It is said that death and taxes are the only constants but we should include the Law Of Unintended Consequences as a universal truth. For patients this is particularly true. We want to be well but every decision carries the potential for things we didn't expect.
How bad is it? It has been projected that today's children will be the first generation in history to have a shorter life span than their parents. Even with the rapid advancement of medicine the society is becoming less well and chronic disease in many forms is epidemic. Even if we live longer, the end of life when we suffer and die slowly and painfully is getting longer for many. Not the ideal trade off perhaps.
Only people who care about living longer and better lives pay any attention to my musing in these articles, but many of you are advocates for a lot of different supplements. The promises of miracle foods and miracle cleanses are everywhere and the supplement industry is huge. When you consider supplements remember to consider unintended consequences.
An example might help you understand the problem better. Do you know about sodium fluoride? They put it in toothpaste to prevent cavities. That seems like a good thing, no one wants tooth decay. Modern chemistry has brought us tens of thousands of molecules that have made our lives better. They do, of course, enter our bodies where one tentacle of the Law of Unintended Consequences lives.
Consider for a moment your "mast" cells, these are specialized white blood cells that are a critical part of your immune system and are mainly found in tissues. Mast cells are part of the very complex system that protects you against infections and they are part of initiating the inflammation and repair functions associated with injury. Like so many things, inflammation is good, until it isn't. It is a critical part of protecting tissues unless it becomes chronic which often then leads to organ damage.
So what could tooth enamel have to do with the immune system? This is a fascinating example of unintended consequences. The dentists certainly had no interest in any result but better teeth. It turns out that sodium fluoride affects the operation of mast cells. This matters because allergic reactions and inflammatory processes are significantly managed by mast cells. You want your immune system to be vigilant but to sit quietly absent a foreign invader. When a mast cell is modified by a molecule of sodium fluoride it becomes "primed" to act but still sits quietly. If a molecule of calcium interacts with the cell it triggers the release of histamines and other inflammatory elements. So think about that. Brushing your teeth can increase inflammation throughout the body that is probably not beneficial to you.
Well, I don't swallow toothpaste you might say. Perhaps, but is that true of your 5 year old? Chronic inflammatory disease is a serious health problem. Our specific community of liver disease patients suffering from cellular damage and chronic inflammation is perhaps affected by sodium fluoride. We don't really know, but the concept that seemingly unrelated processes can be changed by novel chemicals should give you pause when you consider supplementation.
In health, the Law of Unintended Consequences is alive and well and is just one of the reasons you should be your own advocate and learn all you can and question everything. Medical error and negative drug reactions kill over 250,000 people a year and the number of private deaths, which are essentially accidental suicide, are unknown but no doubt higher. When you undertake novel treatments for serious disease you are inviting a dance with the keeper of the Law of Unintended Consequences.
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nash2
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And I think we will pay a price for fluoride in the drinking water. And there are all these genetically modified foods... What about the vitamins added to milk for example? D2 may be to our detriment... *sigh*
And then I come full circle. The physician who insists the prescription's benefits outweigh the side effects. *sigh*
There are two sides to it really. There is the science side where we move step by step into a very complex problem and we just don't know where it leads and we make mistakes along the way. Some through willful blindness but most simply because we don't know enough at the time. The other side is our poor ability to assess risk as individuals. As consumers, we are mostly ignorant of the science and we respond to advertisements or testimony by someone's cousin about what works. We are not careful about what we put in our bodies. One of the arguments I hear is something like, well the Chinese have been using it for centuries and they know it works. We should consider that the same medical system sells tiger penis as an ED treatment. Just sayin.
We are a long way from having the answers so being conservative is generally a wise choice.
I'm slow. But by the grace of God, I found you & your foundation. Thank you truly!
I'm connecting the dots. It's self-inflicted liver damage...
Only time will tell how much the Nexium and black pepper extract damaged my liver. I'm still looking for a doctor to take me seriously. Wayne, I just cry at night because of the chest pain, and pulsating tinnitus, and neck pain...Every part of me wants to run for help. Run to the ER. They'll help me.
But no. All testing shows normal results. SO THE VERDICT STANDS. Anxiety disorder. Not a doctor in town will look further. It's as if they've rallied against me.
My very last hope is my liver doctor. All testing was normal & he wanted me to go to the cleveland clinic. I BEGGED for an ultrasound & he agreed. I should hear back today or tomorrow. I expect "normal..."
Anxiety can be a mind killer. It has the power to destroy. Chronic pain can drive you in that direction and only makes the pain worse as it consumes your attention. It is a battle that many of us with chronic pain try to cope with. Doctors can't always determine why we feel pain which just heaps fear on top and can consume you. No matter the cause, getting the fear managed will make the path easier. A favorite person of mine is Dr Neha Sangwan, a doctor who deals in communication and understanding. You might look into some of her work while you work on diagnosis.
I've had this for some time. Nexium only masked the problem. And so last year I read all I could on acid reflux and Nexium. I took control of what I ate and when I ate to come off that horrid pill. Fact: Because Nexium only masks an issue, the prescription causes B12 and magnesium deficiencies. It says so right on their table. Nexium is now thinking of a way to add magnesium to help their consumers.
Dr. Jamie Kaufman has a couple of books which details your life-style changes necessary to heal your esophagus, with 1/2 the book dedicated to recipes.
So PART 1: Diet, I do understand. BUT! BUT! BUT!
But,
I didn't understand why I was getting sicker...
And then I found you.
Long story short. You & Dr Jamie Kaufman need to meet!
The soy, soy sauces, salt, and corn products in these recipes were not helping me heal.
So PART 2: Your diet advice for the liver HAS GOT TO BE MY NEXT 1st step. With or without further testing, I can't tell you how happy I am to have my direction again! What you say makes sense to me. From personal experience, you've helped me over a huge "stumper"!!
I'm glad you found something of value in our experience. I am doing well. I have improved my liver from a stage 4 cirrhosis to a stage 3 fibrosis and currently have no symptoms. It is one reason we have the foundation so that we can tell people what worked for us
That’s wonderful that you have improved from stage 4 to stage 3! You’re obviously doing everything you can to make a difference. You give me hope because having stage 3 NASH I knew I should be able to reverse some of the fat & inflammation in the liver, but I wasn’t sure if it is possible to reverse stage 3 to a stage 2. Thank you so much!
It isn't easy and you have to pay attention every day to being as easy on your liver as possible, but it does have the ability to recover if you can eliminate what has been harming it. Good luck
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