Growing evidence of childhood fatty liver disease

I am seeing a number of studies and proof to support something I have known since 2008. Our kids are in serious trouble for their futures if they live on processed foods, soda pop and sauces coating anything natural. Finding those kids out there is a challenge. We have about 6 children in my fatty liver disease support group on Facebook ranging from age 2 – 18.  This is 2 girls and 4  boys which is not by any means a predictor.

Doctors DO NOT look for liver disease as a rule. They are NOT taught to look for the disease. They will blame the pancreas, gallbladder, IBS, Celiac Disease, Diabetes before they would even pay attention to elevated liver enzymes.  As a Parent you need to pay attention to your child’s symptoms and NOT be too quick to blindly trust the doctor.  Demand a blood test for your child. review the levels for AST and ALT and ask your doctor what the safe levels are for enzymes. As for an Ultrasound of the stomach.  If the liver has fatty deposits they will be shown in this test.  Ask for genetic testing they are now proving there are genetic links to fatty liver disease. I am not saying every child has a problem with their livers but I would bet my life at this point far more do then are being diagnosed. Studies say between 3 – 13% of kids have fatty liver disease. I suspect its closer to the 25-30% that is happening in adults.

These kids generally have homes where both parents are working. There are few home cooked meals because parents are stressed out and running between all the soccer, dance, skating, hockey, baseball games that kids are involved with. Or because they can’t get their kids away from the video games and their kids are picky eaters who will ONLY eat hamburgers, chicken nuggets , macaroni or other standard processed or junk foods.

The very sad reality is that these products are created by companies who know and love the fact that people get addicted to their products. If your kid eats it once and it has high fructose corn syrup in it there is no message to the brain to tell them that they are full. and there is no balancing of the sugars. This creates a fatty cell in the liver and your child becomes addicted to those products.

So when they are eventually diagnosed with Fatty Liver Disease or Diabetes or other metabolic disorders you will find you have a child who is trying to sneak foods, or find ways to drive you nuts until you give in. The problem is that they are actually ADDICTED to these products its like they are coming out of alcoholism or drug addiction. Everything in their body is telling them they NEED those foods.  You essentially need to accept that your child is in withdrawl

You have to be strong and fight for your child. This disease can and does lead to liver failure. Doctors and researchers have no understanding about this disease right now. They are all fighting to find the answers but we are dealing with it TODAY and don’t have time to wait for them. I am aware of 2 men in their 30′s who died of liver failure due to fatty liver disease. Neither of them were alcoholics or drug addicts. They were only in  their 30′s. I suspect you want your child to experience life longer than that!

This generation of children are the first generation which will live shorter lives. This is directly related to processed foods and additives and genetically modified foods. Our body’s DO not know how to process these chemicals. Our poor children do not stand a chance in this world of Monsanto versus humans.

If your child is dealing with chronic illness that doesn’t get better. Try getting rid of sugar! Getting rid of junk food, do they start to feel better? You will find after 3- 6 weeks of not eating those things or drinking sugary beverages they will feel healthier!

Parents please pay attention and do not go blindly into dealings with doctors. Get the right tests, keep all test results…you need to take this into your control for your kids sake!

Arbonne Body Care and Cosmetics – Fundraising for MetoWe Camp!

I have been lucky enough to try Arbonne products thanks to numerous amazing ladies I am connected with on social media. Arbonne_® products are vegan-certified: their formulas are never tested on animals and do not contain animal-derived ingredients or animal by-products. Due to the growth in Metabolic disease and Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease this is very important to me and to those I care for. The chemicals being added by other companies are hurting our bodies in a toxic world.

To read about the products go to http://www.arbonne.ca/products/index.asp

To read about the company go to https://www.arbonne.ca/company/manifesto.asp

Megan wants to attend A Social Innovation for Change Camp this summer. This camp offers an amazing leadership opportunity that will be able to help Megan bring back to our community through volunteer work and other humanitarian efforts. Megan will be working with industry professionals to help her learn ways to create tangible changes. To learn more about this camp go to Me to We’s website.

http://www.metowe.com/motivation-leadership/take-action-camp/ontario-take-action-academy/#social-innovation-for-change-fostering-creative-and-innovative-ideas-for-positive-social-influence

Megan is 16 years old and a junior at Sir Frederick Banting Secondary School The opportunity to attend this camp would mean the world to her as she looks towards a career in human rights law after fighting for 6 years with a chronic illness called Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease that left me in various states of extreme sickness throughout that time. She has impressed Investor’s Group enough so that they have given her a bursary to  cover some of the costs, but with me as a single mother she need help to raise the remaining funds. Human Rights are a huge passion for her and she will  make a difference in both the local and international community.

Janet Auty-Carlisle is a great friend that I have not had the pleasure of meeting in person but I have known on Social Media for a good 5 years. Whenever there has been an opportunity to support Megan and I in that time she has always stepped up and been wonderful.

Now she is offering to give Megan a nice percentage of all sales in May for Arbonne products purchased online with Janet’s Sales ID.

So if you want to help Megan and you want to help your body by using non toxic products go to

https://www.arbonne.ca/shop_online/shopOnline.asp

Orders can be placed in North America, United Kingdom and Australia. You will need to enter the 9 digit id 115726215 to get the fundraising donation to Megan.

Thank you in advance from your liver and from Megan!

 

Marina’s Story – 14 Year old NAFLD patient

I met and started talking to Darlene who is Marina’s grandmother after she found my blogs about my daughter Megan. I have asked her to share the story of her grand daughter Marina.

It was Nov 1. 2012. Marina woke up for school and said her stomach hurt her. She generally never gets up at 5 am and for her to wake me up that early, I knew it must hurt her very badly because she is not a complainer.
She showed me where it hurt and it was like the top right side of her abdomen. She started getting ready for school and she was still in a lot of pain..so much so that I took her to the urgent care clinic instead of waiting to call her family doctor’s office. At the clinic ,they took Marina right back and drew blood, after examining her and with her being in so much pain, they reviewed the blood work wnich showed her (* white blood count was way off) they actually called an ambulance to transport her to Children’s Hospital.

When we got to the hospital…they hooked up an IV…started drawing blood and she was in so much pain she was crying. They did a CT scan and a Sonogram and took her right to the ICU. Her blood pressure sky rocketed..her blood count was way off…and she couldn’t stop crying about the pain. I was trying to act calm on the outside to keep Marina calm, but I was so worried …thinking…let this be her appendix so it will be solved quickly!

That would have been to good to be true. They call in the Gastroentologist and we were told the scan results were in and she had pancreaticitis. Marina just had to stay for a few days in the hospital …keeping a good eye on her in the ICU. No food to give her pancreas a rest with just an IV and lots of pain medication. So, I could breath again… she stopped crying cause the pain medications were working.They brought a portable toilet for her to pee in because she was hooked up to monitors.She was dealing with nausea but didn’t throw up…her blood pressure was high but they said it was due to the pain. To me, she looked so uncomfortable from the pain the whole thing,then she goes pee and what the heck her urine was brown like coffee. I almost passed out but I am still acting calm on the outside..she was groggy and I calmly asked the nurse why is her urine that color? Oh that’s ok, its just that her pancreas is inflamed and it needs to rest. Ok they are the medical experts… so for the next 24 hrs..she continued to feel nausea she was still getting the iv so she could let her pancreas rest, still urinating brown ,blood pressure high but a little lower with drugs,she did not sleep much and I didn’t sleep at all.

So 24 hrs go by and the doctors came in to make their rounds. I asked all kinds of questions…like what caused this what can be done why is her blood pressure so high…why is her urine so brown…they answered all my questions and said her pancreas got infected…they don’t know how…these things happen… no med for it just no food to rest it and the pee is brown because the pancreas and liver work together and the red blood cells are coming out in her urine because the liver is not working correctly because of the pancreas being swollen…its fine.

So two more days went by and she still was on pain medications but it was hurting less everyday…her blood pressure was returning to normal and her pee was a light brown….so they moved her to a regular room and had her start in liquids… they gave her soda POP…with sugar in it…coke, pepsi,ginger ale, they gave her pudding, ice cream, jello and these are medically trained doctors?. So I not knowing they were poisoning her liver, I was so happy Marina was holding it down. So after a day of sugar galore, her face started turning red,then purplish. Again I was calm on the outside falling apart on the inside. I Go and tell the nurse and they see her blood pressure rocket, her pain was coming back. They rush her back to the ICU. What’ going on?? I go to an empty room to call my daughter long distance to tell her help!. I was so weak inside my daughter (marinas aunt) and my son in law and my daughters best friend get on their computers they are searching reading, looking, talking, trying to save Marina.

I am sitting in marinas ICU room when a nurse…now this is extremely important to remember..THIS NURSE who was taking care of marina that shift…commented to me…who by the way NOT ONE DR. OR SPECIALIST SAID A WORD ABOUT to me…her liver enzymes are so high. So I freak out inside what? her liver enzymes are so high I am thinking no doctor or specialist said that to me!!! As far as they were concerned it was all only about her pancreas So now back home they start thinking maybe its not her pancreas maybe her liver is causing her pancreas to be sick!

Now keep that comment from my daughter’s friend in your mind along with what the nurse said about marinas enzymes
So I see my precious grand daughter is getting so sick again after she started getting better!

I go to the room where marina can’t hear the desperation in my voice and tell my daughter listen to this a nurse just said to me wow her liver enzymes are so high. I said why would she be concerned about that,all along the doctors and other nurses were saying to me…no its her pancreas, the other organs are just helping with her pancreas. So my daughter says mom let me talk to her doctor. And I took my phone and went and found Marina’s doctor and told her to please explain to my daughter about marinas health… 20 min the doctor hands me back the phone and my daughter says to me MOM..WHY ARE YOU TELLING US COMMENTS MADE BY A NURSE…GETTING EVERYONE WORRIED THAT MARINAS SO SICK..HER DOCTOR SAID HER LIVER IS FINE she just needs to rest her pancreas everything is fine!

so I am numb am half happy, half thinking no she is back in the ICU, I am in a mind set of total confusion. I’m thinking about what the nurse said and I have marinas mom stay with her and I went to a computer, typed in liver and Fructose in Google searched fructose, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, every thing I typed in about liver..dark urine pain. I start seeing all this about children…fructose ,liver, dark urine and I’m like what??. So I send all these links to to my family. My son-in-law said get Marina out of that hospital something is not right!

marina was so sick when she came here they didn’t put anything in her body meaning no sugar because they wanted her pancreas to rest and it was working her blood pressure went down her blood count was getting better her urine was lightening with every pee. Then since she was getting better they took her out of ICU and gave her all liquids and soft food high fructose pudding high sugar jello, sugar in chocolate milk The comment stood out in my mind….maybe its her liver that’s making her pancreas sick I said I am taking her home…The doctors said you can’t, no said marinas mom! I said OH YES I CAN I AM HER LEGAL GUARDIAN I took her home and put her on a strict no sugar diet and my family and I read everything about fructose sugar liver and by the next week when they did blood work…wow….was her body getting better not much pain at all pee turning yellow not brown no nausea, sleeping good Since then we have been very on top of marina walking for exercise..every day she has to walk… he set her up with drinking watered down cider vinegar every other day….and on the other days she drinks a spice with water… turmeric. Every label is now read for hidden ways of saying sugar!

Marina is an honor role student and is doing very well since we took her health into our own hands! Doctors are not taught enough about this disease and they don’t look for it and assume its other things. We blindly trust doctors with our lives and sometimes you just need to listen to common sense. If the sugar brought all symptoms back then there is something to consider getting rid of for your body!

This disease is hitting kids as young as 2.

Do not ignore it, if 1 in 3 north Americans has liver disease someone you love is dealing with it before it starts showing nasty symptoms like this.

Join our group on facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/fattyliversupport/

Follow us on Twitter @fattyliverhelp

And join our website with patients helping patients at http://www.reversefattyliverdisease.com/

What Cooking Oils do you use? are they SAFE?

Cooking oil safety, there are so many that are making us sick! We have been tricked by so many corporations telling us things are heart healthy and good for our bodies and things to avoid that are blatant lies. This is another shocking reality that most of us have no idea about. Please read this article and then throw out any seed oils or veggie oils and all margarines! …buy coconut oils and real butter! use olive oil to mix in AFTER cooking not during cooking. Lots to learn in this article. I have to get rid of Canola oil in my house and look into getting something to replace it. I will have to stop using olive oil to cook as well. I already avoid Margarine like the plague! Its all plastics nothing is really natural in that! When will corporate america start caring about our health versus just the bottom line!

This journey into learning about Fatty liver disease has shown me such a scary side of corporate america!

http://authoritynutrition.com/are-vegetable-and-seed-oils-bad/

Join us on Facebook for a private group to discuss dealing with this disease!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/fattyliversupport/

Follow us on Twitter to keep up with the findings that are published! @fattyliverhelp

Join our website and register on our forums at http://www.reversefattyliverdisease.com/

My daughter Megan’s story

If you haven’t known me for more than 4 years you are not aware of the incredible challenges that my 16 year old daughter has been through.

She got sick in 2008 with pneumonia, that was followed up with mono, this essentially destroyed grade 6 for her

She got sick in 2009 with extreme menstrual bleeding and fatty liver disease essentially making grade 7 a right off.

She got sick in 2010 with extreme vertigo and spent 10 months in a wheelchair. She almost attended no days of school in grade 8.

Doctors, and family members did not hide that they thought this was all in her head and that she was just trying to avoid school .

Her self esteem was as low as it could be with people calling her a liar and thinking she wanted to be sick

She was put through to grade 9 without completing any real schooling in grade 8. Megan was certain they had given up on her too.

Megan got healthy in June 2010. A ton of work with my holistic coach Brandon Krieger , osteopath Jason B, and Megan hated the extreme healthy foods that she was forced to eat.

But in the end , nothing any doctor has done for her made any difference. Osteopath and holistic eating did the trick.

She entered grade 9 and we ensured her first semester was light. She took applied french, academic math, drama and art. No one had any expectations and honestly I worried she would get sick again in September.

She insisted on getting help from my Aunt Pat all through the summer,she wanted to be prepared for grade 9 math and megan worked extremely hard. It helped that my aunt believed in her and slowly but surely Megan’s confidence was rebuilding.

Megan worked hard on homework, she asked to see my aunt whenever she felt insecure about a math concept. My aunt constantly told her she was doing well and that all Megan needed to do was to take the time to read the question properly before she started working on it. Mistakes she was making were small ones all related back to not reading the question correctly.

Grade 10 started in London Ontario and Megan was only able to manage a month before colds and flu’s started attacking her and she doesn’t heal from those for 2 -3 weeks. She had to once again move to home schooling and online learning. She worked hard and did very well in the credits she was able to accomplish.

Megan struggled so much over these years with low self esteem and no hope for her future. She was terrified that she would be unable to be a functional adult and unable to ever have a normal life. She got so upset about how far behind she was in school. That was so heart breaking for me to hear said she couldn’t hear me yet.

Fast forward to Spring 2012 and I got asked to be a food revolution ambassador for Jamie Oliver. I needed to create a one day event. Megan was in singing lessons and enjoying them. I decided to have the Britown Music school perform during the kids event and i challenged Megan to Sing a song she was learning. She sang her heart out and life started to change!

My daughter Megan actually started flourished! She decided that she wants to be a lawyer, she wants to be accepted to the best schools for University. Her plan is to become a big part of her high school when she returns in September. This is huge for her, she was not in school last year due to her health and lack of sleep. She is fighting back and I could not be prouder of Megan! She is saying Screw you to her health issues and insisting on having the best life she can. She is volunteering for the Anti bullying coalition, she wants to fight for civil rights and her big goal now is to work at United Nations. I am her biggest cheerleader and I will be cheering for her all the way to the top!

Fall 2012 and Megan started Grade 11 with a very positive attitude and got involved in choir, a play, social justice committee, and on and on. Her grades were amazing and she was well liked by all her teachers. She got to participate in WE DAY in Toronto and that just inspired her more.

January 2013 Such a sad change Megan fell down 12 stairs and broke a toe. This would be a simple thing for other people but because megan doesn’t heal it took 3 months to even start healing. Once again stuck at home doing courses online. Once again feeling defeated.

She has another issue somewhere in her body that ensures she doesn’t heal for ages. I will take the xrays from this broken foot and ask to see a specialist to start looking into her lack of healing.

You are an incredibly smart girl with a great support system in my aunt pat, Grandpa Stan and your brother and me! You will continue to shine you will continue to flourish and I am incredibly proud of my baby girl! You prove everyone wrong and you rock and your life will shine no matter what health issue tries to take you out!!

Body Care Products and your Liver

http://suite101.com/article/toxic-skin-care-ingredients-a45792 – Which common chemicals are dangerous

http://voices.yahoo.com/body-lotion-damage-liver-dry-skin-884017.html?cat=69- How lotions are impacting your liver and alternates to body lotions.

I have known and basically ignored that not only does Alcohol, food, medications impact our livers negatively but so do products we put on our body. I have ignored it because well I had already made my teenage daughter miserable by getting rid of any FUN foods. She loves Bath and Body Work products, the scents make her feel pretty and make her happy. I was not prepared to tell my daughter that now you can ‘t have these products due to your liver!

But reality is that the perfumes and chemicals in all body care products are soaked in through your skin and are sent to your liver to process. Things as simple as Deoderant can cause incredible damage to your body. As an adult with sensitive skin I know that many cosmetics will dry my face out, cause rashes and pimples. I know that using facial cleansing wipes can sting my face. If that is what it is doing on the outer layer of my skin I can only imagine what the liver and other organs are feeling.

I have asked my friend Lisa Smith Morgan who runs a holistic spa to manage this page and share information with you about alternate products and products to avoid. There are ways to make most of these products in your home with simple household products. Her Spa is Serenity on the Humber http://serenityonthehumber.com/. This will be on our new website : http://www.reversefattyliverdisease.com/

I can’t possibly be an expert in every area that impacts the liver, there is no way that the patients that are contributing to this website can possibly have every skill needed to help Liver patients. So I will bring in people I trust and get their knowledge to you so that you can protect your liver and be gentle to yourself!

Welcome to Lisa Smith Morgan!

Erin Krenzler’s story of HELLP and how she has overcome it

Guest blog Erin Krenzler

Yesterday the most amazing thing happened to me… I wish that I could not only tell you all about it… but I wish that you all could feel the feeling that I feel right now!

For the past 8 years I have battled numerous random major metabolic related health issues that have made the quality of my life poor at times and prevented me from doing many things that I wanted to do. I had to quit my job as a medical laboratory assistant in 2010 and I had to stop attending college after putting almost 3 years into working on my nursing degree… all due to my health.

One week after our baby Ryleigh was born just a year and a half ago… after months and months of terrible sickness and pain they discovered that my liver and spleen were enlarged. I was shortly thereafter diagnosed with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (an advanced form of fatty liver disease). I was 24 years old. Liver disease was the tip of my ice burg… I feared the fact that if I didn’t figure out what was wrong and if I did not fix it… I would not be around as long as I would like. My family has been ridden with metabolic disease, diabetes, heart disease, and death at an early age.

I sat there… holding my brand new baby… knowing that there are two little girls in this world that depend on me… one of them depends on me completely. If something were to happen to me god only knows what would happen to miss Brave Mykayla… but I sure knew I didn’t want to find this out. I can’t even describe how sad it felt to me to know that I had a condition that could potentially cause me liver failure and/or death… and in the period of 5-10 years in some cases! On top of the kidney issues I have had since the age of 17. I slipped into a state of mind where I was worried, sad, fearful, but determined to find another option besides failure. That was not an option. My mind constantly pondered thoughts… and I spent hours and hours researching and reading each and everything I could.

I refused to go back to a physician after I was diagnosed… because I had felt so ignored and abandoned for so long that honestly I felt as if I could do a better job myself with the test results I had on hand… the knowledge I have from my medical assisting degree… and the years I spent researching and working in the medical field…. Like I said… I slipped into a state of mind. I learned everything I could find to learn about genetics, metabolic syndrome, mitochondrial function, metabolic diseases, cannabis, the truth about food, livers, immune systems, insulin resistance, diabetes, fat build up on body organs, etc. The amount I have learned continues to blow my mind when I think about how all of these things function together to make our bodies work… I took the information that I was learning about and implemented it to my life. I began healing my bodies deficiency’s… supplementing with a combination of antioxidants, herbs, roots, supplements and amino acids based on my symptoms and long term problems. I made sure to develop a combination that focused on increasing mitochondrial function and repairing and cleansing the liver. I also made huge diet changes. Most people think that they could not eat the way I do… but I have to… my life depends on it. I plan on sharing more on my diet in this blog… just haven’t had a whole lot of time lately.

I wasn’t going to physician’s for check ups… but I began to slowly drop pounds without even trying! I did not even have to exercise any more than I did before. I knew my choices were working <3 I was healing myself! I slowly began feeling better… and the pain went from excruciating to an annoying constant tenderness.

In January of this year I decided it was time to go back to the doctors (after 14 months)… to ensure the changes I was making were helping me as much as I thought they were… also I wanted to make sure that the constant tenderness (that I thought was my liver) was nothing majorly wrong. She ran a bunch of blood work and referred me to an actual Hepatologist *liver doctor*… yesterday I had my appointment with the liver doctor… and I got the most amazing news ever!

I HAVE HEALED MY LIVER DISEASE 100 PERCENT!!!

The pain I have been feeling is scar tissue build up on a nerve that they accidentally hit when doing my liver biopsy… its not even my liver at all… actually it is a nerve that runs by my last rib! I feel that this pain will be tolerable knowing its nothing major at all… and not a major body organ hurting!

I never understood why I developed this condition when the first doctor diagnosed me with it. I did not fit the classic description of the diagnosis….and the liver disease itself came on rapidly during my pregnancy. Through the research I did I suspected it to be related to my families genetic metabolic problems and not knowing the correct way to care for myself. The liver specialist confirmed this. I am genetically predisposed to insulin resistance and diabetes. During my pregnancy with Ryleigh I developed HELLP syndrome that the doctors failed to diagnose… this initiated the problems in my liver and caused the massive swelling and inflammation that generally occur over a long period of time in an average adult.

I have lost a total of 46 pounds since the day they discovered my liver enlargement! The day I was diagnosed I didn't even consider myself that large… I never in a million years thought I could lose 46 pounds… and to top that off… I surely never thought that losing that much weight would be so easy and not require much of anything except learning the truth about what foods you should eat and what foods you should not!

I knew in my heart the entire time I was learning… and the entire time I have been learning to live a new life style… that one day I would hear that I was all better… I honestly did not expect it to be this soon! I cannot even begin to put into words how this feels!

I feel like yesterday I was given the gift of LIFE <3

I feel like I have a fighting chance to see my babies grow old… to hold my own grand babies… To help my children through their teenage lives and adulthood. I now have a new found assurance that things like this will be a part of my future.

I thank god that he put me on this mission years and years ago… It has been a journey of ups and downs… frustration… sadness… fear… anger… helplessness… braveness… strength… courage… love… and so much more. This mission taught me the key to living a long life… If I would have been in my 40's or 50's when I discovered my insulin resistance and fatty liver the doctor said it would be so much harder to lose the weight along with reversing the damage that had been done to my liver. I feel blessed that I had the unfortunate happening occur so early.

I am 25 years old… I am very young… I have a very long life ahead of me that will be filled with good health, family, love, success, and lots and lots of good times!!!

This is the first time since I was 17 years old that I can officially say "I am free of chronic disease"!!! As you can tell if I could stand on top of the world right now and scream out how happy I am… I totally would!!!

NEVER EVER EVER GIVE UP HOPE <3

Thank you cannabis… for helping control my metabolic syndrome… thank you for getting me through my pregnancy when all the physicians lacked compassion….thank you for allowing me to control all my pain without any need for medication… thank you for making me hungry enough to eat the food that I once thought tasted like poo (because I used to be addicted to high fructose corn syrup like most of the people in our country… food without it doesn't taste as good until you have gone without it a while)… Thank you for being an essential antioxidant to my body… thank you for helping me create a homeostasis in my body in order to reverse my disease… THANK YOU CANNABIS!

Until next time my friends…

HELLP syndrome and your pregancy

HELLP Syndrome and Your Pregnancy

What is HELLP syndrome?
HELLP syndrome is a rare but serious illness in pregnancy. This illness can start quickly, most often in the last 3 months of pregnancy (the third trimester). It can also start soon after you have your baby. HELLP stands for Hemolysis, Elevated Liver enzyme levels and a Low Platelet count. These are problems that can occur in women who have this syndrome.

Women who have HELLP syndrome may have bleeding problems, liver problems and blood pressure problems that can hurt both the mother and the baby.
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Who gets HELLP syndrome?
Doctors don’t know exactly what causes HELLP syndrome. They also can’t predict who will get it. Any pregnant woman may get this illness.

Most women who will get HELLP have blood pressure problems before they get HELLP syndrome. (But you can get HELLP syndrome even if your blood pressure is normal.)

You’re more likely to get HELLP syndrome if you’re white and older than 25 years of age. You are also more likely to get it if you have had children before or if you had a problem with a pregnancy in the past.
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How can I tell if I have HELLP syndrome?
If you have HELLP syndrome, you may feel tired. You may have pain in the upper right part of your belly. You may have bad headaches and nausea or vomiting. You may have swelling, especially in your face and hands. Rarely, you may notice bleeding from your gums or other places.

Because many healthy pregnant women also have these symptoms late in pregnancy, it may be hard to know for sure if you have HELLP syndrome. Your doctor may order blood tests if you have these symptoms or if your blood pressure is high.
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How is HELLP syndrome treated?
The main treatment for HELLP is to deliver your baby. This may have to be done before your due date. Most women who have this illness start to get better a couple of days after their babies are born.

If you aren’t too sick, your doctor may wait a few days before delivering your baby.

You may have to take a steroid. This medicine helps both you and your baby.

If you have bleeding, you may need blood transfusions or other treatments in the hospital.

Some women who have HELLP syndrome get very sick. Rarely, this illness is fatal.
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What can I do to prevent HELLP syndrome?
There is no way to prevent this illness. The best thing you can do is see your doctor regularly and tell your doctor about your symptoms at every prenatal visit.

If you have HELLP syndrome during one pregnancy, you can have it again during your next pregnancy. The illness is usually less severe the second time.

Inspired by Ignite Culture and Ignite London …Ignite Health!?

I am so impressed that one of my contacts on Twitter created Ignite Culture. She did it by word of mouth and it was hosted successfully in Toronto last month. Now it is getting a headline in London Ontario and being presented April 3, 2012.

I tried to think of something I could add to an Ignite Culture presentation and really came up with a blank. I don’t have any artistic talents, I am the product of a very dysfunctional family and can’t really look back in my family tree to point out any interesting cultural stories.

 My daughter is far more well versed in Culture topics. She is history fanatic, she loves classic movies, she loves the theatre, she sings, she loves to act. All of the things I may have been if my childhood had been remotely normal.

So as I realized that I could not create a topic that was specific to Ignite Culture I had a lightbulb moment.

What if I created Ignite Health! Same format 5 minute topics related to health and wellness. A focussed session that you can attend to learn about the body, alternative medicine and healthy living.

I know it would be popular, I know I have a number of contacts in London already that have dealt with illness in their families or illness in their lives. I know I am meeting incrediible people like Kresimer Jug who would be a great speaker on the benefits of Chiropractory. What if we combined all those skills and all that knowledge to improve everyone’s knowledge of their own bodies and the impacts we inadvertantly have on our bodies with the choices we make in everyday life.

I am inspired and wondering where to start…I will sit down with Jenn Nelson soon to understand how she created Ignite Culture. I will talk to Jennifer Murray and Gavin Blair about Ignite London and see how that was started too.

I think that having 8 – 10 speakers talking for 5 minutes each on an aspect of Healthy living can only improve the health of our community!

 

Do you agree or do you think this is overkill for another separate Ignite??

How do I fix my Fatty Liver disease?

I have 200 members in a group on facebook who are dealing with non alcoholic fatty liver disease. They range in stages of the disease from very minor with few to no symptoms, to the extreme of swelling (ascites), and constantly being in the hospital.

There are a lot of recommendations for coping with the disease and helping the liver by avoiding certain things: High Fructose Corn Syrup, other sugars, MSG, Trans fats, excess sodium, and deep fried foods. These are the fun foods, they are the social foods, they are comfort foods and everyone has a fond memory associated with one of these no-no’s.

People in the group talk a lot about wanting to get a liver transplant and I understand that desire. This sounds like the perfect answer and relief to serious pain and late stage liver disease. They go through lots of tests and analysis to determine if they are a good candidate for the liver transplant and when they make the list it is a celebration! We are all happy for them and know they are getting a fresh chance at life!

I think the fresh chance at life is really the key message here for liver transplant patients. You can’t go back to the same habits that destroyed your liver in the first place. You can’t go out and celebrate with a beer, chicken wings and nachos and expect that this new liver will be any happier with your choices than your old liver. Those foods and beverages are still toxic. This new liver is vulnerable as it tries to fit in with all of your other organs that have been there the whole time. Those other organs have had to take the extra workload from the compromised liver for all these years and are also going through a bit of a shock!

So here is the point. Those banned foods do not change after a transplant. They are still hurting your liver and your other organs. A transplant is not an invitation to party. Think about driving home your first child. Do you remember how careful that drive home was? I remember bringing home my son Alex and my ex husband driving so incredibly slow, we were both so afraid we would hurt this new baby. Giving the baby the first bath, the first nail clipping. We are super careful and we would never take a newborn baby in an Indy 500 race! Think of your new liver like a new baby. Treat it with the respect and care you would give your child.  

For people who are dealing with Early or Mid stage liver disease my message to you is different. I don’t want you planning your road to your transplant. I want you focussed on helping the liver you were born with. Your goal is not a new liver.

Eating healthy , exercise, use supplements that work for you, that have been approved by your doctor or health care professional. Do everything you can to eat low carb(20 G per day), low sugar (15 g per day), low sodium(1000 mg per day)  with lots of veggies preferably raw!, good healthy proteins, and healthy fats.

Reading labels is something you need to do forever, everyone needs to do this. Everyone needs to wake up to the sad truth that the fun we were having with food is not without a price to pay in our bodies. Short term flushes and detox will not do the trick, quick weightloss will not do the trick, Those things will shock the liver and cause more damage even if they appear to be helping.

I want everyone in their yearly physical to ask to have your liver function tested in your blood test. If your AST or ALT numbers are higher than recommended levels you need to demand a stomach ultrasound to confirm that your liver is compromised.  You may not be dealing with symptoms but this is a huge wake up call that your liver is waving a white flag and begging you to stop what you are doing. Drive away from the drive thru, Back away from the nachos and wings, and just say no to alcohol. Give your liver the break it needs it desperately. Be gentle to your liver, treat is with the respect it deserves.

A liver transplant is meant for people who despite eating properly and following all the guidelines are still not able to get the original liver to function. You have to be healthy and fit, the rest of your organs have to be strong enough to deal with the surgery and the aftercare of preventing rejection of the new liver. Very few of us will make that list and be that strong and healthy. Your goal is to get that way without requiring a transplant.

Taking care of your liver is a life long journey not a short term fix!