Some physical weirdness

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WarlockBob

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Went to the doctor for a general checkup for the very first time in my life about a month ago. Went through the usual barrage of questions about lifestyle, diet, exercise, yada yada yada. Get blood drawn to do the usual tests for the first time ever.

Fast-forward to two weeks ago - get a call after the results come back - while the doctor did have some grumblings about me being a bit overweight (coming in at 5'4" and 190 lbs, after a history of competitive powerlifting for 6-odd years, I'm not surprised by their critique of my weight), they did mention that two of my enzymes that my liver produces were WAY out of whack, along with my blood glucose levels coming back as pre-diabetic.
More concerning about this news is the fact that I am an occasional/social drinker (not more than 2 beers a week on average), I don't eat/drink super sweet things, I generally eat healthy (lots of fish, chicken, and greens, though my portion sizes could use a little work here and there), and I'm pretty active. After lots of very pointed questions about heavy drinking, by more than one doc, the medical professionals are sending me to get an ultrasound of the liver this week, to make sure nothing looks wrong. If all comes back clear from that, I'll begin tests for NASH(non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, otherwise known as the precursor to Fatty Liver Disease).

The good news is, if my ultrasound comes back clean, chances are good it is NASH, and a minor change in diet and an uptick in exercise will help keep my liver flushed and clean. The bad news is, if my ultrasound doesn't come back clean, then I've got other problems at play, but that may eliminate any guesswork about anything else either.

Wish me luck, the ultrasound is Wednesday!
 
Dang Bobby, that is some very sobering news for you at your age. But as you say, your intake of alcohol is pretty low so it certainly can't be from that.

Will dropping some weight help this? Seems to me that many benefits can be mitigated if one is diabetic, or (possibly pre-diabetic in your case) by some changes in weight, exercise, and diet.

In any case, it's good that you're having this screening done now so you can put some changes in place before it gets serious.

Keep us posted.


Cheers,

RR
 
Sorry to hear this Bobby. Definately good that you're getting this squared away now rather than later. The damage done by waiting can sometimes be severe and can take years to repair. Best of luck with the testing.

Jim
 
Brewdude":1eiqdfvz said:
Dang Bobby, that is some very sobering news for you at your age. But as you say, your intake of alcohol is pretty low so it certainly can't be from that.

Will dropping some weight help this? Seems to me that many benefits can be mitigated if one is diabetic, or (possibly pre-diabetic in your case) by some changes in weight, exercise, and diet.

In any case, it's good that you're having this screening done now so you can put some changes in place before it gets serious.

Keep us posted.


Cheers,

RR
Hey Rande,

Weight loss and exercise are definitely #1 on the list right now. If the screenings come back for me having NASH, then there's a high possibility that it could have contributed to the pre-diabetes in the first place. There's also no cure for NASH, per se, but exercise is the #1 treatment, followed my keeping my water intake up, and saturated fat intake down. Gotta keep that liver flushed!

Thanks for the thoughts, I'll keep everyone informed.
 
Bobby, you might consider seeing a registered dietician/nutritionist. After reviewing your medical history and numbers, they can work out reasonable dietary options for "what ails ya!!" I did this last year and have been very happy with the results. FWIW...and good luck Wednesday!! :cheers: FTRPLT
 
Bob,

Hope you receive good news on this.

On the weight loss front, not sure if you're an OCD type like me but I found a calorie counting phone app like My Fitness Pal to be an effective tool in my quest to get down to my "good" weight. I was 188 back in August. I now weigh 165. I am shooting for 160. Using the app gave me a solid gut check on what I was doing to myself. For instance it blew my mind when I found out that 3 pints of Racer 5 IPA was 950 calories and a little less than half of my caloric allotment for the day. :fpalm: At 188 I could drink 3 pints of strong ale in my sleep...

You might have to let those infamous pipe/drink pairings go for a while. :evil:
 
Wow, I just saw this! :shock:

Warlock, that is distressing to an old guy like me. It sounds like you've been better to yourself than I am to myself, and these kind of issues knock on your door. Very distressing indeed. Please be careful with yourself, and best wishes for your results.
 
Thank you all for the advice and kind words!

DB - you're absolutely right about that. It's nearly mind-blowing how many calories beer really can have. Luckily, I normally have enough time to space out my reviews so I'm not hitting 6 or 7 in a day, but I'll need to be especially mindful of it.

frtplt - I've got an appointment with a nutritionist on April 26th, hopefully I can get some good information back from them!

I had my ultrasound last week, and while I haven't heard anything specific from the doctor, the medical professional in charge of the screening told me that the cursory measurements of my liver appeared to all be very good. Hopefully, this will mean that I can begin the full screening process for NASH and we can really zero in on what needs to be done in the future.
 
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