hepatitis c

[silk]

What about the whole30 and hep c? What about paleo, generally speaking, and hep c? The general hep c dietary recommendations tend to be towards higher carbs and less animal protein, especially to avoid red meat, but hep c isn't alone in getting that recommendation, so I decided to venture into paleo territory because it all makes sense to me. But are there certain recommendations within the paleo way, and within the whole30, that would be specific for people with hep c?

I'm in a pretty good position to experiment -- It may be that I've had hep c for forty three years. I have an extremely high viral load, so they think that points towards the longest case scenario. My liver enzymes are chronically mildly elevated, but so little that my specialist (and he's a very well respected one) calls them 'perfect.' A biopsy in 2011 revealed minimal liver fibrosis. My liver cells are part of a research project; they're trying to figure out what makes some people progress slower than others.

[Tom Denham]

The Paleo diet generally and the Whole30 in particular is a healthy approach to eating. It is possible to make the Whole30 stressful on your body by overloading on some foods and neglecting others, restricting carbs too severely, or restricting calories, but people who follow the guidelines tend to experience markedly improved health.

Pub-Med does not include dietary recommendations in its Hepatitis C article, so you probably are getting a generic, (conventional) healthy diet recommendation.

I have not heard reports of anyone with hep c doing a Whole30, but maybe others do and will speak up.

[silk]

I'd love to hear from anybody with hep c who's done the whole30. I just got diagnosed four years ago, and I figure that my relatively good health puts me in a great position to experiment on behalf of that community. Initially I was warned away from all red meat (too much iron) and my cravings for calf liver were met with shocked faces from the acupuncturist and naturopath I was seeing at the time. I changed doctors to someone who was willing to monitor me while I worked on learning to differentiate between cravings and my body's intelligence. I now eat both red meat and calf liver regularly and love it. I do feel a bit like a maverick out in the wilderness, though....