Diet and Health FAQ

Tagged As: Treatment Of Crohn's, Crohn's Treatment

Question:
I am gathering info about effective ways of using diet and supplements to treat and manage Crohn?s. I am interested in the work at Addenbrook hospital where they use elemental diet as treatment (instead of steroids to induce remission) and the elimination diet. Has anyone done this? Does anyone know of other hospitals who will support patients wanting to do this, especially in the north west where I live? Also, since a visit to NZ I have been taking High UMF manuka honey which I feel help[s my symptoms. Does any one have any views on manuka? Any info or shared experiences gratefully received!

Answer:
I took manuka honey for about 3 months 3 years ago after reading great things. I was not long out of hospital and looking for things to help with healing. On the one hand I did heal very quickly, but after this time I suddenly found swallowing the honey quite painful(burning sensation in throat). This could have been caused by something else (as I had the same problem with jam at the same time), but I was too cowardly to try it again! It's probably just me and I should really get some more! I'm in the North West too. Blackpool in fact. I wrote to addenbrook just after I got out of hospital to ask there advise and see if they could tell me what I could do to slow down the chance of remission. The reply I got basically told me that there was nothing I could do, take, eat etc and that I had more than 50% of the disease attacking again. I thought that was very jolly LOL. The DR's keep saying that diet is not a contributing factor with Crohn?s but every one in the profession seems to contradict each other. It is really hard to find the right advice. Well I can tell ya that the healthy lifestyle has done me quite well. Life is good even with this disease. Remember not to focus solely on just what?s good for your IBD but what is good for you. The healthier you are the better the body is able to fight. The UMF in manuka honey has something to do with the sugar molecule. I would have thought its properties would be destroyed by digestion. I had a small infection in my eye lid?recently and I put it on it. It stung until I produced tears but it kills bacteria and acted like a poultice. You'll find a wide variety of people here and there are many different experiences, thoughts and opinions on this subject. Personally I believe that diet can go a long way to help reduce symptoms but how that is done can vary a good deal from person to person, although I think there are often similarities too. But UC and CD seem to have some differences mostly in that people with CD tend to be more sensitive to more different types of foods especially raw foods. I find I have more trouble with spicy or acidic foods. But in general eating healthier foods and cutting down on processed foods, overly refined foods can often help. Also there are things such as probiotics which have helped a lot of people. Keep reading, there's a lot to say on this and not everyone who has been a member here posts all the time. I've seen people in the past who did the elemental and elimination diets and reported good results. It's tricky with diet because I think it takes the right combination to make it work. Don't expect to get all the right answers in a few days. It will probably take years for that. But good that you are here as you can get real life advice from others who have been there. I have Crohn?s myself and use the elimination diet myself.?It was hard to do at first, even just getting started to know what and how to do it. ?My gi and surgeon sent me to a wonderful dietician knowledgeable in Crohn?s to help me get started with a diary and what to start with and problems that may occur along the way. ?With the diary you start slow and easy with the foods, at least if you are in a severe flare or just had surgery. ?You start first with easy digestible foods and I was told to try a new food once a week and log the food, how much approximately and reaction or no reaction (potty runs, if so how quickly how often, what they looked like (any undigested foods for example or bleeding etc)) The diary was also for daily logs of what was going on with me and I logged how I felt, what I ate, what I did and so forth. Sometimes I was luck and could say a good day. ?Supplements were supplied by my gi when my dr did my regular blood tests and I showed up low on something. Other than that I was told to use my diet to get my nutrients when possible. My resection was half my colon (to my ileum valve) and 12 of intestines.?So malabsorptions issues happen to me when I am flaring or getting ready to. I just had my second surgery and so far I am in a remission of sorts though this past week or so had a little set back that I am dealing with due to stress. ?Just remember that something you react to badly once you may not react the same way the next time so I was always told to reintroduce it a month or so again to see if it is a consistent reaction. ?After my surgery this time, I have to go through the whole thing again as my reaction to stuff has again changed. You will find this happens too. ?I think diet is the hardest part to learn after getting the proper meds to work. My findings are much in line with those of your DR. ?When first diagnosed my GI lady gave me a list of things to avoid and I have even been able to tolerate them, sweet corn, celery, pop corn, and a cool juicy sweet navel orange. ?I have since become diabetic and I had?an attack of ?multiple pulmonary emboli. ?The?diabetic in me does well with a high protein, low carbs?diet bulked up with things like green beans, celery, cucumbers etc. ?The dietician says that my blood glucose readings ?are among the lowest that she has ever read. ?Vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, ?lettuce, etc which are good for my diabetes ?and Probably bad for my Crohn?s will negate the effect of the blood thinners that I take to prevent another pulmonary embolism or even worse a heart attack or a stroke (the only difference between the three is where the clots end up, they generally start in the legs). What I am trying to say is that we are each different and the ultimate solution is probably a combination of modern pharmacology, a sensible diet avoiding extremes, and well thought out supplements because depending on where the Crohn?s is active certain nutrients may not be digested and/or absorbed normally. ?My GI lady has helped me with all three. ?I dread the day when she retires even though it is probably many years down the road. ?On days when I have been feeling bad she has come over and given me a hug. ?The medicinal value of a hug can not be under estimated. To say that diet has nothing to do with CD is nonsense. I should think that most, if not all, posters here know that there are foodstuffs that they should avoid. Do a Google search for the following combinations: Crohn's, aluminosilicate(s), Titanium Dioxide and Dr Powell. These are things to definitely cut out of your diet. I did, and it did me no end of good.