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Comprehensive protocol for HCV: including diet, lifestyle, and therapeutic interventions.

Cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption are potential risk factors for those with HCV. First, smoking increases the risk of many systemic disorders and secondly, cigarette smoke contains highly reactive hydroxyl radicals capable of causing membrane damage to DNA, and inflammatory reactions.  In turn, alcohol consumption has been linked to liver disease and to increased risk of complication to those with HCV and during the course of medical treatment of HCV.

Smoking affects your body’s defenses and the way it responds to infection.  Smokers have altered immune responses.  Nicotine in general is a toxin that affects all tissue in the body.

Several natural products and their derivatives have demonstrated benefit in the treatment of hepatitis C and other chronic liver conditions. Other herbal and nutritional supplements have mechanisms of action that make them likely to be of benefit.

This data appears to suggest that a conservative approach using diet and lifestyle modifications, along with safe supplements and medical treatment can be effective in the treatment of hepatitis C.

PEG-Intron with Rebetol usually causes the same types of adverse reactions as Intron A with Rebetol, but some times they occurred more often. They included flu-like symptoms, psychiatric disorders (including depression), and decreased red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Patients taking either of the combination treatments require careful monitoring.

Depression and cigarette smoking can be a particularly dangerous combination. Long-term data indicate that cigarette smokers who endure bouts of clinical depression exhibit elevated cancer rates, even for cancers not associated with cigarette use.

Combined with moderate cigarette use, physiological effects of depression may boost susceptibility to tumor progression.  Jung and Irwin explored an immune pathway by which depression and smoking together might promote cancer.

These studies raise health concerns for people with HCV who are undergoing PEG-Intron with Rebetol treatment who smoke, since these drugs are known to cause psychiatric disorders including depression.

These disruptions of immune function do not occur in depressed nonsmokers, report Waymond Jung and Michael Irwin.  People in good mental health don't exhibit the immune-system change either, whether or not they smoke up to a pack a day.

Further studies should examine whether a mix of depression and cigarette smoking accompanies impaired immune function in women, note Jung and Irwin.

Because of the distinctive profile of smokers with HCV--particularly their levels of depression, anxiety, and suppressed immune functions—smokers may need different management than nonsmokers.

Therefore, quitting smoking and drinking alcohol (completely), along with supplements, proper exercise and diet is of utmost importance.  It makes sense to have your body’s natural ability enhanced and at its peak performance to work with the medicine to kill the hepatitis C virus--and combat all of the side effects of medical treatment.

Cigarette smoking is the single leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Tobacco kills more than 400,000 Americans each year--more people than HCV, AIDS, car accidents, alcohol, homicides, illegal drugs, suicides and fires combined.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women--ahead of breast cancer. Smokers are also at greater risk for heart disease, strokes and blood clots. Women who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to have low birth weight babies, who are 20 times more likely to die than babies of normal weight.

Although the overall number of smokers in the United States has remained between 20 percent and 25 percent of the population over the past 10 years, the rate of teen smoking has increased at an alarming rate. Cigarette smoking among U.S. high school students increased from 27.5 percent in 1991 to 36.4 percent in 1997--a 23 percent increase in only six years. Because today's young women were yesterday's teenagers, the rate of smoking among women has consequently risen proportionately.

Blessed are those who walk the straight and narrow path.  Blessed are those who set good examples.  (They don’t sway others in the wrong direction.)  Blessed are those who feel remorse when they stumble.  Blessed are those who do not condemn themselves for what they approve of.  Blessed are those who take care of themselves.

I am not a doctor.  This information was compiled from the articles below.  To my knowledge there has never been a clinical study for the effects of smoking and alcohol consumption for those undergoing treatment for HCV.  However, it is very probable that if smoking and alcohol consumption have these effects on the human body – it would only make sense (to me) that they would compound the effects of HCV and PEG-Intron treatment.

This study was done out of concern and love – in your best interest.  

By the way I smoked for 18 years and was a heroin addict for 16 years.  I have over 14 years clean and sober.  I have been off the cigarettes for over 12 years.  God did for me-- what I could not do for myself.  I do not have HCV or any other illnesses.  I try to demonstrate my gratitude in many ways... this website is one.  I pray and hope it helps you!