Has anyone had any success with Aloe Vera? I was told by my chiropractor that drinking two ounces twice a day would be very healing for my gut. I am also doing a tablespoon of Chia seeds once a day. I can hardly stand to swallow those gelatinous things! It just about makes me gag.
After awhile there are so many treatments, foods to avoid/foods to eat that it is hard to know which is helping and which is counterproductive.
Aloe Vera
Moderators: Rosie, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Jane,
The supplements and treatments that chiropractors offer are generic recommendations for general digestive system problems, and they are helpful in some cases. Unfortunately, they are not specific for MC, and chiropractors in general have practically a zero knowledge of any of the details of MC. Many members here have spent many dollars on various treatments of that sort, with very limited success, for the most part. The key to remission for MC is to exclude all food sensitivities from the diet, learn how to relieve stress, and give the gut time to heal. Any other treatments may offer minor "feelgood" improvements, but they are not essential to recovery.
As Doug said, aloe shouldn't hurt you, but it's not going to cure your MC. That's for sure.
Tex
The supplements and treatments that chiropractors offer are generic recommendations for general digestive system problems, and they are helpful in some cases. Unfortunately, they are not specific for MC, and chiropractors in general have practically a zero knowledge of any of the details of MC. Many members here have spent many dollars on various treatments of that sort, with very limited success, for the most part. The key to remission for MC is to exclude all food sensitivities from the diet, learn how to relieve stress, and give the gut time to heal. Any other treatments may offer minor "feelgood" improvements, but they are not essential to recovery.
You have accurately summed up the situation. The only way to tell what is helping and what is not, is to try things one at a time. Many naturopaths and chiropractors flood the patient with so many supplements and assorted treatments that there is absolutely no way to tell which ones might be helping, and which ones are making the situation worse (and I can guarantee that some of them will indeed make the situation worse). That's counterproductive, and it just delays recovery.Jane wrote:After awhile there are so many treatments, foods to avoid/foods to eat that it is hard to know which is helping and which is counterproductive.
As Doug said, aloe shouldn't hurt you, but it's not going to cure your MC. That's for sure.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Yes, I did not expect that it would be a cure-all--just wondered if it would do anything positive and certainly did not want to do it if someone had had negative effects from it. I don't see that it has done anything for me one way or the other. Hate to spend money on needless things.
I DO need to share a funny story that happened when I was in the health food store to purchase the aloe vera a few weeks ago. I saw another customer looking at some kind of digestive enzyme and I asked him if he'd had any experience with it? Three minutes into his 45-minute speech on "digestive health" I regretted saying a word. He expounded on the merits of coffee enemas. (I don't drink coffee and don't plan on pouring it into any other orifice!) He told me about the hundreds of books he had in his home on digestive health and that he "was no doctor, but he knew his digestive health". I knew we were near a cliff when he told me repeatedly that he "was purely innocent and if I came to his house, he just wanted to show me his books". Well, I my radar was already on high alert and it went into a "Code red"---when someone has to tell you that his/her motives are innocent, they usually aren't. AAAARRRGGGHHH! My husband says that he thinks I have a stamp on my forehead that says, "You can talk to me!" that only deranged people can see and they are attracted to me immediately. Not sure about that, but it does seem that I have some of the strangest conversations...
I DO need to share a funny story that happened when I was in the health food store to purchase the aloe vera a few weeks ago. I saw another customer looking at some kind of digestive enzyme and I asked him if he'd had any experience with it? Three minutes into his 45-minute speech on "digestive health" I regretted saying a word. He expounded on the merits of coffee enemas. (I don't drink coffee and don't plan on pouring it into any other orifice!) He told me about the hundreds of books he had in his home on digestive health and that he "was no doctor, but he knew his digestive health". I knew we were near a cliff when he told me repeatedly that he "was purely innocent and if I came to his house, he just wanted to show me his books". Well, I my radar was already on high alert and it went into a "Code red"---when someone has to tell you that his/her motives are innocent, they usually aren't. AAAARRRGGGHHH! My husband says that he thinks I have a stamp on my forehead that says, "You can talk to me!" that only deranged people can see and they are attracted to me immediately. Not sure about that, but it does seem that I have some of the strangest conversations...
Jane
Diagnosed with Lymphocytic Colitis 12/19/12
"When it gets dark enough,you can see the stars."
Charles A. Beard
Diagnosed with Lymphocytic Colitis 12/19/12
"When it gets dark enough,you can see the stars."
Charles A. Beard
That was quite an interesting experience.I don't claim to be an authority on digestive health, but I really don't see any point in wasting perfectly good coffee that way.
Speaking of funny stories. Back when I was recovering, someone brought up the advantages of using a digestive enzyme on the board (it may have been on the board that preceded this one, pre-2004). It sounded like a good idea to me, so I bought an expensive bottle that listed all sorts of awesome enzymes that made me think that they would surely enable me to digest nails and rocks, if necessary.
I took the first one the next morning, just before I started breakfast. In less than an hour, I could tell that I had made a bad mistake, 
and after another hour, I was vomiting up profuse amounts of bitter green slime. 
At least that made me feel better. For a while. Within 2 hours I was vomiting again.
By the third or 4th round, I was down to dry heaves, because there was no way that I was going to eat or drink anything, as long as I felt as rough as a cob, so my stomach was empty. By nightfall, the vomiting finally stopped, and by the afternoon of the second day, I was able to eat a little chicken soup. By the 4th day, I was able to eat solid food again, though there was still a burning sensation in my stomach that took the rest of the week to fade away. Needless to say, I've never been interested in trying any digestive enzymes since then. I figure I'm mighty lucky that I only took one, or I might have had a bad reaction. We live and learn.Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.