dietary fructose intolerance

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Trace
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dietary fructose intolerance

Post by Trace »

Here's a question for anyone who might be able to answer...why can I eat an apple with no issue but if I eat a ripe peach....D!

I've been reading that a fructose intolerance may emerge due to intestinal damage caused by the celiac, much like a lactose intolerance. From what I understand, it should disappear as the small intestine heals. So, in the meantime, what do I do? Fructose is in everything...but I don't get the same reaction from Coke that I do from a peach. I really haven't noticed it from any other fruit...and only a raw peach. Not when it's been cooked. I'm going to have to watch and note.

Is this a common issue with MC and/or celiac? Is there a chemical reason for this?


Thanks!
Trace
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tex
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Post by tex »

Hi Trace,

This is just my opinion, of course, but I think the problem is probably sorbitol, rather than fructose. Here's why:

The presence of glucose in a fruit actually helps in the digestion of fructose. IOW, fruits with 50-50 ratios of fructose to glucose, or fruits with more glucose than fructose, usually do not cause problems for people who have problems with fructose malabsorption, (aka dietary fructose intolerance). Fruits with higher ratios of fructose/glucose, however can cause problems. Apples have a fructose/glucose ratio that can range from approximately 2.5 : 1 to as high as 4 : 1. Peaches have a fructose/glucose ratio of approximately 1:1, or less. Therefore, if fructose malabsorption is the problem, apples should have a much greater potential for causing problems than peaches.

Peaches, however, contain sorbitol, and apples do not, which is why I suspect that sorbitol is the problem, in this particular instance. Also, be aware that most of us cannot tolerate raw fruits, (and vegetables), in general, until our gut heals.

When I was healing, before I was able to turn the situation around, I lost almost all of my ability to produce the enzymes that digest sugars. Fructase, (the enyme that digests fructose), was the last to go. I found, (by trial and error), that I could drink one coke per day, but if I drank two or more, I got sick. I ate no fruits at the time. The only form of sugar that I could handle without problems, was maple sugar, so I adjusted my diet accordingly. Now, I can handle virtually any sugar, so long as I don't really overdo it.

I hope this solves the mystery.

Tex
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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.
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Trace
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Post by Trace »

That explains it! I can drink coke all day w/o getting sick...just give me peach though, and whew!

Thanks Tex! I'll wait a while before I try it again!
Trace
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Gloria
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Post by Gloria »

Hi Trace,
As someone who is still healing, I've been eating mostly canned fruits, except for strawberries and bananas. I've been experimenting this week with fresh blueberries and I had some cherries today. It's not hard to avoid fresh fruits in the winter, but it's much harder in the summer.

I've attributed the problem to the fiber, but I could be wrong. It could be sorbitol as Tex mentioned. I haven't eaten a fresh apple for months but applesauce seems to be OK.

Gloria
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