Hopefully, you will never experience pancreatitis in your life, but if you do, it's worth knowing how to manage the condition. Pancreatitis breaks down into two types:
- Acute flare-ups: a sudden and severe attack
- Chronic pancreatitis: long-term inflammation throughout the body
Acute pancreatitis
Acute pancreatitis is a medical emergency. If you have this condition, you'll notice severe, sharp pain in your upper abdomen that radiates to your back. Don't try to manage the problem at home. Go to the hospital immediately to prevent complications.
Doctors will usually begin treatment by getting you to fast. You'll stop eating and drinking for a short period to give your pancreas time to recover. After that, they'll provide IV fluids since pancreatitis often leads to dehydration. These are fluids that enter your body intravenously through a needle, helping to maintain blood flow to the pancreas and support its healing. You'll also get strong pain medication to help you feel better while the treatment is carried out.
Dietary adjustments
If you have acute pancreatitis or are managing chronic pancreatitis, it is best to make significant dietary adjustments. This is the best way to prevent flare-ups from occurring again in the future. Usually, pancreatitis is brought on by eating too many high-fat foods. The pancreas releases enzymes to break down the fat, but this causes the organ to work overtime. To correct this, make sure you get:
- At least three servings of whole grains daily
- Two servings of fresh fruits
- Five to seven servings of vegetables
- One serving of nuts
- One serving of lean animal protein
- One low-fat dairy option
You can have the odd treats here or there, like fish, chicken, or legumes, but you'll want to minimise how much of these you get weekly. Focus on low-fat proteins like:
- Chicken and turkey
- Egg whites
- Tofu
- White fish
Eat small, frequent meals (usually five to six a day) instead of large ones to avoid overwhelming your pancreas. Cut down on:
- Butter
- Heavy creams
- Full-fat cheese
Don't eat many pastries, soda, and heavy desserts.
Management for chronic pancreatitis
You'll also need to seek medical management for chronic pancreatitis, often from a hepatopancreatobiliary surgeon. For example, they may recommend pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy. The idea is to provide you with prescription enzymes that you take with every meal to assist with digestion, reducing the risk of malnutrition and diarrhoea if the pancreas isn't producing its normal quantity of these enzymes.
You'll also need to consider blood sugar monitoring. Damage from pancreatitis can harm the cells that produce insulin in the pancreas, so regular check-ins are necessary.
Finally, make sure that you're getting all of the nutrients you need, which can be impaired if you have chronic pancreatitis, like vitamins A, D, E, and K. These are all fat-soluble vitamins, so they rely on the pancreas to be functioning properly to be absorbed into your system.
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