|
Diet can play a role in inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease). Food sensitivity may play a role in some cases. A small study published in South African Family Practice (June, 1995;16:393-399) resulted in six of seven patients with inflammatory bowel disease became symptom-free after following an elimination diet. Foods found to trigger reactions in various patients included pineapple, banana, cheese, tomato, coffee and milk.
In a study that appeared in Hepato-Gastroenterology (1990;37:72-80) looked at the effect an elemental diet had on patients with Crohn's disease. The elemental diet involves consuming all nutrients in a liquid form via a gastric feeding tube or IV, gives the inflamed gastrointestinal tract an opportunity to heal. With no food being consumed, digestion does not have to occur, giving the GI tract opportunity to reprieve from the very processes that inflame it. In this study, patients on an elemental diet actually improved more than patients who were given drug therapy.
Consumption of refined carbohydrates can aggravate symptoms. The European Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology (January, 1995;7(1):47-51) conducted a prospective, epidemiological study of 104 patients and found that patients with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis have a high intake of starch and sugar. Other research that appeared in Epidemiology (January 1992;3(1):47-52), followed the dietary habits of 142 patients with ulcerative colitis, 152 patients with Crohn's disease and 305 healthy controls over a period of three years. The relative risk of Crohn's disease increased with sugar intake and decreased with fiber intake. Eating fast food increased the risk for both Crohn's disease and for ulcerative colitis. These studies may support Elaine Gottschall's model of inflammatory bowel disease.
In her book, Ending the Vicious Cycle , Gottschall describes a possible mechanism for inflammatory bowel disease and a dietary solution. She reasons that we eat too many complex carbohydrates (disaccharides like table sugar and lactose in milk, and starches like bread, potatoes, rice and beans). Our own enzymes are not adequate enough to digest the large amounts of sugar and starch that we consume, so it passes into the intestine without being digested. The undigested food allows bacteria to grow, irritating the intestinal lining. The irritation of the intestine causes a further reduction in the amount of enzymes produced, resulting in more undigested food. Gottschall suggests that completely avoiding starches and sugar (the sugar that is in fresh fruit is permissible). Some patients, but not all of them, go into remission after following Gottschall's recommendations.
Click here to link to the website of a natural health practitioner |
|
|
Inflammatory bowel disease is the name of a group of disorders that cause the intestines to become inflamed (red and swollen). The inflammation lasts a long time and usually comes back over and over again. Inflammation often leads to ulceration and eventually scar tissue can form. This includes Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Although the cause of the disease is unknown, it may be due to the immune system attacking the intestinal tract. Symptoms include abdominal pain, cramping, diarrhea, or bloody stools. The patient may also have fatigue, loss of appetite, anemia, dehydration and fever. Severity of symptoms vary from patient to patient. Inflammatory bowel disease symptoms can be mild in some patients, but severe cases can develop serious complications, like rectal bleeding, anemia, deteriorating bowel function, bowel obstruction, fistulas, peritonitis, shock, malnutrition and problems with growth in children. It can also increase the risk of getting colorectal cancer. It is estimated that 600,000 people in the United States have either Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis.
Link to the website of a local natural health practitioner |
|
A study appearing in the American Journal of Epidemiology (1990;132(6):1111-19) looked at the birth records of 257 patients with inflammatory bowel disease born between 1924 and 1957. They were compared to 514 healthy controls and matched by date of birth, sex and maternal age. Infections before or after delivery increased the risk for developing inflammatory bowel disease four-fold. Viral infections with fever were a particularly strong risk factor. Children with lower socioeconomic status also had a higher risk for developing inflammatory bowel disease. Breast feeding had no influence on the incidence of the disease. Some evidence also suggests a genetic susceptibility to the disease. Children exposed to adult smoking, or who had a mother who smoked during pregnancy, may have an increased risk for developing Crohn's disease, but not ulcerative colitis. Research appearing in Gastroenterology (April 1992;102(4)) compared 39 patients with ulcerative colitis and 33 patients with Crohn's disease to healthy controls and found a dose-dependent relationship to the exposure of cigarette smoke and the development of irritable bowel disease.
Click here to link to the website of a local practitioner |
|
|
Inflammatory bowel disease is a general term to describe recurring inflammation of the small or large intestine. Inflammation often leads to ulceration and eventually scar tissue can form. This includes Crohn's disease (where it affects the small intestine) and ulcerative colitis (where it affects the large intestine. Although the cause of the disease is unknown, it may be due to the immune system attacking the intestinal tract. Symptoms include abdominal pain, cramping, diarrhea, or bloody stools. The patient may also have fatigue, loss of appetite, anemia, dehydration and fever. Severity of symptoms vary from patient to patient. Inflammatory bowel disease symptoms can be mild in some patients, but severe cases can develop serious complications, like rectal bleeding, anemia, deteriorating bowel function, bowel obstruction, fistulas, peritonitis, shock, malnutrition and problems with growth in children. It can also increase the risk of getting colorectal cancer. It is estimated that between one and two million people in the United States have either Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. |
|
Inflammatory bowel disease is a general term to describe recurring inflammation of the small or large intestine. Inflammation often leads to ulceration and eventually scar tissue can form. This includes Crohn's disease (where it affects the small intestine) and ulcerative colitis (where it affects the large intestine. Patients with inflammatory bowel disease are often deficient in many nutrients. They commonly have problems absorbing nutrients, have poor appetites, are often on restrictive diets, or are nutrient deficient as a result of drug therapy.
According to a review of research appearing in the Annual Review of Nutrition (1985;5:463-484), nutritional deficiencies are common in patients hospitalized with inflammatory bowel disease. Iron deficiency was found in 40% of the patients, 48% were deficient in vitamin B12, between 54 and 64% were deficient in folate, between 14 and 33% were magnesium deficient, between 6% and 14% had a potassium deficiency, 21% were deficient in vitamin A, 12% were deficient in vitamin C, between 25% and 65% were deficient in 25-hydroxyvitamin D and between 40% and 50% had a zinc deficiency. Other vitamin deficiencies included vitamin K, copper and vitamin E.
According to a study of 114 patients with inflammatory bowel disease, appearing in the Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology (1979;14:1019-1024) found low serum folate in 59% of patients with chronic inflammatory bowel disease. There is an increased risk for colorectal cancer in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Research appearing Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (2008 Feb;14(2):242-8), folic acid deficiency was associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer. Patients who had inflammatory bowel disease and both a folic acid deficiency and high homocysteine had 17 times as many cancerous lesions as patients who were not folic acid deficient.
Some of the vitamin deficiencies may contribute to the severity of the disease. The disease creates vitamin deficiency, which in turn makes the disease more severe. A study involving 30 male and 31 female patients with inflammatory bowel disease was published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology (2003;98(1):112-117). It found that vitamin B6 levels were significantly lower in patients with inflammatory bowel disease than they were in healthy controls. Furthermore, vitamin B6 levels were lower in patients who were experiencing a flare up in their symptoms than they were for patients in remission. Low vitamin B6 levels were also associated with higher levels of what are known as inflammatory markers (these are chemicals that, when present, indicate inflammation) C-reactive protein is an example of an inflammatory marker; it was increased in patients with low B6 levels.
Vitamin supplementation for patients with inflammatory bowel disease is sometimes a problem. For some patients, taking vitamin pills can exacerbate the condition. There are liquid vitamins that may be better tolerated (folic acid is not stable in a liquid multiple vitamin and should be given separately; several companies make a liquid folic acid supplement). Sometimes giving vitamins intravenously is a solution.
click here to link to the website of a local practitioner |
|
|
|
|
<< Start < Prev 1 2 3 4 Next > End >>
|
|
Page 1 of 4 |
