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December 26, 2007
Hepatitis C and the Health Benefits of Eating Oatmeal
By eating a hot breakfast in the winter, a person with Hepatitis C can begin their day with a healthy start. Although most hot breakfast foods are not good for you, eating oatmeal in the morning offers a number of liver-specific health benefits.
by Nicole Cutler, L.Ac.
We’ve all heard it before – breakfast is the most important meal of the day. While this sounds like a straightforward concept, most of us are unaware of what kind of breakfast is in our best interest. Sadly, the majority of American breakfast foods are not ideal for a person working to preserve liver health. Especially important for those living with the Hepatitis C virus (HCV), there are many benefits to starting the day with a nutritious breakfast.
Eating a healthy breakfast takes on additional importance throughout the cold winter months. Requiring a strong body to deflect troublesome pathogens, an array of hearty colds and viruses make their presence during this frigid time of year. Thankfully, there are breakfast options providing us with vitamins, minerals, protein and fiber that can help the body successfully fight off winter’s worst illnesses.
Appetite Changes
Complicating breakfast selections are the appetite changes typically accompanying HCV infection or its treatment. The symptoms of nausea and vomiting can easily deter a person from eating well in the morning. Additionally, some foods once enjoyed may no longer taste the same. People with HCV often report that certain protein-rich foods, especially red meat, taste bitter. These phenomena may be due to HCV medications causing a bad taste in the mouth or it could be a consequence of liver disease harming certain chemical pathways in the body.
Warm Food
When cold outside, the body naturally craves warming foods to maintain its ideal, internal temperature for maintaining immunity. People who are in tune with this desire typically veer away from ice cream, cold cereal, and anything else straight out of the refrigerator or freezer in the winter. According to dietician Dr. Sharon Madigan, “As we approach the time of year when we all seem to succumb to the cold, one way of boosting our immune system is by eating a variety of foods which give you different nutrients that may help the body fight infection.”
Ribavirin
In today’s fast paced lifestyle there is a trend toward eating little or no breakfast. However, those on anti-viral therapy with ribavirin have an additional reason to consume breakfast. This oral medication is mostly taken by mouth twice daily. Clinical studies have indicated an increase in its effectiveness when taken with a substantial meal. Since most physicians advise taking ribavirin in the morning and evening, it is important for those on ribavirin therapy to take this medicine with an ample breakfast.
Troublesome Choices
While eating a hot breakfast is the best way to start a wintry day, not all hot foods are created equally. Unfortunately, many morning hot foods do not contribute to your health. Some of the top offenders include:
· Breakfast meat – Bacon and sausage are usually highly preserved, loaded with salt, and high in saturated fats. Preservatives require extra effort for a challenged liver to break down, lots of salt can stress the kidneys and cause water retention (bad for ascites), and saturated fat contributes to fatty liver disease and can worsen portal hypertension. If opting for bacon or sausage, consider chemical-free, low-fat and low-sodium varieties.
· Eggs – Although providing a good dose of protein, eating eggs daily can cause a steep hike in cholesterol levels. Additionally, the cheese used in omelets adds saturated fat, which contributes to clogged blood vessels, fatty liver disease, and portal hypertension. A healthier option is consuming egg whites or egg substitutes.
· Pancakes or waffles – Although these foods can provide a decent breakfast, many people load up on their not-so-good toppings. Powdered sugar, butter, margarine and gobs of syrup add sugar and fat to pancakes or waffles. Additionally, restaurants may cook these tasty dishes in shortening – a top contributor to atherosclerosis. However, multi-grain and low-fat options are healthful ways to enjoy pancakes and waffles. Just limit your toppings to a small amount of low-calorie syrup and you can enjoy a decent hot breakfast.
· Biscuits and gravy – This Southern favorite of two white biscuit halves smothered in gravy speckled with sausage bits is a nutritionist’s nightmare. High in saturated fat and salt, this dish is sure to worsen hypertension, heart, liver and kidney disease.
Hot Breakfast Savior
Despite the discouraging news of the most popular hot breakfasts, a bowl of hot cereal offers hope. According to Dr. Madigan, oatmeal is the ideal winter breakfast food. Oatmeal contains whole grains, which are good sources of protein, fiber, vitamin E and B, zinc, antioxidants, and phytochemicals. Like fruit and vegetables, oatmeal provides a package of nutrients that can help keep the immune system strong to fight bacteria and viruses – including HCV.
Bernadette Speer, Marketing Manager of White’s, maker of Speedicook Porridge Oats said, “eating a large breakfast in the winter has been shown to increase the blood level’s gamma interferon by 450 percent.” As the body’s natural anti-viral compound, gamma interferon is crucial to maintaining health when exposed to viruses.
Often referred to as “breakfast that sticks to your ribs,” eating oatmeal in the morning is healthful when it is not laden with sugar. However, most of the flavored packages of instant hot cereal have high portions of sugar. Nutritionists agree that plain oatmeal is best. According to the American Cancer Society, some of the reasons oatmeal’s soluble and insoluble fibers are beneficial are:
· By attacking certain bile acids, insoluble fiber reduces the toxins that need to be filtered by the liver.
· Soluble fiber may reduce LDL cholesterol (the bad one) without lowering HDL cholesterol (the good one). By improving the cholesterol ratio, soluble fiber can reduce atherosclerosis, fatty liver disease, and portal hypertension.
· By slowing down the digestion of starch, soluble fiber helps keep a stable blood sugar level. This feature benefits anyone at risk for insulin dependence or diabetes – two problems commonly associated with HCV infection.
· The phytochemicals in oats are believed to have cancer-fighting properties. In addition, they are a good source of many nutrients including protein, vitamin E, zinc, selenium, copper, iron, manganese, and magnesium.
While oatmeal may be too bland for your taste, below are five ways to make it delicious:
1. To add richness while adding calcium and protein, make the oatmeal with milk instead of water.
2. Sweeten oatmeal with honey or Stevia.
3. Add flavored protein powder after it’s been cooked.
4. Mix in fresh or frozen fruit like bananas, blueberries or peaches to give your oatmeal great flavor while adding the nutrients found in fruit.
5. Top your oatmeal with some nuts to add flavor and boost protein levels.
Iron Caution
A specific dietary concern for those with HCV is iron consumption. Since those with chronic liver disease must restrict their dietary iron intake, be certain to skip oatmeal fortified with iron. Because most oatmeal contains a small amount of iron, it is worth the effort to search for oatmeal with a low percentage of this mineral.
While consuming oatmeal offers many benefits including aiding toxin elimination, reducing cholesterol, improving blood sugar levels, and preventing cancer, it does not pose the health threats of more popular American hot breakfasts. Starting a winter morning with your liver’s health in mind is as easy as consuming a bowl of oatmeal. Besides warming us from the inside, oatmeal provides an array of nutrients to help a person with HCV overcome their daily challenges.
References:
http://health.learninginfo.org, Six Health Benefits of Eating Oatmeal, Ryan Cote, 2007.
http://quakeroatmeal.com, Oats and Cholesterol Lowering - Summary of Studies, The Quaker Oats Company, 2007.
Hurley, Jayne, Bonnie Liebman, Stephen Schmidt, Bad news breakfasts - nutritional value of restaurant breakfast foods, Nutrition Action Newsletter, March 1996.
www.allabouthepatitisc.com, Overcoming Obstacles to Eating, Schering Corporation, 2007.
www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk, A bowl of porridge a day keeps doctor away, Claire Regan, Independent News and Media, November 2007.
www.healthnewsdigest.com, Oatmeal, A Magical Food?, Healthnewsdigest.com, 2007.
www.medicinenet.com, Ribavirin – Oral Capsules, MedicineNet Inc., 2007.
Posted by Editors at 10:05 AM --- Printer-friendly version
Twelve More Finkelstein Patients Test Positive for Hepatitis
While most doctors are vigilant about disease transmission prevention, Long Island physician Dr. Harvey Finkelstein violated this vigilance when he reused syringes on his clientele. Although nearly impossible to determine where the infection originated, twelve more of Finkelstein's patients have just tested positive for Hepatitis.
Twelve test positive for hepatitis B and C
www.newsday.com
By Ridgely Ochs | ridgely.ochs@newsday.com
December 5, 2007
As state Sen. Kemp Hannon prepares to convene a hearing Thursday on the Dr. Harvey Finkelstein case, patients of the Dix Hills physician continue to stream into Nassau County clinics to be tested for blood-borne infections.
As of Wednesday, six of 119 Finkelstein patients tested in the past few weeks were positive for hepatitis B, and six have been found with hepatitis C, according to the Nassau County Health Department. A total of 149 so far are scheduled to be tested by Nassau. More than 1,200 people have been notified by the state that they should be tested.
State health department spokeswoman Claudia Hutton cautioned that because the virus may have mutated in people's bodies since 2004, when Finkelstein was found to be re-using syringes in multi-dose vials, it's impossible to determine whether the infections stemmed from his improper practices.
"The cases may not trace back to Dr. Finkelstein," Hutton said. "Hepatitis B and hepatitis C do exist in society and people do have them. Getting them from a health care exposure is rare; getting them any number of other ways is not so rare," she said.
Hepatitis C is the most common chronic bloodborne viral infection in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 4.1 million Americans have been infected with the virus, of whom 3.2 million have a chronic infection that can last for the rest of their lives. One in 20 Americans will get hepatitis B at some point in their lives, according to the CDC; about 1.25 million Americans have a chronic hepatitis B infection.
Hannon (R-Garden City), the head of the Senate's health committee, decided to hold the hearing as the Finkelstein controversy unfolded last month.
The health department came under fire because it took almost three years to notify hundreds of patients of the transmission and to urge them to be tested.
Hutton made it clear Wednesday that the state's investigation of specific cases involving Finkelstein patients is done: "The epidemiological investigation is over," she said. "We do not intend to do anything about test results. The reason we notify people is to urge them to get tested and to seek appropriate care."
The state used genetic fingerprinting to confirm in early 2006 the transmission of hepatitis C in Finkelstein's office. But because viruses mutate over time, it's too late to use that technique now.
"At this point we are not trying to do a mosaic of every patient of Dr. Finkelstein," Hutton said.
Although she said the health department "cared intimately" about each patient's disease diagnosis, "what would be the purpose to figure out a second or third transmission except to sue Dr. Finkelstein? That's not the health department's job. That's why people hire attorneys," she said.
Posted by Editors at 09:32 AM --- Printer-friendly version
December 24, 2007
Trial to Test Potential HCV Triple Combination Therapy
GI-5005 Tarmogen is under consideration as the third drug in a cocktail for treating chronic Hepatitis C. In an international Phase II trial just getting underway, GI-5005 will be paired with the current standard of therapy - pegylated interferon and ribavirin.
GlobeImmune Begins Trial With Hepatitis C Candidate
Dec. 20, 2007 | Vol. 5 No. 248
http://fdanews.com
GlobeImmune has started a Phase II trial to evaluate GI-5005 Tarmogen for the treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C infection.
The drug is being evaluated as a potential therapy in combination with the standard of care, pegylated interferon plus ribavirin.
The randomized, open-label, multi-arm, multicenter trial is evaluating GI-5005 in combination with full duration standard of care versus standard of care alone in patients who are either treatment-naive or unresponsive to previous therapy.
This study will enroll 120 patients in the U.S., India and Europe, GlobeImmune said.
Posted by Editors at 12:34 PM --- Printer-friendly version
New HCV Drug Prospect Gets Good Marks for Safety
Already approved in the Russian Federation for treating Hepatitis B and C, NOV-205 has just demonstrated its safety in a U.S. Phase 1b trial. As we progress into 2008, look for reports on the efficacy of this drug.
Novelos ends safety trial of hep C drug on good news
Mass High Tech: The Journal of New England Technology
Thursday, December 13, 2007
www.bizjournals.com
Novelos Therapeutics Inc. reports concluding its initial U.S.-based Phase 1b trial for a hepatitis C therapy with good safety results.
The Newton-based biopharmaceutical company was evaluating NOV-205 as a therapy in chronic hepatitis C genotype 1 patients who had previously failed treatment with interferon plus ribavirin.
Based on favorable safety data in the 14-dose trial with 18 subjects, Novelos said it plans to initiate a longer proof-of-concept trial in hepatitis C nonresponders during the second half of 2008.
NOV-205 has been approved in the Russian Federation, based on a longer duration of dosing in treating hepatitis B and C patients who have not yet received other treatments. NOV-205 was also tolerated well in those studies, officials said.
According to the World Health Organization, chronic hepatitis C affects 170 million people worldwide and up to 4 million people are newly infected each year. Chronic infection can progress to cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma.
Posted by Editors at 12:06 PM --- Printer-friendly version
December 12, 2007
Antibody Isolation May Prevent or Slow HCV
American and Canadian scientists unite in studying a novel approach for reducing the scope of Hepatitis C infection. Their isolation and injection of specific antibodies into liver tissue demonstrates potential in preventing or slowing the Hepatitis C virus.
Treatment could slow hep C
U of A researchers, California scientists team up against global menace
Bill Mah, The Edmonton Journal; With files from Bloomberg News
Published: Friday, December 07
EDMONTON - Researchers at the University of Alberta have teamed up with California scientists to devise a potential treatment that could, for the first time, head off hepatitis C -- especially in patients who have had liver transplants.
Hepatitis C affects about 240,000 Canadians and an estimated three per cent of the world's population. The number of people infected is increasing rapidly in Canada and around the world, according to Health Canada. The disease is spread by contact with infected blood and needles.
Treatments are costly and help just half of patients, according to the World Health Organization. The virus causes chronic infections in most patients, leading to liver damage in some and cancer in others. It's the leading cause of liver transplants in the U.S. and Canada.
Several thousand people each year across North America and Europe who don't respond to drug treatment and need liver transplants. These patients are particularly at risk, since the virus comes back in 100 per cent of the cases.
"This may give us insight into how we can move forward to develop ways to prevent re-infection in patients who have hepatitis C who are going to get a transplant," said Norman Kneteman, a professor of surgery at the U of A and the director of transplantation for Capital Health.
Kneteman is referring to a set of immune proteins that, when injected into laboratory mice bred with human cells in their livers, either protected the rodents from the infection or delayed its onset.
Researchers Mansun Law and Dennis Burton at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif., isolated a set of antibodies that attack a part of the virus that is less susceptible to changes in its DNA.
The U.S. scientists showed that the antibodies could fight two different mutations of the hepatitis C virus, Kneteman said.
The Americans approached Kneteman, whose lab had produced mice with human liver cells.
The hep C virus only lives in human and chimpanzee liver cells.
"So we took the antibodies that they developed ... and we put them into some of our mice with human liver cells," Kneteman said.
"We gave these mice a big dose of the antibody and then we followed that up by injecting the mice with hepatitis C virus from a patient."
Four control mice that didn't get the antibody became infected quickly.
One form of the antibody delayed the infection in three of five mice, while two never were infected.
In another group, a different antibody protected three of four mice and delayed infection in the fourth.
The antibodies open up new possibilities for preventing and treating hepatitis C.
"This is the first time that we've been able to demonstrate the ability of an antibody preparation to block hep C infection for a substantial period of time in a living animal," Kneteman said.
But he said much more work needs to be done to confirm the findings, improve the antibodies and come up with "clinical-grade" forms in partnership with biotech or pharmaceutical companies. Then the antibodies would have to undergo clinical evaluation.
Law said the antibodies might be given to people who think they've been exposed, either from drug use or accidental needle sticks, to avoid chronic infection. "It would be similar to shots for rabies that are used in exposed people."
Law said that while he has been contacted by companies interested in developing a drug from the antibodies, no deal is in place. Further tests in animals, perhaps in chimpanzees, might be needed before the antibodies are tried in people, he said.
The study's findings were released Thursday in the journal Nature Medicine.
Posted by Editors at 12:14 PM --- Printer-friendly version