7 mos remission, followed by a flare from GAPS diet!!!

[Marie]

Hi all,

It's been a very long time since I've touched base on here because I had regained my life (and normans!). After 4 years of D, growing worse and more frequent in my Feb.-Nov. 2011 pregnancy (I was on tons of antibiotics for recurrent UTIS during pregnancy). My remission started in Aug. 2012 with 9mg Entocort. Sept. I weaned to 6mg. and Oct. down to 3mg. In Nov. I was off the Entocort and started Nystatin because I had candida. I was living again, although strictly watching my diet, I was not thinking about trips to the toilet. I was avoiding all sugar and following a Candida diet...eating mainly meat/fish/veggies/millet/sunflower butter.

My Functional Integrated Health Care Practitioner knew that I still had a leaky gut because after so many years of D I had developed numerous food intolerances. Per my physician's request to expedite the healing on my gut, I hired a GAPS diet practitioner in March 2013 (even though I was having normans). And WHAM that's when my D returned with a vengeance...from Day 1 of my new diet. For those unfamiliar with GAPS, the intro diet is very strict and limited. I was only eating chicken/meat broths and bone broths (encouraged that the more animal fat I consumed the quicker I'd heal...I was literally eating pure fat), cooked in broths: celery root, parsley root, carrots, and onions, drank some fermented sauerkraut juice and homemade yoghurt. I'm frustrated that I ended up back at square one. I'm convinced that the animal fats were too hard on my system.

So here I am now...reminded that this illness can rear its' ugly head at the least expected times. I'm humbled and saddened by that. I want to get back into remission but without Entocort. I don't care for the side effects of steroids on my adrenals. I'm currently taking colostrum, bentonite, Omega 3s, Primrose Oil, Adrenal sublingual, L-Glutamine, GI Microbics. I have been using an infrared sauna to detox. I am going to a NAET therapist this week to see if they can help. My physician says that my stool culture indicates that I'm having an allergic response because of presence of charcot-leyden crystals. I know nothing about those?!! Before my 1st remission I was having D 8-10x/day. Now it's like 3x/day...I'm scared once again to eat anything.

I pray for clear answers for me and everyone else out there dealing with this miserable condition. Thanks for any thoughts or just a shoulder to lean on!

[Leah]

So sorry to hear that you have relapsed Marie. After reading what you added back in, I would guess it was the yogurt that did you in... maybe the fermented sauerkraut juice didn't help either. If I were you, I'd go back to eating meat/fish/cooked veggies/millet/ and sun butter again since it seemed to work for you. Give it time. Hopefully , this will straighten itself out soon. If not, you might want to try Pepto Bismul for a little while to help you along.
Heal fast and let us know how you are doing.
Leah

[tex]

Hi Marie,

I'm sorry to hear that you're having problems again, but I agree with Leah. You have dairy listed in your profile as a food sensitivity. Why would you intentionally eat it? Yogurt is loaded with casein.

I'm convinced that the animal fats were too hard on my system.

You're probably correct about all the fat in that diet you tried — fat is a lubricant, and enough of it will cause D. I don't understand the point of such a diet. If you eat nothing but lean meat, then a certain amount of animal fat in the diet is essential in order to prevent the life-threatening condition known as rabbit starvation, but overdoing the fat is not helpful (and that goes double for someone with MC). Any medical "expert" who would recommend such a high-fat diet for a patient who has MC, doesn't understand how to treat the disease.

Concerning the presence of Charcot-Leyden crystals in your stool samples, if a doctor is going to use such a test, then he or she needs to know what he or she is doing, because those crystals are nothing more than the expired remains of eosinophils (white blood cells), and there are many reasons why they might be there. In addition to being a marker of allergic reactions, elevated eosinophil numbers can also be found in cases with drug-induced MC reactions. From page 18 of my book, for example:

Certain clues to the origin of the disease can sometimes be detected during an examination. For example, research has shown that whenever the eosinophil count is significantly higher in the left-side colon than in the right-side colon, drug-induced colitis may be indicated.3

Here's the reference (3) noted in that quote:

Colonic Left-side Increase of Eosinophils: A Clue to Drug-related Colitis in Adults

IOW, drug-induced MC will result in an elevated eosinophil count in the sigmoid colon, which will surely cause Charcot-Leyden crystals in a stool sample. You are taking so many medications/supplements, that it's impossible to say which one (or ones) might be causing a reaction, but if I were in your shoes, I would eliminate all of them (in addition to the yogurt) to see if that resolves the problem, and if it does, then add them back in, one-at-a-time (no faster than one every 3 days) in order to isolate any that might cause problems. But there is a chance that the Charcot-Leyden crystals are there because not only are you sensitive to casein, but you may also be allergic to it.

In general, we don't control MC by adding beaucoups of supplements/drugs to our diet — we control MC by minimizing all the junk in our diet. The simpler the diet, the easier it is to maintain remission. It's that simple. At the very least, while you are in a flare, you should make your diet as simple as possible, in order to recover as quickly as possible. There's plenty of time to add all that stuff back in after you are in remission, if you want to do so.

Tex

[JFR]

I agree with Tex and Leah, eliminate the yogurt and the sauerkraut juice. I had been eating small amounts of sauerkraut and when I finished the jar I drank the sauerkraut juice. That triggered D pretty quickly although the sauerkraut hadn't bothered me. I won't be doing that again. I used to eat homemade yogurt every day until I got my Enterolab results and saw that dairy was a problem. I haven't had any for a year even though I love the stuff. The colostrum is suspect too because it is a milk product. I simply don't trust any dietician/nutritionist. All dietary regimen's need to be tailored to individual requirements and it certainly doesn't sound like yours was. The best dietary advice that I have ever got came from this forum. Keep it simple works for me when things go south.

Jean

[Gabes-Apg]

Maree
animal fats wont heal the leaky gut - gelatin will help. You can have gelatin without consuming high levels of animal fat.

I make my own bone broth/stock. and use this to cook my veges, make stews etc.

given that so many of us react to ingredients like onion - I would keep the meals with minimal ingredients 3 - 4.

also be aware that depending on where you purchase your root vegetables, and if they are organic or not, commercial items are sprayed with soy oil to keep the skin looking fresh during transportation/display on the shelf.
if you react to soy, this may cause you D issues

[Marie]

Thanks guys~ I appreciate your thoughts.

I do agree that I shouldn't have eaten the 24hr homemade, fermented yogurt. The fermentation process is supposed to make it lactose-free, still some casein though. I didn't eat it until Day 7 of the Diet, I was already experiencing D by Day 1. That's why I really think it was the enormous amount of animal fat that did me in. I was reluctant to attempt the yogurt (I even verbalized that to the GAPS dietician), but she encouraged me that it will help my stools form. I only ate two tablespoons yogurt/day to reinoculate good bacteria. I won't be trying that again! I immediately stopped the yogurt after a week.

I'm not a fan of taking tons of supplements. I was never on so many until my functional med. physician recommended them. I was taking them prior to my flare without any issues. I do value my practitioner; he's brighter than any doctor I have ever met and really wants to help resolve my issues from the root (not masking symptoms). I will consider eliminating some supplements to see if that helps. I am keeping my diet extremely simple: gelatinous meat/bone broths- discarding excess animal fat, soft fleshy meat (chicken, beef, fish), rice, and pureed veggies (if any). I 100% believe diet plays a key role because my flare started as soon as I changed my diet.

Gabes- I noticed, in a different thread, that you take colostrum. Have you had a good experience with it?

Wishing you all a happy day!

[brandy]

Hi Marie--Brandy here.

Sorry to "see you" again but I guess it is the nature of this disease. Have you tried an antihistamine? I find eliminating all supplements, going back to my safe foods will generally kick me out of a flare. If that doesn't work I've added Claritin ready tabs to the mix and that will kick me out of a flare. Some folks use zyrtec (get the dairy free one--I think it is the gel cap) or allegra.

It's nice to see your husband's support! Brandy

[Marie]

Hi Brandy,

Yes, here I am again...stupid colitis! Fortunately, I feel much more educated, aware, and in control of the disease versus the disease being in control of me this time around. I've eliminated any questionable foods, started Pepto today and took a Claritin today. My functional integrative physician (he's a Godsend!) put me on HistDAO because he suspects histamine issues. I haven't hadn't the "urgency" all day to run to the bathroom so that's already a good sign! This flare has been mild but nonetheless having a flare (even if it's D just 1-3x/day) is annoying. The normans shall return.

My husband is a saint.


Hope you are well and thanks for the antihistamine tips!

[Gabes-Apg]

Marie
yes i did use colostrum and had very good results with it.

in line with other discussion on other threads about fecal transplants /gut flora / bacteria.

the health of our digestion starts at the mouth and ends at the anus. there is no point doing a heap of supplements or treatments on one or two sections of the body, we have to work on the whole lot.

my focus for the past 3 years has been to eliminate /fix /heal the problem areas from top to bottom.

- i have had 3 nasty molers removed that were causing high bacteria in my mouth
- i use zinc to manage the bacteria levels of my mouth - especially before eating.
- keep the hiataus hernia and acid at the right levels for good digestion
- i was using BIA treatments at the same time as the colostrum supplement to remove pathogens etc that were lodged in the vilii of the gut
- i have used a product called 'pine crush' to remove the bacteria cells that have poly saccarides around them that make them immune to any antiobiotic treatment or high level of probiotic
- i have focussed on a low inflamation, low histamine gut healing eating plan for over 3 years.
- i have added in about 3 ingredients in the past 12 months. so keep the eating plan basic, minimal etc.

there are a few studies about pro-biotics and my interpretation and based on the experience of people on this forum, they will only work when the gut is well healed, minimal inflammation.

dont rush any of this. it is 2 year project.
rush any of the steps processes then you are back to the starting point.
MC is different to other IBD's.