Ascites

[Lola1977]

I hope this isn’t a silly question: Can you still get ascites if you are a year sober and abstain from as much sugar and carbohydrates as possible?

[AyrshireK]

It's unclear whether you actually have a diagnosis of cirrhosis or not.

Ascites is a symptom of decompensated cirrhosis so it is still possible for a cirrhotic liver to get worse even if someone is sober (indeed t-total patients get it too). Sugar is a good thing to leave out of your diet but someone with an actual cirrhosis diagnosis might not be told to avoid carbs and indeed might be told they must eat little and often including carbs and protein.

I am not sure whether you are under medical care for your various ails but it sounds like you need a thorough medical examination and some tests to see what is going on.

No question is a silly one but sometimes you actually need to see a doctor to get the appropriate care.

Katie

[shmila19 in reply to AyrshireK]

Hi, thanks for your posts, I find them clear, consice and understandable, my hubby has been diagnosed with cirrhosis, last November 21, we’ve only just spoken to specialist, he didn’t have his up to date blood results, so the next appointment with him is for October!!I’m reading about the diet( he’s still having 4-8cans daily, he told doc he’ll work it down- we’ve been trying that for 4 yrs now!) we’ve not spoken to anyone else, no nurse or dietitian, where is the best place to find a diet for cirrhosis patients? Please.

Also we don’t know how bad it is; compensated or not, no CHILD score or any other info! I’m confused, as he has WKorsakoffs ( ARBD, takes the form of dementia ) he’s not seen the heptologist face to face, he’s not he’d the eyeball of…. One drink more can kill you! I’d appreciate your take on all this,

Thankyou in advance, enjoy the lovely weekend, kind regards, Liz’n’Don

[Readlots in reply to shmila19]

Your GP or Liver consultant can do a referral to a nutritionist / dietitian who can advise you. There is also good advice on the British Liver Trust website and the PBC Foundation website - not that you have PBC but the advice is for liver health so might be helpful to you.

[shmila19 in reply to Readlots]

Thanks to all for info and direction, very easy to get into- not as much finding the exit, thankyou !

[AyrshireK in reply to shmila19]

The British Liver Trust has a page all about Diet & Liver Disease at:- britishlivertrust.org.uk/in...

There is no one standard diet it depends on the stage of the liver disease and what the underlying cause was (i.e. a diet for someone with fatty liver is different than for someone with full on decompensated cirrhosis with muscle wastage and malnutrition). My hubby was put on a plan by a hospital dietician which involved eating little and often with a diet rich in carbs and protein and less in the way of veggies and fruit.

Obviously as your husband is still drinking he's going to be getting lots of empty calories from his booze and it's doing nothing to fuel and nourish him but probably means he feels less like eating which isn't good. I'll ping you a wee PM but ideally you need to press for referral to a hospital dietician and for that detox as he's not going to get any healthier whilst still drinking.

I hope you've managed to cut back on your own drinking too and perhaps managed to arrange some bloods for yourself, from an earlier post you described that you may also be having symptoms so you really do need to take steps to look after yourself too.

Katie

[Hidden]

Yes you can. If you think you have ascites then you need to see a doctor.