Atkins effects on damaged liver & Depression?
 

Does anyone know the effects the Atkins diet may have on a previously damaged liver? I hate to share so much information but being that I do not have insurance at the moment I have no where else to turn for advice. I have lived with servere depression since age 13. I am now 31. In march of this year I overdoesed on tylenol, which landed me in ICU for 2 weeks. The doctors felt there was no hope for my liver to recover adviced my family to make the appropriate arrangments.

Obviously, I recovered. The triggers in my life that I was feeling at the time have since passed and for the time being my depression seems to be in check.

Since being released from the hospital I have not seen a doctor and do not have the means to do so. I feel fine and am not experiencing any of the symptoms I was told to watch for. In fact, since starting induction i feel better than ever. I have more energy, less mood swings (even during PMS time), and a greater overall feeling of well-being.

So, my question is does anyone know if the Akins diet is generally more harmful or beneficial to liver function? Any advice will be greatly appreciated, and I hope I have not shared to much information.

Thanks,
~Christy~

Not sure Christy, but I find that WebMD ( www.webmd.com ) is a real good source for all sorts of information about drugs, medical conditions etc...maybe you can find some info there.
Good luck, and glad to hear things are going well for you now!
Lesle

I think it helps with liver function, Christy, because you are getting rid of those horrible simple sugars.

Everything I have read, includings Atkins, is that excess weight, excess sugar, excess alcohol and OTC and other pain killers is what is bad on the liver.

I also was under the belief that as long as there is any healthy tissue left in the liver, it can regenerate. Perhaps someone else will have more input.

Check this out:

http://www.drweil.com/u/DailyTip/

Regarding the depression...
 

Atkins seems to help most people with depression. The sugars are not jerking you all around.

But beware of March again. March is a transitional month, and since I have SAD, I have seen that I do a lot of things and make a lot of life altering decisions in March for some reason. Not that they are necessarily bad things, just major things. Watch yourself in February and see if you are feeling any increase in anxiety or depressive levels.

Unfortunately, even when on Atkins I still experience SAD. The depressive symptoms aren't as bad, but I still go on my typical "March madness."

Check out milk thistle
 

You can get it in the grocery store health section. Silymarin. Does wonders for damaged livers, including hep C and other problems. I take it for toxic exposure--benzene and formaldehyde--and feel much better when I take it.

Overall, Atkins is going to help because insulin STOPS some liver function (I'm not up on the mechanism yet) so your liver will be doing better the less insulin it has to worry about.

Quietone: Thats for responding. You were very helpful. I notice that there are certain times of the year where I have to be on the look out for symptoms more than others. I seem to be more suseptible during the winter months starting about the end of November and lasting through March. It has been that way as long as I can remember. Luckily, I have been with my fiance for 8 years and he know all to well what to watch out for, so he can help point things out to me - ie changes in behavior that I dont even notice, foul moods, crying jags, short temper, loss of sleep and nightmares.
The site you linked was very good and had lots of useful information. I've looked into it alittle further and I think that if anything Atkins will be good for me in that aspect.

CSCarver: Thanks for the information on Milk Thistle. I have heard about it's benefits before but somewhere along the lines I just plum forgot about that. Thats for reminding me. I will definately get some as soon as I go out again.

You guys are great. Ireally appreciate you taking the time to reply and help me out with this.

Have a great day!,
~Christy~

Glad to be of help...
 

it definitely sounds like you have SAD (seasonal affective disorder).

Did they prescribe you anything for SAD? I have tried just about every anti-depressant out there with no luck so far. Right now the best medicine I have tried seems to be diet and excercise. I've also noticed that getting out of the house in the middle of the day helps to. How about you....what have you found that works best?

Yes, I too have tried the antidepressants. I don't like the side affects, but sometimes I do take them. I find that around PMS it gets much worse and that my PMS is much worse during these months (Nov-March).

I do have a sun light which I use starting Oct. 1. I also have found that walking outside in the middle of the day helps a lot. I love the snow because I feel so good when I go outside in it. It reflects the sunlight which seems to help. I never wear my sunglasses in the winter. I try to make myself stay up later at night (most of the time I could easily hit the sack at 7:00 in the winter).

Low carbing helps tremendously, not just with the swing of the moods, but also the weight gain from my carb overloads that usually occur this time of year.

I am going to get some hormones when I go to the doctor the next time. I am hoping that having this to even out my PMS symptoms will help a lot. I believe for women, there is a definite link between the lack of light and hormones. It seems only common sense since so many more women get SAD than men. I would love for someone to study up on this, but I guess it doesn't pay.

I have Fatty Liver Disease and while I was reading up on it, I read that Liver problems are linked with depression. I have a friend with severe liver problems and she is also severely depressed. Her therapist had her on suicide watch and tested for 'Bipolar. Try to find some liver tonics. Hopefully getting your liver healthier will help with your depression. Keep up with medical supervision, don't just rely on what you hear here or in other places. Talk to your doctor about it. Learn as much as you can. When I was first diagnosed I looked up on the net and found a lot information. I went back to my dr and told her what I had done, she rolled her eyes but then I asked her some informed questions, I think shocked her because I knew what I was talking about. Before that she had given me hardly any information, now I was making her answer in an informed way. Dr's do tend to have an "I'm more intellegent than you because I'm a doctor" and it shakes them when a patient actually knows what they are talking about :lol: