause fever, jaundice, ascites and many other potentially life threatening conditions. For individuals who have no alcoholic hepatitis symptoms, an examination may show that the liver is partially enlarged. This is a sign that remedial action needs to be take.

An individual who suffers from alcohol induced hepatitis should avoid the consumption of alcohol completely. everyone should realize that alcoholic hepatitis is a life threatening condition and should therefore seek effective tips to give up drinking. It is not wise to risk one’s life in the pursuit of alcohol. there are many ways to stop drinking which should be tried by any individual who is suffering from alcoholic hepatitis. Individuals may choose to quit drinking on their own or to seek the help of support groups and agencies that can help them get over this problem. in some cases, individuals who are suffering from alcohol dependency may need to be forcefully placed into rehabilitation centers. This usually happens when members of the family or friends circle have had enough of the individual being continuously drunk.

Alcoholic hepatitis treatment depends on the extent to which the liver has been damaged. the liver is a vital organ that cannot be treated if it is damaged beyond a certain point. an individual will also not be able to survive without a liver that is at least partially functional. Liver transplants are possible, but these are usually not given to patients with a history of alcohol abuse simply because there is a good chance that this organ donation will be wasted. therefore, medications and surgical options are used for alcoholic hepatitis treatment.

It should be noted that in most cases, the alcoholic hepatitis symptoms are not particularly dangerous. It is only when an individual ignores these symptoms and continues drinking that the problem really becomes acute. most patients suffering from alcoholic hepatitis will recover fully if they stop alcohol consumption and begin to follow a healthy diet. It is important that such people realize the severity of their condition because this is the only way in which they will be prompted to make a useful change to their habits. Some individuals may be ashamed or embarrassed about their condition. These people can seek anonymous help for their problem of alcohol dependency.

One in eight women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime and the rate is rising, alarming figures show.

Scientists blame obesity, alcohol and the growing tendency to delay motherhood for record levels of the disease.

Up to 47,700 women are being diagnosed every year, equal to 130 a day. That is double the number 30 years ago.

Testing time: Almost 50,000 women are being diagnosed with breast cancer every year

Experts describe the figures as a ‘wake-up call’ and say thousands could avoid the disease if they drank less, maintained a healthy weight and took more exercise.

The rise has also been blamed on the fact that increasing numbers are delaying motherhood and consequently having fewer children. The figures show that there are now 124 cases per 100,000 women, twice as many as any other type of cancer.

Scientists believe some forms of breast cancer are triggered by the sex hormone oestrogen, which is linked to obesity, alcohol consumption, having fewer children and not breastfeeding.

They also blame hormone replacement therapy taken by millions every year to combat the symptoms of the menopause.

Figures from Cancer Research UK show that 47,700 women were diagnosed in 2008, compared to 42,400 in 1999 and just 24,120 in 1978.

Women are most at risk once they reach the menopause and 22,900 new cases – almost half – occur among those aged 50 to 69.

Doctors believe many tumours are caused by unhealthy lifestyles and are urging women to change their eating and drinking habits, particularly during the menopause.

Probable causes: Experts blame lifestyle choices such as alcohol and obesity, along with a growing wish to put off motherhood, for the spike in cancer rates

Research has found that obesity increases the risk of breast cancer after the menopause by up to 30 per cent. The overweight are also more likely to develop tumours.

Fat cells produce oestrogen and levels of this cancer-triggering hormone can be twice as high in obese women as those of a healthy weight.

Alcohol is also thought to raise the levels of oestrogen. Previous studies have shown that drinking even only one glass of wine a day can raise the risk of breast cancer by a fifth.

Women may also be increasing their risk by having fewer children, or none at all, because the levels of oestrogen decline during pregnancy. those who delay motherhood and consequently have fewer babies will be exposed to oestrogen for a higher proportion of their lives.

The risk is elevated further because breast-feeding has been shown to protect against the tumours as it lowers the level of oestrogen and other hormones.

Dr Kat Arney, from Cancer Research UK, said: ‘there are several lifestyle factors such as alcohol, weight and activity which increase the risk.

‘it is also linked to a woman’s reproductive history. If a woman starts having children earlier in life she is less at risk. A woman who does not start having children until her thirties will only have one, maybe two.’

She added that the popularity of HRT was also a factor and urged women to take it for as limited a time as possible.

Dr Rachel Greig, of Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said: ‘These figures are a wake-up call and should not be ignored.

‘more women are developing breast cancer and, although survival is improving thanks to breakthroughs in breast awareness, screening and treatment, we clearly have much further to go.

‘A two-pronged attack is needed – commitment to research into the causes of breast cancer, supported by women arming themselves with knowledge of the risks that may contribute to the disease.

‘Some risk factors, such as getting older, cannot be changed but the good news is that others can. by drinking less, maintaining a healthy weight and getting physically active, women can reduce their risk of developing breast cancer.’

A major study in 2009 said that more than 40 per cent of breast cancers could be prevented if women made simple lifestyle changes.

The report by the World Cancer Research Fund advised women to take least 30 minutes of exercise a day and limit alcohol to one unit a day – a single small glass of wine.

I have not consulted a physician yet, but I probably should.

For the past 6 months or so, I have been experiencing symptoms of heart burn, indigestion, and bloating everyday. It just started coming on and I have no idea why.

Usually it does not occur in the morning and I become bloated easily after lunch. I've been eating much smaller portions, however they have helped, but hardly any.
I have also been taking tums and other medicines meant to help slow the problem, but of course I still get indigestion eventually afterwords.

Most oftenly though, I get indigestion when eating proteins and low glycemic foods as well as dairy products.

Any advice or suggestions? do you have, or have you ever had a similar condition?

Here are triggers for heartburn: smoking, alcohol consumption, heavy meal, eating too fat, and eating then go to bed immediately.

Pancreatitis is the inflammation of the pancreas which is a gland located behind the stomach in the upper abdomen. this gland carries out vital functions that deal with the digestion of food. the Pancreas produces enzymes and insulin which regulates blood sugar. Inflammation can take place quickly and acutely over a period of days (acute pancreatitis) or can take place and reoccur over a period of many years (chronic pancreatitis). Gallstones are normally the cause of acute pancreatitis as well as over indulging in alcohol consumption. But these are not the only causes of acute pancreatitis. Symptoms of acute pancreatitis include upper abdominal pain that lasts for a few days.

The sufferer of this condition could experience damage to the gland if the enzymes that are part of the digestive tract achieve a state of premature activation. this means that they become activated prior to experiencing secretion in the region of the duodenum. once this occurs, the enzymes immediately start a full attack on the pancreas. the pain of pancreatitis begins when the digestive enzymes become active inside the pancreas instead of waiting to begin working inside the small intestine. When this happens, the digestive enzymes are essentially digesting the pancreas. Acute pancreatitis conveys a single episode of the self-digestion of the pancreas.

Chronic pancreatitis symptoms treatment begins with knowing the symptoms of pancreatitis. Upper abdominal pain, radiating toward the back area, is indicative of pancreatitis. this pain is difficult to treat with ordinary painkillers or analgesics, especially since some painkillers can mask the consequent nausea and vomiting that also accompany pancreatitis. if not the right treatments are carried out, such pain, including all the other symptoms associated with pancreatitis may exacerbate. Long-term complications may even develop, and such diseases are diabetes, bleeding, anemia, jaundice and the inability to digest food. So in order to stay clear of these additional health problems, pancreatitis symptoms treatment should be conducted easily and efficiently.

Some of these pancreatitis early symptoms may not actually be caused by pancreatitis because other conditions can also make these symptoms occur. a doctor is the best person who will first study your pancreatitis early symptoms and then diagnose whether or not the symptoms are being caused by pancreatitis or by some other health problem. When a person has pancreatic cancer, enzymes that would normally be produced by the pancreas get halted. this is a problem since these enzymes help ensure a healthier digestion. as a result a pancreatic cancer sufferer may encounter digestive problems, especially if the foods they are consuming are high in fat.

Reader Adam Kadela has begun intermittent fasting and wonders how it might affect his hypothyroidism:

I have a question pertaining to the section at the end of the book covering extended fasts. I regularly practice the 16-8 fast/feast protocol (breakfast at noon, last meal before eight), and plan to throw in a 36 hour fast once a month per your book. however, I am hypothyroid (hashimoto’s) and take synthetic T4 and T3 (unithroid and cytomel), so I’m wondering if an extended fast could affect my thyroid function negatively.

This is a great question. I think the daily 16-hour fast should be therapeutic for hypothyroidism, but I’m not sure about the 36-hour fast.

In today’s post I want to talk about why daily intermittent fasting may be therapeutic for Hashimoto’s, which is an autoimmune hypothyroidism.

Food Sets The Circadian Clock

The circadian clock is strongly influenced by diet: indeed, food intake dominates light in setting the circadian clock. If you regularly eat at night and fast during the day, the body will start treating night as day and day as night. [1]

(Alcohol consumption at night will also tend to reset the clock, which may explain why college students are often night owls!)

This suggests that controlling the timing of food consumption can help to maintain circadian rhythms.

The Circadian Clock and Hypothyroidism

The thyroid follows circadian rhythms. there is a circadian pattern to TSH levels:  high at night, low during the day.

The thyroid’s circadian pattern is diminished in autoimmune hypothyroidism. in a study of hypothyroid children, the night-time surge of TSH averaged 22%, compared to 124% in normal children. Only one of 13 hypothyroid children had a night-time TSH surge in the normal range. [2]

The study authors concluded:

We suggest that the nocturnal surge of TSH is important for maintenance of thyroid function and conclude that the nocturnal TSH surge is a much more sensitive test than the TSH response to TRH for the diagnosis of central hypothyroidism. [2]

Shift Work and Hypothyroidism

If circadian rhythms are important for thyroid function, we would expect shift workers to have high rates of hypothyroidism. Shift workers sleep during the day and eat at night, which disrupts circadian rhythms.

It turns out that shift work doubles the risk of autoimmune hypothyroidism:

Stress induces autoimmune disorders by affecting the immune response modulation. recent studies have shown that shift work stress may enhance the onset of the autoimmune Graves hyperthyroidism. On the other hand, the possible association between occupational stress and autoimmune hypothyroidism has not yet been investigated…. Subclinical autoimmune hypothyroidism was diagnosed in 7.7 percent shift workers and in 3.8 percent day-time workers with a statistically significant difference: Odds Ratio (OR) 2.12, 95 percent Confidence Interval (CI) 1.05 to 4.29; p=0.03…. Our data show a significant association between shift work and autoimmune hypothyroidism. This finding may have implications in the health surveillance programs. [3]

Shift Work Affected Adam Too

In a follow up email, Adam told me that night shift work may have helped cause his hypothyroidism:

[T]he paper about thyroid and fasting … is particularly interesting to me due to my experience with night shift work for 10 months last year. my circadian rhythm was all out of whack due to experimenting with different sleep schedules and trying to workout around midnight before going into work at two a.m. I also played around with different diet strategies (grazing method w/ small meals, warrior diet, and ultimately settling on the 16-8, which is by far superior imo). my thyroid, along with other hormones, did not enjoy these trials.

Intermittent Fasting May Be Therapeutic

Since the circadian rhythm is affected by both food and light exposure, lifestyle practices can enhance natural circadian rhythms. These practices should optimize the circadian cycle:

• Light entrainment:  Get daytime sun exposure, and sleep in a totally darkened room.
• Daytime feeding: Eat during daylight hours, so that food rhythms and light rhythms are in synch.
• Intermittent fasting: Concentrate food intake during an 8-hour window during daylight hours, preferably the afternoon. A 16-hour fast leading to lower blood sugar and insulin levels, and the more intense hormonal response to food that results from concentration of daily calories into a short 8-hour time window, will accentuate the diurnal rhythm.
• Adequate carb intake:  Eat at least 400 “safe starch” carbohydrate calories daily during the afternoon feeding window. Relative to a very low-carb diet, this will increase daytime insulin release and, by increasing insulin sensitivity, may reduce fasting insulin levels. it will thus enhance diurnal insulin rhythm.

Adam tells me that intermittent fasting seems to be improving his hypothyroidism:

I think you’re correct in that I’ve experienced some curative effects. however, with the improved nutrient absorption and gut health from healthier eating and fasting, I think I fluctuate a lot b/w slightly hypo, normal, and hyper, since my medication is constant. I’m still in the process of finding a balance, but it’s a bigger improvement than my past state.

Conclusion

Many doctors mistakenly assume that little can be done to cure autoimmune disorders. in fact, however, autoimmune conditions commonly disappear once the chronic infections, food toxins, or poor health practices that cause them are eliminated.

Circadian rhythms have powerful influences on many biological processes, and disrupted circadian rhythms are a common feature of disease. Without clinical trials it’s impossible to be sure, but efforts to enhance circadian rhythms may be therapeutic for diseases such as hypothyroidism.

Intermittent fasting, daytime light exposure, excluding light from the bedroom, night fasting and daytime feeding are simple practices. but they may be underappreciated keys to good health.

References

[1] Fuller PM et al. Differential rescue of light- and food-entrainable circadian rhythms. Science. 2008 May 23;320(5879):1074-7. pmid.us/18497298.

[2] Rose SR et al. Hypothyroidism and deficiency of the nocturnal thyrotropin surge in children with hypothalamic-pituitary disorders. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1990 Jun;70(6):1750-5. pmid.us/2112153.

[3] Magrini A et al. Shift work and autoimmune thyroid disorders. Int J Immunopathol Pharmacol. 2006 Oct-Dec;19(4 Suppl):31-6. pmid.us/17291404.

Tagged as: Fasting, Hypothyroidism • Comments (30)

How many years of heavy alcohol consumption can someone expect liver disease and what symptoms are a warning sign ??

Jaundice
Ascites
Bloating
Enzyme levels in blood test out of correct range
You can damage your liver after 2 days of drinking (of course the above signs wouldn't show) or it can take 20 years to show.

Alcohol as a psychotropic agent acts as a sedative, a tranquilizer, an antianxiety agent, or a hypnotic as it is a central nervous system depressant. as such, it diminishes environmental awareness, reduces responsiveness to external stimulation, impairs cognitive functioning, hinders coordination, and reduces physical activity. at high doses it induces sedation, lethargy, amnesia, antiseizure activity, and anesthesia. Next to caffeine, alcohol is the second most widely used psychoactive substance in the world.

The health-related impact of alcohol consumption can vary depending of the amount and chronic use with its consumption. Heavy ingestion of alcohol over time can lead to a variety of serious physiological and neurological disorders (e.g., vitamin and mineral deficiencies, liver damage, destruction of nerve cells that can induce a dementia, pancreatitis, chronic gastritis, and certain cancers such as tongue, mouth, throat, voice box, liver, stomach, intestinal, breast). Drinking more than five drinks per day (about 10 ounces) can damage the heart muscle and result in possible heart failure and increase one’s the risk of ischemic stroke.

Alcohol use by the elderly leads to a rate of hospitalization that is similar to rate of hospitalization for heart attacks. Elderly have higher sensitivity to alcohol and metabolize in more slowly. Drinking alcohol can contribute to congestive heart failure and hip fractures. Indeed, one in 10 Medicare beneficiaries reports unhealthy drinking patterns that are associated with higher education, higher income, being male, younger age, smoking, and self-reported depressive symptoms.

One the other hand, long-term ingestion of low-to-moderate amounts (2-4 ounces per day) of alcohol does not appear to produce dramatic physiological, psychological, or behavioral changes. in fact, low-to-moderate doses of alcohol appear to reduce the risk of coronary artery disease and reduce the incidence of ischemic strokes probably by increasing high-density lipoprotein, decreasing low-density lipoprotein, and the aspirin-like decrease in platelet aggregation. So is alcohol protective against cognitive decline? Are low-to-moderate amounts of alcohol a health supplement?

Two recent studies address this issue. one published in the journal Neurology suggested that moderate drinking slows progression of dementia more than abstinence. The other study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology found no association between low-to-moderate consumption of alcohol and rate of cognitive decline. Fortunately, the second study provides guidance in sorting out this issue. The authors make the point that abstainers in most studies include both those who have rarely or never drank much and former drinkers (who tend to be less healthy than moderate drinkers). Their abstainers did not include former drinkers. If these findings are confirmed, there is neither harm nor benefit from low-to-moderate consumption of alcohol on the risk of cognitive decline. It’s not unhealthy to abstain.

What I take from this is that drinking 4 ounces or less of alcohol per day is neither a poison nor a healthy dietary supplement. Low-to-moderate consumption of alcohol has no effect on the risk for cognitive decline whereas greater consumption increases risk for many ailments including dementia. I also wonder whether the cardiovascular benefits of abstaining from alcohol may also be the result of including former drinkers in the abstaining group.

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Dr. Beckwith is a neuropsychologist, speaker and author of “Managing Your Memory: Practical Solutions for Forgetting.” he has an office in Naples and can be reached at or (239) 851-1968. Visit Dr. Beckwith on Facebook at the Life and Memory Center or at lifeandmemorycenter.com. Dr. Beckwith will talk at Arden Courts in Naples on Nov. 16 from 1-2:30 p.m. call 417-8511 for reservations.