Slow and steady adjustments are necessary to cope with hepatitis B. (Photo Credit: Creative Commons)

Being diagnosed with hepatitis – or other diseases – may require significant and sometimes painful adjustments to one’s diet. Dealing with these adjustments doesn’t have to be too burdensome and frustrating; if you know what food to AVOID, it should be easy to identify food that you CAN eat and make the diet change perfectly manageable.

Here’s our simple guidelines for WHAT TO AVOID when diagnosed with hepatitis or any liver disease.

Hepatitis virus attacks the liver, which is an important organ that’s responsible for breaking down chemicals and fats that we take ingest. It’s important therefore for hepatitis patients to ease the function of their liver by staying away from processed food and chemically-treated produce.

Meat, for example, is difficult to digest by the body’s digestive system, requiring much more not only of the liver but the gall bladder and pancreas as well.  Many animal products also contain chemicals from the growth hormones injected to the animals, and chemical spayed on animal food.  So it is best for hepatitis patients to avoid meat products and stick with organic protein-rich alternatives. Consequently, avoid dairy foods, which essentially come from animals and are quite difficult to digest. When choosing dairy alternatives such as yogurt, make sure to check the sugar content.

Today’s grocery stores are sprawling with ready-to-eat preserved and processed food. But convenience too has its cost that’s hidden behind the good taste or price. Processed food contains chemically-treated fillers and preservatives that pose great danger to the liver and people’s health in general. Like meat, these foods add unnecessary stress to liver function that could be unsafe for people with liver conditions.

Sugar is another culprit to avoid – may it be artificial sweetener or concentrated natural sugar. While fruits are recognized to have health benefits, some have high sugar concentrations that feed hepatitis virus and strain the pancreas and the liver. Avoid fruit juices and food made with artificial sweeteners such as junk food and candies.

Eliminating these foods from your diet doesn’t have to come as a big blow. Take it one day at a time, and you’ll be surprised at how well you adjust to eating healthy foods that make you feel good in mind and body.