Use Ginger When Cooking Steak

As of late, I've taken to cutting up a substantial amount of ginger and adding it to my chopped steak. While I love steak and try to buy lean cuts I still love to eat a lot of it. This is never the best idea for my pancreas. So, I try to be proactive in an attempt to keep down the swelling.

Ginger is an anti-inflammatory. So, by adding it to the steak I am helping my pancreas keep from becoming inflamed.

The other thing I do to stave off inflammation is I take three pancreas tablets. I used to only take one or two tablets but never felt the over-the-counter pills did any good. One time,

I took three tablets and noticed a difference. Now, before I sit down to eat a delicious bowl of chopped steak with ginger I take 3 pancreas tablets.

Today, I did as written above and have had absolutely no noticeable swelling or discomfort in my pancreas.

I feel that the least often the pancreas becomes inflamed the longer my pancreas will stay healthy.

Sometimes, I have to give up certain food or at least give them up for the most part. Sometimes I just need to find the right combination.

Ginger and steak seems to make for a great combination! Just as my pancreas...

Diagnosing Pancreatitis

Pancreatitis is a difficult disease to diagnose. Symptoms of many other diseases look like pancreatitis. For example, if you are bloated from an inflamed pancreas there is a very good chance a doctor will not consider the ailment to be pancreatitis. Or, if you have oil in your stool or a discolored stool, your doctor might not consider this to be a problem with your pancreas. Your doctor might not consider your 'gas' problem related to a pancreatic issue.Pancreatitis rears its often subtle head in many ways that seem to go unnoticed by physicians. It also seems that many physicians do not know as much about pancreatitis as they might an upset stomach. People - including doctors - tend to gravitate toward what they know.

I diagnosed my pancreatitis through reflexology. "Pancreatitis". It seemed like such a silly word. When I rubbed the bottom of my foot the chart indicated that the sore spot was my pancreas. I had never heard of my pancreas and for at least a couple years we laughed it off figuring that if it was that difficult to say it wasn't worth giving attention to. Well, a few years later with continual unresolved stomach pains and an on-again off-again checking of what the pancreas was and what symptoms were attached made me start seeing similarities between problems with the pancreas and what I was experiencing.

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Eventually, I went to an emergency hospital and told the physician on duty that I thought I was having a pancreatic attack. He laughed at me. Took the tests and in the end (after much denial on his part even after reading the test score - 60 was normal, mine was over 200) he realized there really was a problem, that I was having a severe acute pancreatic attack, changed his tune and promptly admitted me into the hospital where I stayed for 16 days. Most of that time was spent hooked up to an IV without food or water which allowed my pancreas time to 'rest'.

For the layman like myself, I would recommend reflexology as a great at home option to see if the pancreas is tender. Foot charts can be Googled. On the foot chart in the middle of the foot will be the pancreas. Rub that area. Is it tender? If so, it might seem your pancreas is having issues.

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Doctors can run blood tests and perform ultrasounds to diagnosis the condition of the pancreas. If you run into an arrogant doctor who wants to blow off your symptoms or invalidate your concerns you can always go to another doctor. Pancreatitis is a serious problem. It will not help you to have an uncaring or uninterested doctor. Diagnosis is possible. If you don't feel your doctor did an adequate job you might consider a GI specialist.

The best thing to do is to take your concerns seriously and to act on it immediately. Damage to the pancreas can be life threatening. For a substantial portion of my hospitalization the process consisted of the nurses freaking out because my heart rate was so low and me walking back and forth along the hospital corridors to keep my heart beat up high enough so that it wouldn't stop altogether.

It is possible to be an accurate diagnosis. This is not a commonly known or understood disease. Chances are you will have to be very pro-active in receiving any diagnosis and certainly an accurate one.

If you think you might have pancreatitis then it is important to stop drinking alcohol. Most often

pancreatitis is caused by alcohol consumption. It is not possible to recover from pancreatitis and drink heavily. If you have contracted pancreatitis from alcohol then you are not only a daily drinker but you drink quite heavily and have for a long time. Not all cases of pancreatitis are caused by alcoholism... but most are. It's time to stop drinking. If this is a problem for you then you probably have a problem with alcohol and might want to look into a recovery program. Pancreatitis can and does kill. You're worth more than that. Get it checked out and take it from there. 1. Reflexology 2. Blood Work. 3. Ultrasound Just do it. You're worth it!

The sooner you diagnose the problem the better chance you will have of living a normal life and eating like other people. The longer you wait the more chance there is that damage will be caused to the pancreas if the pain you feel is pancreatic. There is no known cure for pancreatitis. There is no known way to fix it or to heal it. Get diagnosed. It's worth it!

Pancreatic Diet: Steak with Ginger

I used to eat a lot of Steak with Ginger but after being diagnosed with Pancreatitis I was told to lay off spices. So, I stopped using ginger.

There is no need to stop using spices altogether. In fact, some spices are good for you and work as an anti-inflammatory which means these spices can actually help to balance your pancreas while you eat. Ginger is one of these spices.

Once I learned that ginger is an anti-inflammatory I started adding it to my diet. I was recently

on a cruise where I ate some ginger that was served to me with sushi. I noticed an almost immediate anti-inflammation in my pancreas. At that point, I started taking the benefit of ginger much more seriously.

I try to buy non-fatty meat since the fat tends to aggravate the pancreas causing inflammation. Non-fatty steak doesn't seem to have much of a negative effect if (like with all foods) I eat reasonable amounts. Tonight, I had steak with cut up ginger. I probably ate a little more than a half pound of steak. I noticed no negative effect or inflammation as a result of the meal.

If you recently got out of the hospital or are having a pancreatic flare-up eating might not be the best solution for you at this time. Sometimes it is best to just allow the pancreas to rest and heal. This is often done by going on a liquid diet for a few days.

That being said, I have noticed the necessity of potassium and the harm it can create to the kidney if I neglect the need for potassium. Therefore, now I try to make sure I eat enough food with high potassium levels so that when my pancreas flares up my system kidney doesn't go into a problem mode as a result of the loss of potassium.

Note: Sometimes balance can be difficult. It's a process.

Related Articles:
Pancreatitis & Hunger

Chronic Pancreatitis and Steak

Bookmark this blog! That way, when you have more questions and you would like to hear the experience, strength and hope of another person with pancreatitis you'll know where to come. See you soon and have a great day!

Pancreatitis: Marijuana, The Anti-Inflammatory

A few years back, I went to Amsterdam where I not only found myself eating a pot brownie but also found my pancreas feeling better than it had in sometime. As a result, I realized that marijuana made my pancreas feel better.

In the States, pot is still illegal. I'm against marijuana being illegal simply because I think it is better to treat drug addicts than to put them in jail. Drug addicts can be rehabilitated. Jail should be for those offenders that cannot

be rehabilitated. It is better both for the individual who may have a problem with drugs and the overall population that must pay for the prison system.

Nonetheless, I don't like

what pot does to the body and mind. It takes away ambition and inhibits creativity. It decrease sperm count and makes pregnancy more difficult.

Still, there is a time and a place for everything. Basically, if marijuana is used as a form of escape, then I don't approve of it. It is better to face your demons, work through it and move forward with your life.

That being said, I don't believe drugs and painkillers are a suitable answer for treating pancreatitis (as well as many other illnesses) and feel that if marijuana can counteract the inflammation of the pancr

eas then perhaps in reasonable amounts used in addition to other anti-inflammatories - such as ginger, Turmeric, blueberries, broccoli and sweet potatoes - marijuana would benefit the body and help ease the discomfort suffered by those with chronic pancreatitis.

Pancreatitis & Ginger

A few weeks ago, I was on a 5-night Bahamas cruise. It was lovely! One of the offerings was a Sushi Bar.

After receiving my limit of 4 pieces of sushi I got a side of ginger. In case you are unaware, ginger cleanses the palette and that is why it is served with Sushi. The idea is that you c

an have a little ginger before you eat the sushi... at least that's the story I heard some odd years back. Sounded good so I bought into it.

I like ginger. I enjoy the taste of it. So I was sitting there eating my ginger and realized that my pancreas was feeling less inflamed. I knew that ginger was an anti-inflammatory but was quite surprised to feel such an immediate result from eating it.

Food for thought. Need an anti-inflammatory. Reach for a little ginger! Your pancreas just

might thank you for it!