the ups and downs of MC

jessica329 · Post by **jessica329** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 8:34 am

Hi y'all,

I have not posted in some time because I am in the last leg of graduate school, but I wanted to start posting again and thought I would start with an update. My journey began in August 2012 with 8-10 hours a day of D (and nausea, dry heaving, stomach pain and serious fatigue). After a colonoscopy, I was diagnosed the first week of October 2012 and went on Entocort for 2 months followed by Lialda (mesalamine) from Jan 2013-June 9, 2013 (as well as a GF, DF diet). I had successful remission being on Lialda 1 pill everyday but had a medium flare about once a month when I dropped to 1 pill 3x a week. I continued remission until this week....MC is back! However, because I am now 7 weeks 2 days pregnant (didn't find out until I was 6 weeks pregnant) my GI and I have decided to go back on Lialda. Since there is undigested food in my D, I am concerned about malabsorption/malnutrition. MC is definitely a lifelong struggle and I feel unbelievably grateful to have this forum. I immediately searched for all posts regarding pregnancy when my flare started. I will keep everyone updated.

Thanks for listening,

Jessica

Post by **tex** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 8:57 am

Hi Jessica,

Sorry to see that you're still having symptoms. Have you carefully checked your diet to make sure that there are no possible sources of cross-contamination? For example, if you have a bag of wheat flour in your house/apartment, that pretty much guarantees a risk of gluten cross-contamination. Have you tried avoiding all traces of soy?

Be sure that your doctor is well aware of the malabsorption problem that accompanies MC, because you will want to supplement with the proper vitamins, especially vitamin D, in order to do everything you can to prevent a risk of immune system issues for the baby. IMO, the availability of sufficient vitamin D is extremely important to the healthy development of the fetus. Please be aware that virtually all doctors tend to grossly underestimate the amount of vitamin D needed to maintain a healthy blood level of vitamin D. And IBDs (including MC) tend to deplete the body's supply of vitamin D). As a result, most people who have MC (or any other IBD) are usually low on vitamin D, and that can have adverse long-term effects on both the mother and the developing fetus.

Thanks for the update.

Tex

jessica329 · Post by **jessica329** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 9:09 am

Thanks for the quick response Tex! I have my next OBGYN appointment on the 23rd. They did a ton of tests taking 6 vials of blood. Right now I'm on a prenatal vitamin (that is gluten-, lactose-, iodine-, sugar-free). I know we'll be discussing if any additional supplements will be needed based on my results at my appointment. For now, their office was flooded and they can't access records/results.

I will take a closer look at soy and cross-contamination.

Post by **tex** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 2:46 pm

Jessica wrote:For now, their office was flooded and they can't access records/results.

That's a real bummer — to say the least.

Tex

Leah · Post by **Leah** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 3:28 pm

Congratulations on your pregnancy! I was going to say that you may want to look into soy. Have you ever done the Enterolab tests? It may be a good way to know for sure what you should be eating to ensure that you don't continue on the D path. Being pregnant makes it that much more important that you are able to absorb nutrients.

Leah

Marie · Post by **Marie** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 11:24 pm

Hi Jessica,

First of all, congratulations on the pregnancy!!! Sencondly, I'm so sorry you're dealing with a flare while pregnant. It's late and I was about to go to bed but I just read this post and had to respond because I can relate. I had MC from day 1 of conception/pregnancy with my son. I hadn't yet been Dx'd with MC so I thought it was my celiac disease (being slow to respond to my gluten free diet). The pregnancy was not easy due to the chronic D, but keep in mind I was eating foods I was reacting to. I didn't know about MC or Enterolab testing. You definitely have knowledge on your side. My OB group, PCP, and GI (at the time) didn't know what to do for me so they prescribed Lomotil. I was taking it like candy. I was urged by my OB nurses to take a PPI (nexium) and I obeyed...big mistake, please don't do that. I had D the entire time, but any time I even slightly felt hungry I ate so that I could nourish the baby as much as possible. I never changed my diet, aside from being GF. It wasn't even suggested to me to do so. I gained 50+ pounds. The doctors kept reminding me that the baby will take what he/she needs from the mother, regardless of what I had/needed for my own nourishment. That comforted me because at least the baby got what he needed to grow. My mom and I prayed hard and I give God all the glory that I had a strong, healthy, 7 lb 3 oz, baby boy. I know how stressful being pregnant with MC is so please don't hesitate to email me anytime. You will be just fine, especially since you know what is going on. I was completely clueless. What I wish I had known: take probiotics and take sublingual vitamins like folic & B12 (if liquid/tablet sublingual is an option, you're likely to absorb more nutrients that way).

All my best!
Marie

jessica329 · Post by **jessica329** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 11:21 am

I am happy

and relieved to report that my D has subsided. Currently on Lialda (2 pills in the am). I'm calling the GI to see if he wants to continue on 2 or go down to 1 pill a day. I'm also eating only my safe foods. I dropped my summer grad courses my stress level has gone way down.

Leah · Post by **Leah** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 12:43 pm

Good news!

Zizzle · Post by **Zizzle** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 1:03 pm

Congrats on the pregnancy! Another tip - make sure the folic acid in your prenatal vitamin is folinic acid or methylfolate - it's more bioavailable, and less likely to cause problems if you happen to carry a MTHFR mutation. Sulfur and cholesterol containing foods like meat and eggs are also very important in pregnancy. So many things I wish I knew when I was pregnant!! And get lots of sun for Vitamin D (and a D3 supplement) as Tex suggested.

Post by **tex** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 3:49 pm

Jessica wrote: I dropped my summer grad courses my stress level has gone way down.

That's certainly good news that you're doing much better. It's very likely that the reduction in stress is playing a big part in that improvement.

I hope you continue to recover. Thanks for the update.

Tex

Marie · Post by **Marie** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 4:33 pm

Congrats, that is awesome news!

Gloria · Post by **Gloria** » Thu Jul 11, 2013 9:15 pm

Fantastic news! Congratulations on being pregnant.

Gloria

jessica329 · Post by **jessica329** » Mon Sep 02, 2013 9:54 am

Hi everyone. I wanted to update. Since I last posted my blood work came back excellent. I got a handle on the MC and was doing well until....This past Thursday I was at the vet with my dog (he's been sick and it turned out to be whipworm). I was talking to the vet and all of a sudden got VERY dizzy and needed to sit down immediately. Long story short, my OB said I need to lay off the carbs (rice, potatoes, GF toast, etc) because it causes blood sugar spikes and crashes during pregnancy. So I tried a new breakfast and have been in a flare for the last 2 days. I'm going back to my safe way of eating but will try to add more protein. My breakfast is usually 2 GF Van's Waffles slathered with peanut butter and a banana.

My question to you: what do you eat for breakfast? How do you get in safe proteins and is eating heavy on the carbs necessarily bad? Prior to the pregnancy I was successful with my diet and have a good BMI/weight.

Thanks everyone!

P.S. I apologize for being away from the forum for some time. I had a fall and was recovering from a nasty bruise on my lower back and butt.

JLH · Post by **JLH** » Mon Sep 02, 2013 10:00 am

I think Van's waffles have soy. I had to give them up years ago.

Post by **tex** » Mon Sep 02, 2013 1:16 pm

Hi Jessica,

Sorry about the fall and the MC flare. I eat bacon and eggs most mornings. Despite all the misinformation doled out by the USDA and the American Medical Association, recent research reveals that eggs and bacon (including bacon fat) are some of the healthiest things we can eat. (We've had a few discussions about this in the past).

Regardless of what some misinformed doctors claim, the cholesterol in food does not translate into higher cholesterol levels in the body. Our body produces whatever level of cholesterol it feels it needs in order to supply all of it's vital functions. If you want to add a few carbs though, you can do what I do, and add a couple of corn tortillas. In fact, I usually put a fried egg and a couple of slices of bacon on a lightly-toasted tortilla, and fold it together to make sort of a wrap-around. I eat 2 of them, but if you are eating lighter, you might get by with 1. Some members here use uncured bacon, if they are uncomfortable about the nitrates in cured bacon.

I too gave up Van's waffles years ago, because of the soy. About once a week I'll eat pancakes and bacon, if I want something different. I use King Arthur Pancake Mix, since it's soy-free. I'm not sensitive to soy, I just don't consider soybeans to be suitable for human consumption. I grew up on a farm (and I still live on a working farm). Until the big push by the lobbyists working for the American Soybean Association (back in the 1970s and '80s), soybeans were animal feed, except in Japan (but Japan grows different soybeans than we do).

IMO, soy is primarily responsible for the shift to much earlier puberty onset in girls these days, and the time frame for this change coincides with the huge surge in soybean use in human food. If soybeans can cause early puberty, then they almost surely also promote additional hormonal issues later in life.

King Arthur Pancake Mix does contain xanthan gum and tapioca flour, which some members here can't tolerate, but it works fine for me. Of course it can also be used to make waffles.

Regarding the blood sugar excursions, simply adding more protein to your diet (or substituting protein for some of the carbs) should help to smooth things out. And higher protein intake is very beneficial for helping to heal the damage in our intestines, that has been caused by our MC. And last but certainly not least, protein is very important for the proper development of the fetus you are carrying, especially brain cells. Since your body will be using more protein than normal for the purpose of healing your gut, you can't afford to take any chances on inadequate protein levels.

When discussing the value/disadvantages of carbs, the source of the carbs is important. In general, carbs from grains are not particularly good for us, while carbs in vegetables are. The carbs in most fruits are healthy, but all the sugars, especially fructose, tend to offset the benefits. The bottom line is that eating the right kind of carbs is not necessarily bad, but eating more protein and healthy fats is better.

At least that's my opinion, FWIW.

Tex