Absorb Plus, maltodextrin, whey, fats, fiber, liquid vit's,

[oddrhythm]

My Diet: mostly low FODMAP paleo, but with jasmine rice, and more recently corn and cheese :-) (reason below).
History: loose stools and non-ulcerative colitis. Immune deficiency (very low on all immunoglobulins, and get IV IgG monthly). No blood, periodic cramps, no rashes or allergy like responses to foods. Used to be on budesonide, weaned off that onto Pepto and immodium, which helped a LOT. But want to reduce risk of bismuth toxicity...and get to the source of the problem.

My symptoms: very loose/watery stools, 3-6xday, plus getting up at night sometimes 1-2 times.
The only thing that recently improved stool and cut down on frequency was, oddly enough, Trader Joes cheese and green chile tomales made from corn. I tried these because in the past, when my symptoms were fairly normal, they seemed to give even more formed stools. I also didn't take all my supplements that morning (probiotics, vit's, colostrum, saccho boulardi, etc.). I ate 2 tomales for breakfast and then 2 more for lunch. Felt fine and had more formed stool later in day.
So I'm doubting a corn or casein sensitivity, but haven't had MRT yet.

Questions:
1. Protein: Jini Patel's Absorb Plus is pretty compelling, but expensive. I tried creating my own 'elemental' drink using only Optimum Nutrition's hydrolyzed whey (lactose free, but contains Sucralose and Acesulfame Potassium), pure maltodextrin (from corn) and MCT oil, but those seemed to cause more D...even though I drank them slowly as to avoid osmotic effect. I heard that many MC people have whey sensitivity, but it's suppose to be one of the best and easiest to digest. What is a good alternative to whey for making shakes? Hemp?

2. Carbs: Is there an alternative to maltodextrin for smoothies, to get more carbs/calories. I know maltodextrin is a no-no for SCD and FODMAP, but it's in elemental drinks for a reason, which have a numerous studies showing their effectiveness. Fructose seems to bother me, so I can't load up on fruit for carbs.

3. Fats: Do most MC people do better on low fat diet? Paleo pushes fat, but not sure if I am absorbing them. I've been adding MCT oil, and Udo's oil (for anti-inflammatory effect) to smoothies, and butter from grass fed cows to steamed veges. Sometimes drinking melted butter. Thinking I'm adding in too much (osmotic effect?), but I need calories.

4. Fiber: Any consensus on fiber (low,hi?, or type), and products like Metacleanse for stopping D. Thinking of trying MetaCleanse.

5. Liquid vit's: Are liquid vit's tolerated better than pills, by MC folks in general?

Many, many thanks to Tex and everyone here.
Mike

[Gabes-Apg]

Mike

I have some suggestions to your questions

1. I react to Gluten/Dairy/Soy - I use a GMO free/organic rice protein powder.
per serve it has
25.8g protein
4.1 Carb
<0.32g Sugar
it also has some of the essential amino acids -

buying the 1kg tub at $82 seems expensive BUT it lasts me about 4 weeks having a couple of serves a day
so that works out at $3 per day - way cheaper than any other good quality organic MC friendly protein source
(fresh Salmon is about $6 per serve, organic GMO free chook is about $8 per serve )

I mix it with Rice Milk, some magnesium and calcium powder and add some Mesquite powder, which is high protein with mineral profile
Try to look at the per day/or per meal cost.


2. cant help with this one, as i am trying to lose weight....

3. keep in mind that the body needs a minimal amount of good fat to have effective digestion. I found following my MC friendly food plan, i was low on fat and had to add some
things like coconut oil or rice bran oil are good for MC, high in nutrients (both have anti-inflammatory properties)

4. Most Mc'ers do not react well to fibre. especially course type fibre. I do have issues with C sometimes, so i have things like a peeled apple. our bodies can be pretty sensitive so small amounts gradually work best

5. It depends on the liquid vitamins. IMO Sublingual liquids are better than tablets and liquid vitamins. If the gut is inflammed you will maybe absorb a bit more from the liquid than tablet. Albeit, absorption of any nutrient (supplement or food) is reliant on cell health. Your body needs the right levels of things like Vit D, Magnesium, Calcium in the body to absorb nutrients through the gut

[tex]

Hi Mike,

Regarding question #2, which Gabes skipped, I believe that the main reason why maltodextrin is used in so many foods (including elemental drinks), is not so much because of any nutritional value, but because it's a good thickener, and filler, it's easy to digest, and it's relatively inexpensive. It can even be used as a binding agent, and it's in some pharmaceutical products, for that reason.

I realize that coconut milk is a no-no for a low FODMAP diet, but back when I was making smoothies during my recovery, I used coconut milk as a major ingredient. It's loaded with calories, and makes delicious smoothies.

And yes, hempmilk can be used as a cow's milk substitute. I used it for a while, and I really like it's flavor, but I found that it caused me to have slight to moderate bloating, so I switched to almond milk.

Tex

[oddrhythm]

Thank you both Gabes & Tex,

re: Rice protein:
I'm actually picking up some today actually, Sun Warrior brand.

re: Magnesium/Calcium powder:
Gabes, what is the main reason you add this powder? I know magnesium can cause D, so I'm thinking of getting the transdermal or nano-sized magnesium for instant absorption. I'm waiting for a dexa scan result (prednisone for years before budesonide) to see if I need to boost calcium.

re: Mesquite powder:
I never heard of it before. Do you use it for the taste mostly? I just checked it out from "navitasnaturals.com" and it seems to contain mainly fructose and fiber, which might be a problem for me, depending on the amount. It seems mostly just carbs/sugars. Curious what benefit you get from it.

re: Coconut milk:
Yes Tex, I would love to use it, even the coconut cream. I think fructose is a problem for me though, so I need to test it, and the amounts I might be able to tolerate. The cream may have less fructose, but when I've searched for the difference in fructose between cream and milk, I haven't found anything.[/quote]

[Gabes-Apg]

as i dont ingest any diary, i need to supplement my calcium. to try and replicate calcium absorbtion via foods, i have small amounts throughout the day of different types of calcium

with my gastric reflux issues, my body uses alot of magnesium, if i dont supplement the magnesium i get leg cramps as the digestion 'sucks' the magnesium from the muscles.

i went with the mesquite powder partly for taste mostly to increase protein, magensium and calcium.
in my case i tend to have more C than D, so having a small amount of fibre that also gives me protein, magnesium and calcium works well.

I would use coconut milk if i could get it! the brand i was using (from the USA) is not available in Aus anymore. I liked it because it is naturally high in magnesium.
the best option available is GMO free organic rice milk. I do add some coconut water to it to try and up the magnesium.

Mike, if we were ingesting all or most of our nutrients from foods, things like magnesium and calcium come in different forms within the various foods. What i try to do with the shakes and supplements is replicate that.

Our bodies and especially our digestion is a very delicate chemistry experiment, too much of one thing can put the whole thing out of balance.

What Is Calcium Citrate?

Calcium citrate is a form of calcium used in some calcium supplements. It is particularly useful for people with low stomach acid, such as many elderly people or people who take acid-reducing medications, since other forms of calcium need an acidic

What Is Calcium Carbonate?

Calcium carbonate supplements are among the most popular dietary supplements available. It is used as an antacid and as a calcium supplement. Among the various different types of calcium supplements, calcium carbonate is the least expensive.

based on this, if you only have one type of calcium, then the stomach acid would be too high or too low. depending on your stomach acid levels intaking a 60/40 or 70/30 type balance keeps things tikety boo.

About 25 mmol of calcium enters the body in a normal diet. Of this, about 40% (10 mmol) is absorbed in small intestine, and 5 mmol leaves the body in feces, netting 5 mmol of calcium a day.

Calcium is absorbed across the intestinal brush border membrane, passing through ion channels such as TRPV6. Calbindin is a vitamin D-dependent calcium-binding protein inside intestinal epithelial cells which functions together with TRPV6 and calcium pumps (PMCA1) in the basal membrane to actively transport calcium into the body. The active transport occurs primarily in the duodenum when calcium intake is low, and passive paracellular diffusion occurs in the ileum and jejunum, independent of Vitamin D, when calcium intake is high

[CathyMe.]

Thank you both Gabes & Tex,

re: Rice protein:
I'm actually picking up some today actually, Sun Warrior brand.

I too use a protein powder to make a green smoothie every evening. I can't do the Sun Warrior (just a caution)...I think it may have casein in it or whey as it made my WD much worse. I tried emailing customer service but have not heard back from them. I do much better on the Vega Sport product (crazy expensive but you can find a good price on Amazon). I too use coconut milk in my smoothies and coconut oil to cook veggies in. I also have been making bone broth with turkey bones and cooking my veggies in 1/2 cup of that several times a week. Very yummy.