OhioMOM

i disagree with happy, but that is what makes the world go around. i just attended a conference on end stage liver diease this past weekend and the issue of vitamins and minerals came up, in fact it was a focal point of 3 different lecturers from 3 of the best research institutions in the world...

at cirrhosis. vitamin intake should be monitored by your doctor, as should any herbal remedies. if you were just curing a night of drinking or a temporary problem some of these items may have merit. however, the liver in end stage, does not process minerals well, a build up of coppers and other minerals can be toxic to your organ and push you further into cirrhosis.

the problem with end stage liver disease is that we become deficient in the ADEK vitamins... these are fat soluble and as such are not processed by your organ well. you may talk to your doctor about that and ask for a supplement that has been altered to process as a water soluble. there is a supplement made specifically for this deficiency sold at most pharmacies.

although milk thistle has been shown to help in a small way, some people with alcoholic cirrhosis, this has never been able to be proven in a double blind university study. as such, you can take it if you want or not take it, it will have little bearing on you at this point. the state of california just conducted an investigation into herbals and found that many sold over the counter do not actually have the herbals in them they say they have....no matter how they are labeled.

the NIH is begining a research study of their own on the merit of these herbals and the claims made about them because very few offer results that have been able to be replicated in university studies around the world.

i had the opportunity to listen to a woman who wrote a book on liver cleansing diets a couple of years ago. she was on a panel with doctors from the mayo clinic, new england medical center, university of california berkeley, pittsburgh, and columbia. when asked about the validity of the diet she admitted that unlike the others she did not have to do a study at a university to make her claims, that in fact it was theory....

my advice is to stick to your doctors advice, go to the book store and pick up some resource books on liver disease written by good people and endorsed by the american liver foundation, who funds a lot of research into all of this, and read. rely on your doctors advice too. still read!! as an advocate for women with liver disease i travel extensively and encourage all the patients i service to read the latest data, communicate with their doctors and be cautious and concientious about what they take..... if your hepatologist is unable to help you decipher all of this there are many others who can.