Hi all
I’m new and trying to understand. I just found out I have cirrhosis/NASH. My first concern is changing the way I cook. I’m a southern girl and it’s going to be a huge change. I’m reading everything I see to get started. Can anyone tell me what your first change was?
Diet! No fast food lots of veggies and no alcohol.
Hi Bobbie,
Welcome to the group. My first, and most important, big change was cutting back on the sodium. This means you’ll need to become a label reader. But getting your sodium down to less than 2000mg per day is critical. The other key change is changing the type of oil or fats you consume. Try to cut out all saturated fat and increase the omega 3, 6, and 9 rich oils. This means LOTS of olive oil and fatty fish, like salmon. Antioxidants are important too.
Here are two great sources to help you get started:
The first is the fatty liver foundation fattyliverfoundation.org/di...
The second is a book called “Skinny Liver” by Kristin Kirkpatrick. It’s Also available as an audio book.
This is a big lifestyle change for some (especially us Southerners). So learn as much as you can. Understanding how different foods affect the liver makes it easier to understand food choices.
H
I have NASH as well Nutritionist can help big time. Hope u have health insurance
I have insurance thank God. Been online researching as much as I can. I’m going to talk to my Dr about getting a fibroscan. I need to know how much percentage of liver disease I have.
Thanks Liverhead for the advice
Hello, I have NAFLD also had CT scan for something else and it read suspected cirrhosis!! It’s very overwhelming, all my liver enzymes are normal and I’m still waiting on my fibrosis blood work to come back. My primary care doctor palpated my liver and said it’s not stiff I don’t think you have cirrhosis I have follow up in January. He told me to do Mediterranean diet the skinny liver book is great I got audible version but also has down loads for receipts.
Hello
I need more from Dr so I’m getting an appointment with gastro. Have you had a fibroscan done? I feel like that would help
me to see the results of this scan to see and understand more.
I’m trying recipes from the Mediterranean diet. I’m very open for new ideas on what’s best. Thank you for your input.
An important factor to consider in what you eat is no added iron. My blood is too thick and I discovered iron also affects the liver. SO any product that says enriched - like enriched flour- means it is enriched with iron usually. I now eat sprouted grain bread with no enriched wheat and avoid foods like pasta unless it is made with something like cornmeal, lentils, etc. I also watch how much iron I take in from natural sources so I limit quinoa although I love it. I too am a Southerner and also a Texan. To be honest, I really believe your mindset is important. If you focus on what you HAVE to avoid or can't eat, it robs you of the joy of eating and of life! I chose to look at this liver thing as helping me make the best food choices because poor choices shorten my live and potentially my quality of life. I chose to see it as an unexpected blessing. I love the food I eat that is healthy, I enjoy it without guilt and see it as a way of showing myself how important and loved I am by me.
So the short version I follow: No Tylenol, no alcohol (even in cough syrup or vitamin/mineral drops or any type of "extract" ie vanilla extract. If cooking it will burn off the alcohol it is ok)
NO fried foods (taco shells, potato chips, chicken, french fries, etc) No iron enriched anything. Reduce or eliminate sugar/sweets. I use Stevia with monk fruit but some people don't do even that. If you eat a sweet - like fruit, eat a protein with it to keep your blood sugar stable. Use olive oil daily. Try to eat foods in the whole food state instead of processed. Drink coffee or tea daily and lots of water.
Enjoy the journey fellow traveler!
My first change was eating lots of steamed broccoli and giving up beef and pork. No refined carbs was next. There are some good recipes for tofu fried chicken. The texture is good but nope, really does not taste much like fried chicken However, it tastes great nonetheless. I use almond meal for the coating. I mix up my own seasonings and don't eat packaged foods so sodium hasn't been an issue for me. Also I have chronic low chloride so my doctor says not to stress about salt and has me drinking a quart of pedialyte a day. Adding olive oil to your diet is good.
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