liv 52

[dranurag]

does anyone know about liv 52 an indian ayurvedic medicine?

[dranurag]

I have only finished 4 weeks ago and waiting for the first PCR results. Last time I took 1 yr tx and remained UND during tx but became positive after 4 weeks of stopping.

[comeagain]

thx fretbord very good articel.
dranurag have you got your post 3mos pcr result yet.

[fretboard]

Here's something to read, it's from another site and written by a doctor.  good luck

Nutritional (Herbal) Therapies: According to the Nutrition business Journal, supplements were a $15.4 billion dollar industry in 1999.
patients with viral hepatitis have used a number of nutritional supplements such as echinaceae, pycnogenol, dandelion root, silymarin
(milk thistle), and a wide array of herbal remedies. Most of these have not been studied in controlled trials and, thus are unproved
therapies. Silymarin has been studied by has not demonstrated clear benefit.
Despite the lack of supporting data, the use of these therapies has gained widespread acceptance among patients with hepatitis C.
Several factors seem to account for this phenomenon. A history of lack of effective therapies for liver disease in general; incompletely
effective treatment for hepatitis C; a general attitude that, “It can’t hurt me, and maybe it’ll help”; and the relatively mild and slowly
progressive nature of hepatitis C.
Herbs have been used to treat illness since time began. In fact, many modern pharmaceuticals were discovered in natural sources.
Aspirin originally came from the bark of the white willow tree. Cyclosporin, the miracle drug that suppresses the immune system and
makes liver transplants possible, was found in a fungus growing in the soil of a plateau in southern Norway.
I have no doubt that future controlled studies of herbs for liver disease will result in useful treatments. Saw palmetto, for example, has
been studied in a controlled trial by New York University researchers and found effective in certain doses for prostrate conditions. Some
“natural” substances are ineffective, and others may be as powerful as approved Western medicines. However, until we have proof of
effectiveness and safety, I cannot endorse or recommend that patients undergo nutritional therapies.
Quality control of potency and contaminants is another problem. In 1998, California investigators found that “nearly one-third of 260
imported Asian herbals were either spiked with drugs not listed on the label or contained lead, arsenic or mercury. In addition, herbs can
interact with other medications you may be taking. For example, St. John’s wort, a popular herbal antidepressant, recently has been
found to decrease levels of life-sustaining cyclosporine in heart transplant patients.
I do not recommend using herbs, but if you are interested in them, become informed. And remember that it is vitally
important to tell your doctor if you are taking any nutritional supplement.
Copyright: Living with Hepatitis C, A Survivor’s Guide by Gregory T. Everson, MD and Hedy Weinberg.