The Success of Natural Hepatitis C Cures
- Traditional medicine treats Hepatitis C with interferon, although it is not appropriate for everyone with the disease and presents its own risks and side effects. Much of the difficulty in determining the efficacy of natural remedies is that no human scientifically verifiable studies have been done---not only for treatment of Hepatitis C, but for nearly any condition or disease.
- According to the Mayo Clinic, studies have confirmed that silybum, the main active substance in milk thistle, "may aid in healing and rebuilding the liver." More research is required to confirm this assertion, and while it may protect the liver, no one is claiming it is a cure.
- In a very limited study known as the Berkson Clinical Study on Hepatitis C, three patients who had experienced liver dysfunction as a result of longstanding Hepatitis C and were candidates for chemotherapy were given three natural remedies: milk thistle extract, selenium and alpha-lipoic acid. The treatment was 100 percent successful in healing their livers.
While no one believes that a study of three people is proof that these three remedies will help everyone with Hepatitis C, the study's conclusions merit further such work. - Unfortunately, there has been little money available for funding studies of natural remedies, mainly because no business stands to make huge profits from naturally occurring substances. Nearly all studies to date have been done in test tubes or in animals. When considering a natural remedy for Hepatitis C, it is important to first ensure that the remedy will do no harm to the body, either in the short term or long term.
Other practices that those with Hepatitis C can do to ensure their best health with the disease are: avoid alcohol consumption; become vaccinated against Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B; become vaccinated with the pneumonia vaccine (a one-time vaccine) and yearly flu vaccines; avoid iron supplements; if taking a multivitamin, use one that doesn't have iron added unless your health care provider has indicated you need an iron supplement; avoid liver-damaging medications, using extra caution with over-the-counter pain relief treatments; and eat a low-fat diet. - The followingover-the-counter natural remedies could be toxic to the liver and should be avoided by anyone with Hepatitis C: large doses of vitamin A; niacin; Chinese herbal tea: valerian; mistletoe; germander; Kalms tablets; gentian; senna fruit extracts; jin bu huan; asafetida; chaparral leaf; comfrey; pennyroyal oil; bush herbal teas.