Hey guys!
So I’m new and this is only my second post. I have tried to read through the majority of the posts and I have questions regarding labs. After reading some of your input, I have started taking vit D 5000 units twice daily and magnesium 400 once daily. Thoughts? I already know I’m low in vitamin D as it was last year and I did the “high dose” treatment plus I live in North Dakota... I will admit I have never had my magnesium level drawn. I am curious now though as my fatigue has been an issue for years... my providers always link it to depression but in hindsight I bet it had been my magnesium level. I literally just started gluten free yesterday just to give it a shot. I have read a lot of you have done the emterolab testing... is this something pretty legit? As a lot of you on here, I had all my stool tests come back negative besides blood was detected which is why I got the colonoscopy and was then diagnosed with MC. As far as labs, my vit D was low and my celiac panel was negative. Would any of you recommend getting a CRP or sed rate drawn? Any and all recommendations are appreciated.
Brooke
Newbie. What labs??
Moderators: Rosie, Stanz, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Ordered enterolab
Ok well I went ahead and ordered the enterolab A1 and C1 so hopefully I get answers...
Hi Brooke,
Sorry, I didn't have time to respond yesterday, I had too much going on.
Those test panels are the best choices. After you recover, you will (like most of us) probably consider that cost to be the best money you ever spent on your health. It will make selecting foods for your recovery diet much, much easier. Give the diet adequate time to do its job — it works, but it takes time to stop the inflammation and heal the intestines. 100 % compliance (absolutely no cheating) is required because most of us produce antibodies to even trace amounts of certain foods.
IBDs (including MC) deplete vitamin D and magnesium so virtually all of us have to take those supplements.
Here's why the celiac tests are worthless for our purposes:
MC is usually not caused by food sensitivities, but food sensitivities tend to develop after the disease begins. Research shows that when the genes that predispose to microscopic colitis are triggered, the genes that predispose to gluten sensitivity are also triggered. Gluten sensitivity causes increased intestinal permeability (also known as "leaky gut") and this allows partially-digested peptides from certain foods to enter the bloodstream, which provokes an immune system response (because those peptides are obviously not supposed to be in the blood). The immune system then begins to react to certain proteins in those foods every time they are eaten. This is why some of the foods that we have been eating for most of our life can suddenly begin to cause chronic inflammation by provoking our immune system to produce antibodies against them.
Many, many doctors have mistakenly informed many, many MC patients that they are not sensitive to gluten based on a negative celiac test result. That simply is not true, because doctors have no way to officially diagnose non-celiac gluten sensitivity. A positive celiac test result can confirm gluten sensitivity, but a negative celiac test result cannot rule out gluten sensitivity. Many doctors mistakenly believe that a negative celic blood test result rules out gluten sensitivity, but there is absolutely no medical justification for making that assumption, it's simply incorrect. Additionally, there is no medically-approved test for detecting non-celiac gluten sensitivity, which is the type that most of us have.
Your SED rate may or may not be low, but it's pretty much irrelevant for this disease.
Sounds like you're off to a good start on your recovery journey.
Tex
Sorry, I didn't have time to respond yesterday, I had too much going on.
Those test panels are the best choices. After you recover, you will (like most of us) probably consider that cost to be the best money you ever spent on your health. It will make selecting foods for your recovery diet much, much easier. Give the diet adequate time to do its job — it works, but it takes time to stop the inflammation and heal the intestines. 100 % compliance (absolutely no cheating) is required because most of us produce antibodies to even trace amounts of certain foods.
IBDs (including MC) deplete vitamin D and magnesium so virtually all of us have to take those supplements.
Here's why the celiac tests are worthless for our purposes:
MC is usually not caused by food sensitivities, but food sensitivities tend to develop after the disease begins. Research shows that when the genes that predispose to microscopic colitis are triggered, the genes that predispose to gluten sensitivity are also triggered. Gluten sensitivity causes increased intestinal permeability (also known as "leaky gut") and this allows partially-digested peptides from certain foods to enter the bloodstream, which provokes an immune system response (because those peptides are obviously not supposed to be in the blood). The immune system then begins to react to certain proteins in those foods every time they are eaten. This is why some of the foods that we have been eating for most of our life can suddenly begin to cause chronic inflammation by provoking our immune system to produce antibodies against them.
Many, many doctors have mistakenly informed many, many MC patients that they are not sensitive to gluten based on a negative celiac test result. That simply is not true, because doctors have no way to officially diagnose non-celiac gluten sensitivity. A positive celiac test result can confirm gluten sensitivity, but a negative celiac test result cannot rule out gluten sensitivity. Many doctors mistakenly believe that a negative celic blood test result rules out gluten sensitivity, but there is absolutely no medical justification for making that assumption, it's simply incorrect. Additionally, there is no medically-approved test for detecting non-celiac gluten sensitivity, which is the type that most of us have.
Your SED rate may or may not be low, but it's pretty much irrelevant for this disease.
Sounds like you're off to a good start on your recovery journey.
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.
5,000 IU of vitamin D daily is a safe long-term dose. 10,000 IU of vitamin D daily is a fairly potent dose that we often use to treat reflux issues or severe vitamin D deficiency. After several months at that dose it will be prudent to check your serum vitamin D level to make sure that your level is not getting higher than you intended.
400 mg of magnesium is an appropriate dose for most of us.
SNRIs such as Cymbalta are known to trigger MC in some cases, especially after long-term use. Magnesium treats depression, so hopefully it will soon be able to replace the Cymbalta.
Tex
400 mg of magnesium is an appropriate dose for most of us.
SNRIs such as Cymbalta are known to trigger MC in some cases, especially after long-term use. Magnesium treats depression, so hopefully it will soon be able to replace the Cymbalta.
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.
Hi Brooke,
Do you know what your VitD level is right now?
We are all different in how long it could take for the VitD to build in our systems....Genes can be a factor we are not aware of hence taking it even longer to gain VitD in our bodies.
I was super low and it took a few years to even get it to 43.....this last year I decided I needed to get it within the range of 50-80 so I embarked on taking 10,000 VitD3 every day plus spreading throughout the day Elemental Magnesium 600-700mg (be it external-internal or both) for a strong 7 months.....at my next appt I tested at 83....I also have a Genetic VDR receptor that doesn't function as well as it should so my uptake of VitD is harder for my body to do. This is something I learned through the process of getting my DNA tested....
Cheers
Erica
Do you know what your VitD level is right now?
We are all different in how long it could take for the VitD to build in our systems....Genes can be a factor we are not aware of hence taking it even longer to gain VitD in our bodies.
I was super low and it took a few years to even get it to 43.....this last year I decided I needed to get it within the range of 50-80 so I embarked on taking 10,000 VitD3 every day plus spreading throughout the day Elemental Magnesium 600-700mg (be it external-internal or both) for a strong 7 months.....at my next appt I tested at 83....I also have a Genetic VDR receptor that doesn't function as well as it should so my uptake of VitD is harder for my body to do. This is something I learned through the process of getting my DNA tested....
Cheers
Erica
To Succeed you have to Believe in something with such a passion that it becomes a Reality - Anita Roddick
Dx LC April 2012 had symptoms since Aug 2007
Dx LC April 2012 had symptoms since Aug 2007
Thanks Tex and Erica. My appointment with my provider is next week so that is why I was questioning which labs I should get drawn. My vit D 6 months ago was 23. I for sure want to know both my vit D and magnesium levels. How long did it take the medicine to kick in as far as helping with the fatigue? Once again this evening I came home and took a two hour nap... it gets so sickening. What I wish for most is to get my energy back. It makes one feel as a completely different person. Is it common to have extreme diarrhea and cramps with bloating in relation to alcohol? I barely drink anymore with my friends or at dinner bc the way it makes me feel is so not worth it. I was just wondering if a lot of people suffer from this too with MC?
Brooke
Brooke
Hi Brooke,
We all have to be careful with alcohol because it causes leaky gut and the leaky gut is what causes the food sensitivities. After your intestines do some healing, you will be able to tolerate moderate amounts of alcohol again. The fatigue is typically very persistent. Many patients find that almost complete healing is required (which usually takes roughly 2 years) before the fatigue completely disappears.
Because of the malabsorption issue, iron deficiency is somewhat common with mc, and it's a common cause of chronic fatigue. It might be a good idea to ask your doctor to check your iron level. A chronic magnesium deficiency can also cause low energy. If magnesium deficiency is a problem, we usually respond very quickly to supplements (within a day or so), but low iron usually responds very slowly to treatment (because absorption is very slow and larger doses cause nausea and digestive upset). Consequently we can usually rebuild magnesium reserves in a few months, but it usually takes a year or two to return to normal iron levels.
Tex
We all have to be careful with alcohol because it causes leaky gut and the leaky gut is what causes the food sensitivities. After your intestines do some healing, you will be able to tolerate moderate amounts of alcohol again. The fatigue is typically very persistent. Many patients find that almost complete healing is required (which usually takes roughly 2 years) before the fatigue completely disappears.
Because of the malabsorption issue, iron deficiency is somewhat common with mc, and it's a common cause of chronic fatigue. It might be a good idea to ask your doctor to check your iron level. A chronic magnesium deficiency can also cause low energy. If magnesium deficiency is a problem, we usually respond very quickly to supplements (within a day or so), but low iron usually responds very slowly to treatment (because absorption is very slow and larger doses cause nausea and digestive upset). Consequently we can usually rebuild magnesium reserves in a few months, but it usually takes a year or two to return to normal iron levels.
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.
Ok Thanks for all of the useful info! An iron level is also something I’ve never had checked... so that is very interesting. I will ask my provider about that too. This forum has already helped me so much and I’ve been on it for a week. I will keep in touch with lab results as well as enterolab results.
Thanks
Brooke
Thanks
Brooke
