Hepatitis C

[Ngoldbeck at aol.com]

Several weeks ago I posted a request for information regarding diet,
supplements, herbs and hepatitis C. Most of the responses I received were
requests from others for similar information. Below are the replies that
contained information/advice. What I found most useful was this list of
contraindicated herbs FAXed to me by Sue Mandel which aren't specific to Hep C
but to liver disease in general. The copy I have is not an original and my not
fax well, but i am willing to try or perhaps Sue has a copy she can post if
everyone is interested.

Other things in found on my own include:

Several reports from Life Extension touted various supplements and in
particular S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe), along with a protocol for HC in their
Sept. 1998 issue (Personally I thought the supplement levels recommended were
alarmingly high, i.e. 800 mcg daily of selenium, 800 mcg folic acid 3 times
daily, 5 mg. B12 twice a day, etc.).

I found some references to herbal alternatives in HerbalGramNo.43, mostly
Ciinese formulations and more specific to HepB, but with possible relevance to
C as well. A brief article in HerbalGram No.25 mentioned that astragalus hsa
been used in treating chronic hepatitis, while elsewhere I read that it
stimulates interferon production (the only approved medical treatment at this
time).

An excellent website for the latest on HC is Sapient Health which I had best
success accessing at  http://www.shn.net/corp.html. There you will find a
specific area for Hep C that you can register for. There was some routine
stuff, but I found it the most comprehensive place for infomation (although
time consuming to wade through).

Anyway, below are the responses I did receive. If anyone has more to add I'm
still looking for helpful (and hopefully reliable) information, studies, etc.

Thanks to all of you,
Nikki Goldbeck, CDN
ngoldbeck at aol.com

From:	A_MACPHERSON at seam.upr.clu.edu (ANN MACPHERSON)
To:	fnspec_mg at ecn.purdue.edu, sneeze at AESOP.RUTGERS.EDU

My son contracted hepatitis A (food borne) on one of his trips 
outside the US.  The doctor told him to avoid alcohol and use fats 
moderately.  The difference between hepatitis A, B, and C are 
basically the mode of transmission, the severity of the disease and 
the ability to get rid of the virus.  C is the worst of the three.  
Since we are dealing with liver disease the two restrictions of this 
doctor are elementary.  However, I do not know if there might be some 
other dietary advice that would increase the functioning of the liver 
rather than just eliminate problem energy sources.

From:	CGATCHIS at bcsc02.gov.bc.ca (Catherine Atchison)
To:	Ngoldbeck at aol.com

To: NGOLDBEC--INTERNET Ngoldbeck at aol.com

*** Reply to note of 07/30/98 04:26
Hello. often the advise for people with hepatitis C is based on
healthy eating, with an emphasis on any symptom management. I often
get questions on herbs, and the research on silymarin (milk thistle)
suggests that it is not hepatotoxic, even if the evidence for benefits
are not certain. Of course, any herbs or supplements with evidence
for hepatotoxicity, example buckthorn, are contraindicated. You may want
to suggest they speak with their family doctor for info on over the counter
drugs such as aspirin, tylenol, or ibuprofen.
Access to a good database on herbs and research is handy, as there are
many studies in europe that don't get published in english.


From:	JVDaws
To:	Ngoldbeck

Dear Nikki,

Although this is not comprehensive, I thought you might be interested in a
Technical Bulletin on Hepatitis provided by USANA, a strongly-science based
nutritional network marketing company founded and headed by Dr. Myron Wentz,
PhD in Immunology/ Microbiology and pioneer of "cell-culture technology" for
viral diagnosis.

Also, if you have any interest in exploring an additional stream of income for
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