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Diet Therapy for Cirrhosis
The patient must abstain from alcohol in any form. He should
undergo an initial liver-cleaning programme by going on a
juice fast for seven days. Freshly extracted juices from red
beets, lemon, papaya, and grapes may be taken during this
period. This may be followed by a fruit and milk diet for two
to three weeks. In this regimen, the patient should have
three meals a day of fresh juicy fruits such as apples, pears,
grapes, grapefruit, oranges, pineapples, and peaches, and a
litre of milk divided into three parts, each part to be taken
with each fruit meal. The milk should be gradually increased
by 250 ml daily and go up to two litres a day. It should be
fresh and slightly warmed, if desired. It should be sipped
very slowly.
After the fruit and milk diet, the patient should embark upon
a well-balanced diet, consisting of seeds, nuts, grains,
vegetables, and fruits with emphasis on raw,
organically-grown foods. Vegetables such as beets,
squashes, bitter gourd, egg-plant, tomatoes, carrots,
radishes, and papaya are especially useful in this condition.
All fats and oils should be excluded from the diet for several
weeks. The patient should avoid all refined, processed, and
canned foods; spices and condiments; strong tea and coffee;
fried foods; all preparations cooked in ghee, oil, or butter; all
meats; and all chemical additives in food. The use of salt
should be restricted.
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