Teenager Dodges Liver Transplant By Gorging On Junk Food

A 16-year-old from Bridlington, East Yorkshire got a new lease on life by gorging on a diet of chocolate, crisps, biscuits and bread.

Elle Wilkinson ailing from liver failure due to an autoimmune disease was given between six to 12 months to live unless she went in for a liver transplant.

As a part of her treatment plan, the doctors had placed the teenager on a high-carbohydrate diet, which included copious amounts of chocolate, cookies, bread and cheese.

To the utmost surprise of the physicians, excessive intake of junk food in conjunction with prescribed medicines improved Elle’s condition rapidly, so much so that her name has been removed from the transplant list.

Elle stated, “My friends can’t believe it. I can eat chocolate and crisps and all sorts of junk food, and not have to worry about the consequences.

‘It’s weird having to eat all these foods excessively when we are told to eat them only in moderation or risk becoming fat – but I’m not complaining.’

Ailment diagnosed last August
Early symptoms of the disease surfaced in August last year when Elle went through bouts of heavy vomiting.

The youngster was immediately rushed to hospital where she underwent a battery of tests.

The results revealed Elle was suffering from auto-immune hepatitis, a disease which occurs when the body’s immune system attacks liver cells.

With a failing liver, Elle's condition was declared serious, so the doctors added her on the national liver transplant list.

Elle disclosed, "The doctor said I could have had the liver problems for three to five years before we even realized.

"But we didn’t know that because every symptom I had was what every teenager would go through, such as coughs and colds. It was all pretty scary."

Intake of high carbohydrates
Though Elle has recovered considerably, doctors warn the teenager may need a transplant in the future.

Meanwhile, Elle has to continue intake of high-carbohydrates for energy or else she could suffer from muscle-wastage.

Elle's mother, Pam Wilkinson-Brown explained, "Her life is very different to the life of an average teenager. Elle will never be able to drink alcohol because it could kill her.

"She loses energy all the time, but carbohydrates give you energy. She should be eating pasta and rice, but she doesn't like it.

"She eats lots of cheese, bread, chocolate and shortbread. For Elle, that's a healthy diet.

"The diet is playing a big factor in controlling the illness. But she will never be fully out of the woods, even if she had a transplant."