DIET & NUTRITION:

Diet and nutrition are an important part of managing Hepatitis C. Simply, your diet should consist of low fat, low sugar, low protein, and high fiber. Changing your diet is not easy to achieve but your liver will thank you for it. The goal, to take as much stress off the liver as you can, love your liver.

Foods your liver hates, try to avoid these:

Junk foods
Red meats
Caffeine, including colas, chocolate, coffee, some teas, and OTC meds
White flour unless it is organic and unbleached
Hydrogenated oils - Hydrogenated or refined oils. Use flaxseed oil or virgin olive oil.
Dairy products
Sugar
Fruit juices - Fruit juices are high in concentrated sugar. Sugar is a shock to the liver.
Artificial sweeteners
Processed foods - processed foods contain preservatives and chemically treated substances.
Alcohol & nicotine

Foods your liver loves, consume away!

Whole wheat bread
Whole grain cereals
Cheerios
Malt O Meal
Oatmeal
Cream of Wheat
Brown rice
Vegetables
Beans, all kinds
Refried beans
Lots of vegetable juices
Fresh fruit in moderation (1-2 pieces per day)
Soy milk or rice milk
Corn tortillas
Organic flour tortillas made with unbleached white or whole wheat flour
Salsa
Canned tuna
Pasta
Spices and herbs
Herbal teas
Organic unbleached flour (white) in moderation
Organic Virgin Olive Oil
Flaxseed Oil
Homemade Vegetable Soup
Baked chips

Here are a few of our favorite liver lover dishes:

Spaghetti - with or without a meat substitute
Tacos - with or without a meat substitute and lots of yummy seasoning
Toastados
Enchiladas
Veggie Burgers
Chili Beans
Tuna Salad
Chicken Salad
Cake - in moderation. Eat desserts in moderation. Substitute sugar with honey.
Whole wheat waffles or pancakes - top with a fruit
Pizza - whole wheat crust and vegetarian and cheese
Baked potatoes topped with cheese, or a vegetable or both.


RECIPE OF THE MONTH:

Spaghetti with Garden Pasta sauce - 4 servings

Prep Time: 20 to 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 5 minutes

2 tablespoons olive oil from jar of sun-dried tomatoes 1 large onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 can (14 1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes 1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste 1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil) 1 teaspoon dried basil 16 oz. lightly steamed or frozen mixed vegetables In large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat; add onion and garlic. Saute about 10 minutes or until onion is tender. Stir in diced tomatoes, tomato paste, sun-dried tomatoes and basil; blend well. Stir in vegetables; reduce heat to medium and simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender and mixture is heated through.
Serve over whole wheat pasta.

Water, water, water! - its best to drink distilled water if you can. Drink lots of water, a gallon or more a day is great! Continued flushing of the system is a great way to remove stress from the liver.


BE GOOD TO YOURSELF:

There are simple and inexpensive ways to relax and rejuvenate. A little peace and quiet goes a long way towards restoring mental and spiritual balance.

Bathing

Bathing is one of nature's oldest and purest traditions. We bathe to cleanse, relax, and pamper ourselves. Bathing is an inexpensive place where you can retreat from the world. By adding bath salts, bath oils or a luxurious milk bath, bathing can provide the foundation for inner peace and a renewed spirit. Leave your stress behind for a short time and enjoy a warm soak.

Meditation

Meditation is a tool anyone can employ to achieve a bit of serenity in our lives. Most important to meditating successfully is finding a method that works best for you. Everyone has different needs and different tastes. Experiment with different styles, and invent your own! When you find your perfect route to achieving tranquility, you will know and you will feel serene, and better prepared to deal with whatever life may bring. Be patient, it usually takes practice to achieve successful meditation. Here are some beginning techniques.

The space in which you meditate is important. Meditation most likely will fail if you attempt to do it in a noisy room, with distractions such as a television, telephone, or window looking out on a busy road. Try to find a quiet place that has some personal significance to you. That is, if your bedroom is quiet and comfortable, try meditating there.

Many people achieve wonderful results travelling to a peaceful spot, surrounded by nature. The silence and beauty that unspoiled natural places provide can be a great boon to peace of mind. Once you have settled upon a good environment, consider your attire.

Loose-fitting, comfortable clothes allow you to breathe easier and relax. Choose clothing that will be conducive to clearing your mind and easing your body into rest. You may want to remove any jewelry that irritates your skin or makes distracting noises, such as bells, bangles, and chains.

The first step to achieving successful meditation is breathing correctly. Deep, filling breaths are a must, and try to visualize that your breaths are grounded in the center of your being, and the oxygen is extending throughout your body to your extremities. Close your eyes as you breathe, and listen just to the sound of the air as you inhale and exhale. Imagine that with every inhalation you take in serenity in the form of white mist, and with every exhalation you expel the stress, unhappiness, anxiety and other unpleasantness in the form of a dense dark cloud.

Sit cross-legged, or with your back supported well, or stretch out prone or on your back. Allow your muscles to unwind, and your joints to slacken. When your breathing is even and deep, and your body feels limp and comfortable, it is time to tackle the task of emptying your mind of stressful, harried thoughts. Some find it useful to picture your mind as a blackboard, and all the thoughts swimming therein as writing in chalk. As you picture your hand wiping the chalk off the board, let go of each thought, until the blackboard--and hopefully, your mind--is clear.

How you choose to proceed is a matter of personal choice. I enjoy imagining a journey to a fantasy world, taking in every sight, sound and smell as I do. This enhances my creativity and gives me a feeling of "escaping" from day-to-day life. Some people prefer guided meditation, oft listening to a voice recording on tape guiding their thoughts through the meditation process. Some prefer to leave their mind blank, and to heighten their senses, paying particular attention to the environment (this works very well in a natural setting).

A few miscellaneous tools that are oft handy in meditating successfully are incense, music, and pillows. Soothing incense (nothing jarring or overpowering) can be uplifting and can enhance your surroundings, particularly if you are indoors. Quiet background music can help to clear the mind and calm the nerves. In particular, look for New Age music--harps, strings, and gentle vocals are best. Soft pillows are excellent to prevent cramping or soreness from hard floors (if indoors) or bumpy terrain (if outdoors).

Massage

Often massage is considered a luxury to be enjoyed only on special occasions. It is not free but has remarkable healing qualities. If you can afford to incorporate massage into your life your body will thank you for it.

The "laying on of hands" and "anointing" the body with potions and creams has existed for nearly five thousand years. Hippocrates, the Greek Father of Medicine, used massage extensively in healing, as did the people of such ancient civilizations as China, Egypt, Rome and Japan. Today we know the effects of body therapies can increase circulation improving the overall nutritional exchanges in the body, help in the elimination of wastes and toxins, relieve soreness and pain in muscles, decrease mental and physical fatigue, gently sedate the nervous system to reduce stress, and improve the tone, texture, health and appearance of the skin. Pamper yourself, you deserve it!

EXERCISE:

Exercise is important to well being. It is especially important for folks with Hepatitis C. Fatigue is the most commonly reported symptom of Hepatitis C. It can be reduced through regular exercise. Even when fatigued, try to incorporate exercise into your daily Hep Helper regimen. A great way to start exercising is by walking. Walking is the easiest and most popular form of exercise.

People walk for many reasons: for pleasure, to rid themselves of tensions and toxins, to find solitude, or to get from one place to another. Nearly everyone who walks regularly does so in part because it is good exercise.

Often dismissed in the past as being "too easy" to be taken seriously, walking recently has gained new respect as a means of improving physical fitness. Studies show that walking on a regular schedule can improve the body's ability to consume oxygen during exertion, lower the resting heart rate, reduce blood pressure, help eliminate toxins, and increase the efficiency of the heart and lungs. It also helps burn excess calories.

Walking burns almost the same amount of calories per mile as does running. Walking one mile in 20 minutes burns just about the same number of calories as jogging an equal distance in 9 minutes. In weight-bearing activities like walking, heavier individuals will burn more calories than lighter persons. For example, studies show that a 110-pound person burns about half as many calories as a 216 pound person walking at the same pace for the same distance.

Like other forms of exercise, walking has a substantial psychological payoff. Beginning walkers almost invariably report that they feel better and sleep better, and that their mental outlook improves.

In addition to the qualities it has in common with other exercise activities, walking has unique advantages. Almost everyone can do it. You don't have to take lessons to learn how to walk.

You can do it almost anywhere. All you have to do to find a place to walk is step outside your door. Almost any sidewalk, street, road, trail, park, field, or shopping mall will do. The variety of settings available is one of the things that makes walking such a practical and pleasurable activity.

You can do it almost anytime. You don't have to find a partner or get a team together to walk, so you can set your own schedule. Weather doesn't pose the same problems and uncertainties that it does in many sports. Walking is not a seasonal activity, and you can do it in extreme temperatures that would rule out other activities.

Walking doesn't cost anything. You don't have to pay fees or join a private club to become a walker. The only equipment required is a sturdy, comfortable pair of shoes.

What makes a walk a workout? It's largely a matter of pace and distance. When you're walking for exercise, don't saunter, stroll, or shuffle. Instead, try to move out at a steady clip that is brisk enough to make your heart beat faster and cause you to breathe more deeply.