I apologize if this has already been covered in another thread (I did a search and couldn't find any), but is it advisable to take fish oil supplements during active MC? I have been on Budesonide for one month and am a little concerned about my omega 6 to omega 3 ratio, specifically, that I am not getting any omega 3. I know it would be better to just eat fish (especially salmon) but I have tried to eat cod twice now and had a bad reaction (at least, I believe it was from the cod).
If I can tolerate them, is it possible that fish oil supplements might actually help me at this point? Would they help with inflammation? Or would they potentially do more harm? Is it better to take algae omega 3? I read that plant omega 3 (including walnuts) is not as sufficient from animal.
I have been able to find a couple of supplements that don't appear to have any gluten, soy, dairy, etc.:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DX ... UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009S ... RVMI&psc=1
Thank you for your help!
Fish oil during active MC?
Moderators: Rosie, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Fish oil during active MC?
Sarah
Lymphocytic colitis since Feb 2019
Lymphocytic colitis since Feb 2019
Hi Sarah,
My personal opinion is that when we are trying to stop a flare, less is more. IOW, the fewer things we put in our mouth, the faster we are likely to recover. I don't understand why newbies are so concerned about eating a balanced diet when their active MC is causing most of their nutrients to go right through them anyway. If they will wait until they have recovered before taking any supplements, not only will they recover faster, but then the supplements will actually provide some benefit, since they won't go straight into the toilet. But that's just my opinion.
That said, if for some reason you can't resist taking fish oil, be careful with the amount, because fish oil is a lubricant, and it will tend to loosen up stools. Yes, I take fish oil capsules, but I've been in remission for over 15 years.
Tex
My personal opinion is that when we are trying to stop a flare, less is more. IOW, the fewer things we put in our mouth, the faster we are likely to recover. I don't understand why newbies are so concerned about eating a balanced diet when their active MC is causing most of their nutrients to go right through them anyway. If they will wait until they have recovered before taking any supplements, not only will they recover faster, but then the supplements will actually provide some benefit, since they won't go straight into the toilet. But that's just my opinion.
That said, if for some reason you can't resist taking fish oil, be careful with the amount, because fish oil is a lubricant, and it will tend to loosen up stools. Yes, I take fish oil capsules, but I've been in remission for over 15 years.
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 Tex,
Thank you for your reply and explanation.
I was eating nut butters before that had sunflower oil in them until I found out these oils (along with safflower) contain omega 6, which are also found in meat and poultry. I read getting an excessive amount of omega 6 without any omega 3 can trigger the body to produce pro-inflammatory chemicals. I am not sure if this is true or not but would rather be safe than sorry.
I was also worried about the fish oil causing worsening diarrhea, so I will probably hold off on those for now.
Since I am very underweight and have been trying the diet for a couple of months now and not seeing any results (I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong at this point), my feeling is that I will need to continue to eat like this for several months until I actually see remission and I don't know how much more my body can take. The only vitamins and minerals that I am getting are what is in poultry and potatoes, which isn't much and certainly not a balanced diet. My body is deteriorating and I am continuing to lose weight and I don't know how much longer I can afford to be this unhealthy. I know the MC needs to be taken care of first but I thought more vitamins and minerals might help my body's ability to heal the colon quicker and fight off the inflammation. I agree that the colon needs "rest" in order to heal and the less ingredients and food we eat (and also low fiber so things move slower), the less we are irritating our colons. But I am faced with a situation where I have to balance the two (weight and MC). My BMI is dangerously low at 15.5, even though I now getting about 2000 calories a day. I have tried to eat more "safe" foods (more potatoes and rice) but at this point, I am starting to wonder if maybe these are no longer safe for me. After eating the same foods for quite a while, do our bodies start to develop sensitivities to those instead? Should I maybe do a couple of days trial period and just take out all the carbs? I am at a bit of a road block for what else I can do differently.
As always, thank you again for your guidance.
Thank you for your reply and explanation.
I was eating nut butters before that had sunflower oil in them until I found out these oils (along with safflower) contain omega 6, which are also found in meat and poultry. I read getting an excessive amount of omega 6 without any omega 3 can trigger the body to produce pro-inflammatory chemicals. I am not sure if this is true or not but would rather be safe than sorry.
I was also worried about the fish oil causing worsening diarrhea, so I will probably hold off on those for now.
Since I am very underweight and have been trying the diet for a couple of months now and not seeing any results (I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong at this point), my feeling is that I will need to continue to eat like this for several months until I actually see remission and I don't know how much more my body can take. The only vitamins and minerals that I am getting are what is in poultry and potatoes, which isn't much and certainly not a balanced diet. My body is deteriorating and I am continuing to lose weight and I don't know how much longer I can afford to be this unhealthy. I know the MC needs to be taken care of first but I thought more vitamins and minerals might help my body's ability to heal the colon quicker and fight off the inflammation. I agree that the colon needs "rest" in order to heal and the less ingredients and food we eat (and also low fiber so things move slower), the less we are irritating our colons. But I am faced with a situation where I have to balance the two (weight and MC). My BMI is dangerously low at 15.5, even though I now getting about 2000 calories a day. I have tried to eat more "safe" foods (more potatoes and rice) but at this point, I am starting to wonder if maybe these are no longer safe for me. After eating the same foods for quite a while, do our bodies start to develop sensitivities to those instead? Should I maybe do a couple of days trial period and just take out all the carbs? I am at a bit of a road block for what else I can do differently.
As always, thank you again for your guidance.
Sarah
Lymphocytic colitis since Feb 2019
Lymphocytic colitis since Feb 2019
I agree, you're in a tough situation with BMI, and faced by slow recovery, but your calorie intake is way too low to gain any weight. We went over the calorie issue in this thread:
https://perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=24671
Remember?
The safest food to eat (as far as nutrition goes), is meat, because meat contains all the essential amino acids needed to sustain life. You are very fortunate, as MC patients go, because none of the meats showed any reactivity on your EnteroLab test results. Most of us aren't that lucky.
At this stage of the game I wouldn't worry about omega 6's, or omega 3's, or omega anythings. I would concentrate on getting the MC under control so that you can begin to absorb nutrients better in the future. You have plenty of time to balance your diet after you reach remission. If you aren't able to reach remission, your future health will surely be in jeopardy, anyway. Try to concentrate on meats that contain a lot of fat. Fat provides healthy calories. By comparison, carbs provide unhealthy calories.
I hope you're able to start seeing some improvement soon. It would provide a big boost for your frame of mind.
Tex
https://perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=24671
Remember?
The safest food to eat (as far as nutrition goes), is meat, because meat contains all the essential amino acids needed to sustain life. You are very fortunate, as MC patients go, because none of the meats showed any reactivity on your EnteroLab test results. Most of us aren't that lucky.
At this stage of the game I wouldn't worry about omega 6's, or omega 3's, or omega anythings. I would concentrate on getting the MC under control so that you can begin to absorb nutrients better in the future. You have plenty of time to balance your diet after you reach remission. If you aren't able to reach remission, your future health will surely be in jeopardy, anyway. Try to concentrate on meats that contain a lot of fat. Fat provides healthy calories. By comparison, carbs provide unhealthy calories.
I hope you're able to start seeing some improvement soon. It would provide a big boost for your frame of mind.
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.
Overwhelmed newbie
Hi all, I’m not sure this is where I should post, but here goes: First of all, I am relieved to find this board. I have been reading posts and I have the book on MC. I was recently diagnosed with lymphocytic colitis following a colonoscopy. I am 70. Looking back, I think I may have had problems with colitis in the past and it is just now getting worse. In any case, I am very tired most of the time and in a brain fog, thus the overwhelmed feeling. Diarrhea takes over my mornings and occasionally surprise attacks during the day and at night. I followed up with the Nurse Practitioner for my gastro doc, who suggested an 8 wk trial of Budesonide, since I couldn’t tolerate Imodium (zombie most of the time) and Pepto didn’t work. She gave me a good pep talk, telling me that most find this a miraculous cure. After reading the book and the board, I was skeptical but initially agreed. Then I read the insert on the Budesonide and it said tell your dr. If you have cararacts. I have them in both eyes and my eye doc said that if I decides to go on the B then I would have to be closely monitored. I also have some osteoporosis and osteopenia. So I backed up and didn’t go ahead on the prescription. I lean towards doing thing the natural way and want to treat this with diet, although it seems a long row to hoe. I do take supplements but it seems that from reading here that they aren’t a whole lot of help since my body is probably not using them right now. But magnesium (glycinate) is good? And D3? What kind of D3? I get it with my calcium supplement which I am hoping is still something that works for me since I have the problem with bone density. Someone advised me to drink aloe Vera juice. I have been off gluten for a couple of months, and pretty much I’m dairy free except for a little butter once in a while. I do eat eggs. Guess the tests from EnteroLab would be a good idea although I’m pretty sure our Medicare won’t pay for them. Balking a little at the expense, but I’m guessing that the regular blood tests for food sensitivities aren’t as accurate, right? Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated. I am at the point where the prospect of getting up in the morning makes me anxious. Also depressed. Thanks for listening to such a long spiel. Judi
Hello Judi,
Welcome to the group. Yes, budesonide will make cataracts worse. I have a hunch that inflammation may make them worse also. I was diagnosed with cataracts at least 20 or 30 years ago, and I was told that I would soon need cataract surgery. But I've never taken budesonide, and I've eliminated inflammation by cutting gluten, casein, soy, and a few other foods out of my diet (eggs don't bother me). I was also diagnosed with drusen almost 40 years ago (and warned that it might destroy my vision), so I take lutein every day. After all these years, I still haven't had any cataract surgery, and my vision hasn't deteriorated significantly, even though I'm getting well up into the old codger category (I'm 78 now).
Anxiety and depression are symptoms of magnesium deficiency, so it will probably be helpful to continue to take at least a small to moderate dose of magnesium glycinate. MC depletes both magnesium and vitamin D. Vitamin D is the fuel that our immune system runs on. If our vitamin D level is low, taking calcium (or eating calcium-rich foods) will do no good, because we won't be able to absorb the calcium into our bloodstream. Magnesium is necessary to combine with insulin to transport the calcium out of our blood and into our body cells where it's needed. So if we're deficient in magnesium (or vitamin D), no matter how much calcium we ingest, we won't be able to utilize it, and it will just be wasted. We don't need to take any calcium supplements. It's the inflammation caused by gluten that causes osteoporosis. So if we avoid gluten (and take magnesium and vitamin D), we should be fine. Everyone already has plenty of calcium in their diet. We need vitamin D and magnesium so that we can use the calcium that's already in our food. I use Doctors Best vitamin D3, but there are many good, safe brands. Just make sure that the label is free of all inflammatory ingredients.
Being "pretty much dairy free" won't work. That's not dairy-free. Butter is loaded with casein, and most of us react even to traces of casein. we have to be 100 % free of gluten, dairy, and anything else that causes us to produce antibodies if we expect to reach remission by diet changes alone. If you feel that you need a butter substitute, use Earth Balance Soy-Free Spread.
You can heal without the EnteroLab tests. A strict elimination diet requires more self-discipline, but it will work. If you don't want to spend the money on the EnteroLab tests, simply avoid gluten, casein, soy, and eggs, and the inflammation will slowly fade away, so that your symptoms will disappear also, as your digestive system heals. After you're in solid remission for a while, you can test eggs and soy, one at a time, to see if you can safely add them back into your diet.
If you stick with a good, safe elimination diet, your symptoms will fade away. The fatigue and brain fog, will take longer to resolve. After you're in remission, taking the active forms of vitamins B-12, B-9, and B-6 may help to get rid of the brain fog sooner, and magnesium will help to resolve the fatigue.
Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything. I hope this helps.
Tex
Welcome to the group. Yes, budesonide will make cataracts worse. I have a hunch that inflammation may make them worse also. I was diagnosed with cataracts at least 20 or 30 years ago, and I was told that I would soon need cataract surgery. But I've never taken budesonide, and I've eliminated inflammation by cutting gluten, casein, soy, and a few other foods out of my diet (eggs don't bother me). I was also diagnosed with drusen almost 40 years ago (and warned that it might destroy my vision), so I take lutein every day. After all these years, I still haven't had any cataract surgery, and my vision hasn't deteriorated significantly, even though I'm getting well up into the old codger category (I'm 78 now).
Anxiety and depression are symptoms of magnesium deficiency, so it will probably be helpful to continue to take at least a small to moderate dose of magnesium glycinate. MC depletes both magnesium and vitamin D. Vitamin D is the fuel that our immune system runs on. If our vitamin D level is low, taking calcium (or eating calcium-rich foods) will do no good, because we won't be able to absorb the calcium into our bloodstream. Magnesium is necessary to combine with insulin to transport the calcium out of our blood and into our body cells where it's needed. So if we're deficient in magnesium (or vitamin D), no matter how much calcium we ingest, we won't be able to utilize it, and it will just be wasted. We don't need to take any calcium supplements. It's the inflammation caused by gluten that causes osteoporosis. So if we avoid gluten (and take magnesium and vitamin D), we should be fine. Everyone already has plenty of calcium in their diet. We need vitamin D and magnesium so that we can use the calcium that's already in our food. I use Doctors Best vitamin D3, but there are many good, safe brands. Just make sure that the label is free of all inflammatory ingredients.
Being "pretty much dairy free" won't work. That's not dairy-free. Butter is loaded with casein, and most of us react even to traces of casein. we have to be 100 % free of gluten, dairy, and anything else that causes us to produce antibodies if we expect to reach remission by diet changes alone. If you feel that you need a butter substitute, use Earth Balance Soy-Free Spread.
You can heal without the EnteroLab tests. A strict elimination diet requires more self-discipline, but it will work. If you don't want to spend the money on the EnteroLab tests, simply avoid gluten, casein, soy, and eggs, and the inflammation will slowly fade away, so that your symptoms will disappear also, as your digestive system heals. After you're in solid remission for a while, you can test eggs and soy, one at a time, to see if you can safely add them back into your diet.
If you stick with a good, safe elimination diet, your symptoms will fade away. The fatigue and brain fog, will take longer to resolve. After you're in remission, taking the active forms of vitamins B-12, B-9, and B-6 may help to get rid of the brain fog sooner, and magnesium will help to resolve the fatigue.
Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything. I hope this helps.
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 Tex, Thanks so much for your reply. I have much to learn about what is in different foods, like the casein in butter that you mentioned. Is the elimination diet on the forum somewhere? I will enter that in the search. I think I read somewhere that soy is in many things. Is it under a sneaky name? Are duck eggs ok? I do have access to those. At my age, do you think healing will take a long time (years?). I am glad that you avoided cataract surgery, that’s a big plus. I didn’t know that calcium is not necessary to take since the dr. Put me on that quite a long time ago. Like I said, much to learn. Thanks again, Judi
Hi Judi,
Yes, guidelines for selecting a recovery diet can be found at the link below:
Suggested Eating Plan - Stage ONE
Yes, soy can be found in many ingredients by many names. You can find Jean's List of Soy Products/Additives in the Foods And Food Ingredients That Should Be Avoided category at the link below:
Foods And Food Ingredients That Should Be Avoided
Many of us who are sensitive to chicken eggs can safely eat duck eggs. A few cannot.
Complete healing will probably take 3–5 years, but you should be in remission from the diarrhea, bloating, and arthritic pains within a few months if you're strict with your diet. It's difficult to predict recovery times, because a few of us reach that point very quickly (within a few weeks), while some of us take a year or more. We're all different, mostly because the amount of intestinal damage varies among us and many other factors are involved. Stress levels, for example, are very important. The less stress we have, the faster we can recover. In cases of severe stress, achieving remission can be virtually impossible until a way is found to reduce the stress level significantly. But you seem to be well on your way.
Tex
Yes, guidelines for selecting a recovery diet can be found at the link below:
Suggested Eating Plan - Stage ONE
Yes, soy can be found in many ingredients by many names. You can find Jean's List of Soy Products/Additives in the Foods And Food Ingredients That Should Be Avoided category at the link below:
Foods And Food Ingredients That Should Be Avoided
Many of us who are sensitive to chicken eggs can safely eat duck eggs. A few cannot.
Complete healing will probably take 3–5 years, but you should be in remission from the diarrhea, bloating, and arthritic pains within a few months if you're strict with your diet. It's difficult to predict recovery times, because a few of us reach that point very quickly (within a few weeks), while some of us take a year or more. We're all different, mostly because the amount of intestinal damage varies among us and many other factors are involved. Stress levels, for example, are very important. The less stress we have, the faster we can recover. In cases of severe stress, achieving remission can be virtually impossible until a way is found to reduce the stress level significantly. But you seem to be well on your way.
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 Tex,
Thanks for the links, I will read those. I am definitely going to be strict with my diet as soon as I can get some ideas on what to eat. I am making bone broth tonight. Your point about the stress level is something that I am struggling to get under control. I have to say that being part of this community does offer light at the end of the tunnel!! Judi
Thanks for the links, I will read those. I am definitely going to be strict with my diet as soon as I can get some ideas on what to eat. I am making bone broth tonight. Your point about the stress level is something that I am struggling to get under control. I have to say that being part of this community does offer light at the end of the tunnel!! Judi