Friday, May 21, 2010

UC linked to stress and food

I had to share .... this is an excerpt of something that I have found to be very interesting and confirm what I'm thinking

http://flog.cookingforceliacscolitiscrohnsandibs.com/diet-questions/specific-carbohydrate-diet-scd-and-beyond/
"The SCD diet is an essential part of the process for controlling and reaching remission for almost all inflammatory conditions within the body.

For people with inflammatory bowel conditions there is almost always a history of excessive carbohydrate intake and a period of intense or sustained emotional stress. The combination of these two factors causes the large bowel to become too acidic and this also lowers the pH of the lower small intestine (jejunum and ileum). The acidity in the small intestine reduces the effectiveness of the digestive enzymes from the pancreas and creates an environment where undigested carbohydrates and other food ferments and parasites thrive. The region that is often most effected is the iliocecal valve which is the junction point between the small and large intestine in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen. This area is always tender to pressure when this region is too acidic and often corresponds with tenderness of the right sacroiliac joint in the pelvis. People with chronic low back pain that does not respond or is aggravated by manual adjusting will often have an inflamed iliocecal valve.


It is important to note that lactic acid producing bacteria including streptococcus, lactobacillus and bifidus all may contribute to the acidity if the diet contains excess carbohydrate. For each molecule of glucose these bacteria produce two molecules of lactic acid which then lowers the pH of the bowel. Symptomatically you will often experience a burning sensation when passing a bowel motion when this situation is present. Therefore taking any probiotics exacerbates the situation unless the SCD program is in place."


Well, who knows if the SCD Diet will work or not...but as far as I'm concerned this is just another re-enforcement on what I'm thinking now is the cause of my UC. I had asthma (common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways inflammation of lungs) as a kid which didn't run in my family and also I've always had lower back pain...not chronic, just niggly. The good news is my asthma went away when I was about 30 and I hadn't had a full om asthma attached since I was 18, so maybe the SCD diet will do for me as it did for others an get rid of my UC....here's hoping.

3 comments:

  1. Good luck. I know a lot of people claim that they have gotten completely better because of diet. Let us know how it goes!

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  2. sure will...fingers crossed :D ... I've blogged the first 5 days so far..and at the end of 30 days I'll decide wheither I continue with it or not..here's hoping this diet will be my cure :D

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  3. Interesting article. I know that before my illness started I definately ate a lot of carbs and then I did have a really stressful period in my life. I made very strict diet changes when I was sick and I did see a little improvement, but not enough to make it worth it for me. However, I know people that it has worked wonders for (practically cured them) and so I'm hoping it works for you! Good luck!

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