Panacreatitis

[FormerCallingCardRep]

Little Bits was diagnosed with Acute Pancreatitis in Feb of 2010. That diagnosis was changed to Chronic Pancreatitis in January of 2011. We have taken out her Gall Bladder and tried various medicines and even a special diet. One thing I have noticed is that if she eats a larger amount of bread then she normally does it causes her more problems. I have that on my list to discuss with her Doctor when we see her next month.

Has anyone else dealt with this and do you have any tips on how to make her life more bearable?

She woke up in pain this morning, but got it under control and went to school. Her meds do work to get the pain under control, but I feel we are missing something in her diet to keep this under control.

[Seshat]

The pancreas produces insulin, which controls her blood sugar levels (and thus, indirectly, the amount of fat she stores). With a pancreas that isn't working properly, my guess is that you need to treat her as a diabetic: I recommend the glycaemic index & glycaemic load diet programs.

HOWEVER this is just an educated guess. I am not a doctor, not a dietitican. Please, please get your advice in this case from an expert: I can provide patient-to-patient advice from one insulin resistant person to another, but I don't know what pancreatitis actually does to insulin.

What I will say is that white bread has the same glycaemic index as sugar. So if she has more white bread, it's putting the same load on her system as if she were to have pure sugar.
Wholemeal bread is better, wholegrain bread better yet, and wholegrains baked into a wholemeal loaf even better than that.

Reference the glycaemic index and glycaemic load research, and see at minimum a pharmacist or a nurse who's accustomed to helping diabetics. Please.

[FormerCallingCardRep]

With Pancreatitis she produces to much amalyse and lipyse. She is seen at least every 30 days by her family Dr and every 4 months the digestive clinic at the Childrens Hospital.

She is on a very strick diet. Lots of fresh fruits and veggies, whole grain breads and pasta, very limited red meats and very little processed foods. The problem is, she is a teenager and I can not controll what she eats when she is out with friends.

My question is, am I and the Drs missing something she should be doing or not doing?

[Rapscallion]

My question is, am I and the Drs missing something she should be doing or not doing?

If you're that concerned, I'd suggest seeking a second opinion from another doctor. We can't give out medical advice on this board.

Rapscallion

[FormerCallingCardRep]

My question is not for medical advise. It is basically is there something we are missing in her diet that someone else who has dealt with this can pick up on.

We have added such stuff as fresh spinich, tomatoes, blueberries, strawberries and cranberries since they were on the list the Dr gave us of foods that are supposed to be healthy and help her pancreas heal. We have also increased the amount of oats she is consuming.

My hope is that someone here has dealt with this and maybe knows of something else that I should have added to her diet that was not on the list the Dr gave us. They told us that the diet changes is still a realitivly new approach in dealing with this and it is by trial and error until we find what sets her off.

[AccountingDrone]

She has got to have the information that she can only eat the foods on her list beaten into her head solidly. If she eats crap that is not on her list, she will continue having problems.

If she is continuing to eat sweets, processed foods - which should NOT be on her OK list, she will continue to have problems. if she is a teen, she is old enough to actually understand what she can and can not eat.

[I do not follow most people specifically enough to know about family health issues, sorry ... so ages, sex and health of kids is something I don't know enough about to really reply better.]

[Andara Bledin]

Along with drilling into her what is and isn't allowed, drill into her the reasons why and what will happen to her if she doesn't abide, not the least of which is diabetes, which would mean an even more restricted diet and a lifetime of medication.

As for what you can add/remove from her diet, you should see a dietitian. Also, if you haven't already, you should have a comprehensive allergy test done to determine if she has a sensitivity to anything.

Pancreatitis article at nih.gov

^-.-^

[FormerCallingCardRep]

We went through allergy testing and have meet with dietitians. THat is where the diet she has been following came from. I have been packing her lunch for school with foods off her list she can have. SHe woke up this morning in pain and I asked her if she ate anything she was not supposed to. I did not get a straight answer from her.

[Andara Bledin]

Then this doesn't sound so much like an issue of "missing something" so much as an issue of her being a kid and not understanding the gravity of her situation.

^-.-^

[FormerCallingCardRep]

I'm just concerend that I am not doing everything that I can to help her come to grips with what is wrong with her

[Teskeria]

Sometimes it is really difficult when they are teenagers. They want to do/eat everything their frrends can. They want to fit in, not stand out. So when she is with her friends, she is probably not following her diet. And her friends probably (can't say for sure) don't realize certain foods are bad for her. (I have a bi-polar daughter. It wasn't until she got out of her teens that she admitted to herself she was bipolar and started handling it. That need to fit with whatever crowd you hang with.) If you have some of her good friends over for dinner, you may have to do 'subtle' things like saying 'I hope you like wholegrain bread. White bread will make Lil Bits quite ill later.' If they ask why, you can say 'It's nothing that can't be controlled by what she eats. And Lil Bits is very intelligent and knows what foods are going to cause her an issue.' That way if she eats the wrong things and shows symptoms, her friends will start asking her if she ate the wrong thing. Sometimes peer pressure can be used to work for you.

[Andara Bledin]

Perhaps you could look into local support groups for other people her age with similar issues - eg a group for kids who have to have restricted diets to avoid complications.

There are so many variables and things that only you and she can know that the only ones who can really determine what might help are the two of you.

^-.-^

[FormerCallingCardRep]

When she is out with just her best friend she never has problems. Her best friend has been there for her since her first hospitalization. Her boyfriend knows about her diet restrictions and tries to help keep her to her diet. I feel the problem lies when she goes over to her boyfriend's for dinner. I think she is too afraid to tell his step mom that certain foods hurt her.

Tonight she is babysitting for her nephew. She said she baked the two of them some chicken breast strips, steamed some broccoli and sliced some apples for them. She knows what to do, she just does not always follow it.

[Seshat]

Ah. This helps.

* You contact the boyfriend's step-mom, explain as much of the situation as you feel is relevant. That's likely to resolve that one. Lil Bits is probably embarassed or 'doesn't want to be a bother'.

* Talk in private to her best friend, explain to her that you're afraid that Lil Bits isn't eating what she needs to when in a larger group, and why. Ask best-friend's advice - she's more familiar with Lil Bits' peer group than you are.
Modern teenagers are more aware of dietary restrictions than we were at their age, it's quite likely that Lil Bits' friends will be more supportive than she's giving them credit for.

If she sticks to her diet except when being fed dinner by her boyfriend's mom or when among her peers, that may well resolve it.

[AccountingDrone]

Then this doesn't sound so much like an issue of "missing something" so much as an issue of her being a kid and not understanding the gravity of her situation.

^-.-^

Take her to a local rehab facility and introduce her to the diabetics who are missing body parts. Thought provoking.