Liver Health

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Robin, are you still on this thread?
I just got diagnosed with an inflame liver.
Just had to go back and get follow up tests.

I have been reading and talking to people, and I am going to get some milk thistle.
I am curious as to what inflamed is (pending blood results) whether long term med use has finally caught up with me, or what.
I intend to stay tuned on this thread while reading further.
 
Do be careful Shelly, to my knowledge there is no proof to show that milk thistle helps the liver.
Several studies have shown that garlic does not lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, St John’s wort does not treat depression, ginkgo does not improve memory, chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine do not treat arthritis, saw palmetto does not treat prostatic hypertrophy, milk thistle does not treat hepatitis, and echinacea and megavitamins do not treat colds. Moreover, some studies have found that megavitamins increase the risk of cancer and heart disease. Because the vitamin and supplement industry is not regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), negative studies have not precipitated FDA warnings or FDA-mandated changes on labeling; as a consequence, few consumers are aware that many supplements have not delivered on their claims.
http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2012/05/03/nccam-i-say-we-take-off-and-nuke/
 
Shelley,

I'm in the process of transitioning off Dilantin (after about 35 years) to KeppraXR. I've had some elevated liver enzymes as well as cysts on my liver. I've heard milk thistle is good for liver health; my son has some liver issues and his doc recommended milk thistle, and I've started taking it as well.
My doctor recommended Miralax for constipation and it has been a miracle cure for me! A capful in a glass of water before bed and I'm good!
Good luck to you and hope this helps.

Cindy
 
Thanks Epileric. Everything I've read online, and everyone I've talked to is positive about milk thistle.
cawhitern - I have Miralax, but according to the doctor, it is bulk that can absorb water to slow things down.
 
I also read up and found out what an inflamed liver is.
Ironic since I don't drink. I am not a drug abuser.
Apparently, the long time use of meds can wreak undeserved havoc.
 
Test came back negative. I'm fine.

Question:
If my dad had hepatitis, then later I got the vaccine, will the antibodies still show up on blood tests.

If not, then why having chicken pox as a kid can give you shingles as an adult?

Epileric, you are a great researcher. All I turned up is that I still have antibodies from exposure and vaccination.

What say you?
 
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Question:
If my dad had hepatitis, then later I got the vaccine, will the antibodies still show up on blood tests.
The antibodies should show up on your blood test if you got the vaccine. Whether your dad had hepatitis or not would be completely irrelevant.
A protein on the surface of HBV; it can be detected in high levels in serum during acute or chronic HBV infection. The presence of HBsAg indicates that the person is infectious. The body normally produces antibodies to HBsAg as part of the normal immune response to infection. HBsAg is the antigen used to make Hepatitis B vaccine.
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/hbv/hbvfaq.htm
If not, then why having chicken pox as a kid can give you shingles as an adult?
I don't see what Hepatitis has to do with Chicken pox or Shingles but regardless of whether someone has hepatitis.....
After someone has had chickenpox, the virus stays in that person's nervous system for the rest of his or her life, even though the chickenpox goes away. The virus can stay there dormant, or sleeping, for years. In many people, it will never be heard from again. But in about 1 million Americans a year, it flares up and causes shingles. It is possible to get shingles more than once, although this is fairly uncommon.

Doctors aren't sure why the virus suddenly flares up again after months or years of inactivity. It could be because our immune systems become more vulnerable to infections as we age, which might explain why shingles is more common in older adults.
http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_viral/shingles.html

Epileric, you are a great researcher. All I turned up is that I still have antibodies from exposure and vaccination.

What say you?
Thanks for the compliment *blush*

If you still have antibodies that's good, they will keep you protected. Do remember however that The only vaccines are for hepatitis A & B. There is no vaccine for hepatitis C. You might want to ask if the antibodies you have are for hep. A, B or both.

Sorry to take so long to answer.
 
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Don't worry.
Fortunately, additional tests reveal that my liver is ok as far as hepatitis goes.
The chicken pox statement was just trying to relate viruses, and length of time it stays in the body.
You answered it. Just gotta talk to the doc.

Thanks again.
 
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