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Living with Hepatitis B


If you have been diagnosed with hepatitis B, you may be worried about the effects on your health. You may also be concerned about transmitting the infection to people close to you. The following coping measures may be helpful for those living with Hepatitis B:

  • One of the best ways to cope with a disease is to find out as much as you can about it. Educate yourself about the effects of hepatitis B on your health. It is also advisable to talk to your doctor about any doubts or concerns that are bothering you.
  • Inform your sexual partners that you have the hepatitis B virus and advise them to get tested as well.
  • Hepatitis B does not spread through casual contact and neither is it transmitted by sharing utensils, so don't let any such unfounded fears stop you from spending time with your loved ones. The strength of your immune system is however a major factor in measuring your susceptibility to infection.
  • Make the necessary changes in your lifestyle in order to improve your health. Follow a healthy and balanced diet and engage in regular exercise. In addition, make sure that you get enough sleep every night.
  • Prevent further damage to your liver by avoiding alcohol intake. Avoid taking any over-the-counter or prescription drugs before seeking your doctor’s advice as they may be harmful for your liver.
  • Those who suffer from a hepatitis B infection should be monitored regularly, whether they are receiving treatment or not. Have your liver checked once a year to evaluate if the disease is progressing, or if there is a risk of cirrhosis or liver cancer.

Prevention
Hepatitis B
References
  1. Robert P. Perrillo, Robert G. Gish, Marion Peters, Emmet B. Keeffe, Alfredo Alberti, Maria Buti, W. Graham E. Cooksley, Michael W. Fried, Stephanos J. Hadziyannis, Yun–Fan Liaw, Nikolai V. Naoumov, Eugene R. Schiff, Chloe L. Thio, Naoky Tsai, Solko Schalm, Chronic Hepatitis B: A Critical Appraisal of Current Approaches to Therapy, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2006, Pages 233-248, ISSN 1542-3565, 10.1016/S1542-3565(05)00983-3.
  2. Emmet B. Keeffe, Acute hepatitis A and B in patients with chronic liver disease: prevention through vaccination, The American Journal of Medicine, Volume 118, Issue 10, Supplement, October 2005, Pages 21-27, ISSN 0002-9343, 10.1016/j.amjmed.2005.07.013.
  3. Samer S. El-Kamary, Michelle D. Shardell, Mohamed Abdel-Hamid, Soheir Ismail, Mohamed El-Ateek, Mohamed Metwally, Nabiel Mikhail, Mohamed Hashem, Amr Mousa, Amr Aboul-Fotouh, Mohamed El-Kassas, Gamal Esmat, G. Thomas Strickland, A randomized controlled trial to assess the safety and efficacy of silymarin on symptoms, signs and biomarkers of acute hepatitis, Phytomedicine, Volume 16, Issue 5, May 2009, Pages 391-400, ISSN 0944-7113, 10.1016/j.phymed.2009.02.002.