Fluid retention

hands on health

Fluid Retention

Questionaire

Name .................................................... Date ....................

Ref: Waterfall diet Linda Lazarides

Food intolerance

	Yes	No
Does your weight sometimes go up or down by 2lb or more in a single day
Has your doctor ever diagnosed you as allergic, even when you were a baby
Do you suffer regularly from headaches or migraines
Do your fingers or knees regularly feel puffy or painful?
Do you feel slightly congested in your nose or sinuses a lot of the time, or suffer asthma or hay fever or a lot of mucus?
Do you regularly suffer from bloating and flatulence (especially after eating) or diarrhoea?
Have you ever been diagnosed with irritable bowel?

If you have answered yes to two or more of these questions, there is a strong likelihood that you are a food allergy sufferer. If you have answered yes to Q1, your weight problem is probably due to allergic fluid retention.

Protein deficiency

	Yes	No
Do you regularly avoid eating meat, dairy products or eggs?
Do you often miss proper meals and snack instead on chocolate, crisps, or chips?
Do you often eat meals consisting of just salad vegetables or fruit and vegetables?
If you are vegan, do you replace animal products by eating dishes combining rice with soya beans, lentils or nuts less than once a day?
Have you eaten less than 1000 calories a day for more than a few months?

If you answer yes to two or more of the questions there is a possibility that your fluid retention may be partially due to a protein deficiency.

Kidneys

	Yes	No
Do your ankles swell, especially after you have drunk a lot?
Do you put two or more spoonfuls of sugar in your tea of coffee?
Do you consume cola, lemonade, sugared commercial 'fruit drinks', milk shakes of other sugary drinks every day?
Do you eat sweets, chocolate, ice-cream or other sugary items several times a day?
Do you normally consume bread, pastry, cakes, biscuits and pasta made from white flour?
Do you regularly eat more than 12 ozs a day of high protein food such as meat, fish, poultry or cheese?
Do you eat a lot of fried or greasy food or burgers?
Do you usually eat highly salted food or add a lot of salt to your food?
Do you usually eat fresh vegetables or salad vegetables less than once per day?
Are you vegetarian or vegan?
Do you have bowel motions less than once per day?
Have you ever been diagnosed with kidney problems?

If you have answered yes to the first question, there is a possibility that your fluid retention may be partially due to kidney stress. If you have answered yes to any of the other questions, this may help you to pinpoint what might be causing stress to your kidneys.

Medicines

	Yes	No
Are you taking any of the medicines described below?
Did the start of your fluid retention/weight gain seem to coincide with beginning to take this medicine?
Has the fluid retention/weight gain worsened since you started to take this medicine?
Have you ever taken any of the medicines described as causing possible kidney damage?
Has your fluid retention/weight gain only become noticeable since the time you took this drug?

If you believe that a drug may be causing your fluid retention, it is important you do not come off it without discussing the problem with your doctor.

Medicines
Fluid retention can be a side effect of a large number of prescription medicines.		These include:
ACE inhibotors	High blood pressure	Toxic to kidneys
Beta blockers	High blood pressure, angina and anxiety	May reduce heart's ability to pump blood through the kidneys
Calcium channel blockers	Angina,high blood pressure, Raynaud's disease	May reduce heart's ability to pump blood through the kidneys
Central Alpha stimulant	High blood pressure, migraine,menopausal hot flushes	Can cause sodium retention
Vasodilators	High blood pressure	May reduce heart's ability to pump blood through the kidneys
Loop and thiazid diuretics and potassium sparing diuretics	Fluid retention	All diuretics worsen high protein type fluid retention
NSAIDS eg ibuprofen	Pain and inflammation	Prevent production of prostaglandins involved in kidney function.
Corticosteroids	Pain and inflammation, asthma	Can cause sodium retention
Amphotericin	Anti-fungal	Toxic to kidneys
Oestrogen	Contraceptive pill and HRT	Cause sodium retention
Progestogen	Contraceptive pill and HRT	Cause sodium retention
Danazol	Endometriosis	Reasons unclear
Phenothiazines	Mental illness	May reduce heart's ability to pump blood through the kidneys
Tricyclic anti-depressants	Mental illness	Fluid retention may occur as an allergic reaction
Insulin Diabetes	Can cause sodium retention	Do not stop taking, but diet changes may help
Metoclopramide	Nausea, vomiting, migraine	Causes rise in aldosterone (sodium retention hormone)
Cephalosporin	Bacterial infections	Fluid retention may occur as an allergic reaction.
Co-trimoxozola antibiotics	Bacterial infections	Capable of causing kidney damage
Acyclovir	Viral infections	Capable of causing kidney damage

Capillary and Lymph

	Yes	No
Do you eat fresh fruit or vegetables less than once per day?
If you are a woman, do you suffer from heavy periods?
Do you bruise easily?
Do you suffer from broken capillaries or thread veins?
Do you avoid physical exercise?
Do you sit still for several hours every day, for instance watching TV?
Are you bed or wheelchair bound?

If you answered yes to two or more of the first four questions, there is a strong possibility that your fluid retention is caused by leaky blood vessels. If you answered yes to any of the last three questions, your fluid retention may be caused or aggravated by lymphatic congestion.

Toxins

	Yes	No
Do you get symptoms such as headaches, drowsiness, coughing orwheezing, when exposed to normal amounts of fumes or chemicals such as dry cleaning or paint fumes, car exhausts, smoke, perfumes, cosmetics, household aerosols and sprays?
Have you recently started to develop allergies when you had none before
Have you been diagnosed with any of the following illnesses? Arthritis Alzheimer's disease Motor Neurone disease Parkinson Disease Kidney disease ME Asthma Psoriasis
Do you appear to be ageing faster than other people of a similar age?
Do you normally suffer from a tendency to constipation?
Do you drink coffee several times a day?
Do you smoke?
Are you a medium to heavy drinker of alcohol?
Do you have a lot of amalgam (silver) fillings?
Do you regularly take medication (even if only aspirin, paracetamol or contraceptive pill)?
Do you consume a lot of processed foods or drinks containing colourings, preservatives and other additives (eg dark brown beers)?
Do you eat less than two portions of fresh fruit or vegetables per day?

If you answered yes to seven or more of the questions above, there is a strong likelihood that your fluid retention may be caused by internal pollution.

Vitamin and Mineral deficiencies

	Yes	No
Do you find it hard to grip pens, cutlery or tools?
Have you noticed a loss of sensation in your fingertips?
Do you accidentally drop or break things much more than you used to?
Do you suffer from painful leg cramps at night?
If you are a woman, do you gain several pounds before your periods or experience a swollen tummy?
If you are a woman who has reached menopause, have you developed painful knots on the sides of your finger joints?
Do you get numbness or tingling in your hands?
Do your hands often 'go to sleep' in bed at night?
Do you eat fresh fruit and vegetables less than once per day?
Do you normally eat white bread rather than wholemeal?
Do you put sugar in your tea or coffee?
Weight for weight, do you consume as much sugary food (e.g. sweets, chocolate, cakes, biscuits, jam, honey, syrup, ice cream, sugary cereals, desserts and sweet drinks, including 'diet' drinks, as other foods - or perhaps even more?
Do you eat fried or fatty food such as burghers, sausages or pastry every day?
Has there ever been a time in your life when you ate an extremely poor diet for several months or even years?

If you answered yes to six or more of the above questions, your fluid retention could be due to nutritional deficiencies.