Two silly questions I should know answer to but don't

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Jimbo1968
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Two silly questions I should know answer to but don't

Post by Jimbo1968 »

Do thin stools indicate anything sinister or is it just an indication of the stool being soft and thus reducing diameter as it passes through anus or inflamed bowels. Or possibly something else?
While I'm asking questions I should already know the answer to , is it a fair assumption to say I have Bile Acid Diarrhea and possibly Malabsorption if my bouts of diarrhea are preceded by gurgling intestines and gas?
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Gabes-Apg
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Thin stool is indication of inflammation.

Nutritional absorption is affected when there is any ongoing inflammation
Any or all of the following,
Histamine inflammation, gas, noise, pain, D, C, ongoing colour issues etc.

Not silly questions at all... No such thing here...
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

further to my answer above,
ongoing inflammation damages the villi..

why are Villi important?
The villi are sites of nutrient absorption. Nutrients are absorbed by the cells of the villi into the capillaries within them. This absorption makes vitamins and nutrients available to your blood and lymphatic fluid. Intestinal juice provides the means for which absorption can occur. However, not all nutrients are absorbed. Some digestion also takes place within the small intestine.
http://gluten.lovetoknow.com/What_Is_the_Job_of_Villi
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Post by tex »

Jim wrote:is it a fair assumption to say I have Bile Acid Diarrhea and possibly Malabsorption if my bouts of diarrhea are preceded by gurgling intestines and gas?
No, virtually all of us have the loud gurgling and gas. Those are markers of MC, not BAM.

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.
Jimbo1968
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Post by Jimbo1968 »

Gabes and Tex to the rescue once again.
Thank you both, I gathered my assumption on gurgling intestines may have been over simplistic.
I'm now concerned about the 'Villi' , does having MC or any form of Colitis not mean that you have permanently inflamed colon ? (Maybe I'm going on a wrong assumption here again) and if that's the case will that not ultimately mean that everyone with Colitis will suffer some form of malabsorption? (Sorry one answer seems to lead to another question ). Thanks Jim
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Not necessarily, if someone avoids major triggers that cause inflammation, ie foods, enviro, not too much stress etc etc and have healthy cells to manage inflammation ( Vit D3 and magnesium etc) then they can have healthy gut, healthy villi etc.

As we age, our bodies ability to heal reduces.
We also need good levels of Vit d3 in our cells for the villi to absorb nutrients properly, and we need right amount of magnesium for Vit D3 to work properly, that is why we recommend these as the most important to the reducing inflammation, healing process.

The issue of damaged villi is widespread, That is why key nutrients like Vit d3, b12 etc are available as lingual versions, and injections. And compounding pharmacies are making up transdermal creams.

Wellness in MC world is two stages, 1st, identify triggers and reduce inflammation, 2nd, healing leaky gut, optimising villi health etc...
Gabes Ryan

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Jimbo1968
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Post by Jimbo1968 »

Thank you Gabes that was very well explained.
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Some info you might be interested in, my good friend, who is a naturopath, eats healthy, takes all the right supps/herbs etc. she had not eaten gluten for ?2 years. Digestion was very good . In the lead up to her routine colonoscopy she ate gluten daily for 2 weeks, there was villi damage to extent that GI specialist classed her celiac.

Go forward a couple of years, after avoiding gluten and dairy for 3 years or more, digestion is good, she had dairy for 3 weeks before routine scope and there was fresh villi damage.

This is why it can be easy and reasonably short healing time for some, and it can be hard and years not months for others... There are so many factors that affect gut health and healing....
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Post by tex »

Jim,

As Gabes explained, the inflammation is permanent only if we choose not to avoid all of our sensitivities that are causing the inflammation.

Note that malabsorption of nutrients can only occur in the small intestine. So the small intestine has to be inflamed in order to have "malabsorption".

The colon only absorbs water and electrolytes. So when the colon is inflamed, the inability to absorb electrolytes and water means that the electrolyte levels in the fecal stream are excessive, and this in itself promotes diarrhea. But the big problem with MC is that it causes secretory diarrhea. With secretory diarrhea, water and electrolytes are actually infused into the colon (a reversal of normal behaviour), and this kicks the diarrhea into high gear and causes high-volume bowel movements.

The fact that most magnesium (a vital electrolyte) is normally absorbed in the terminal ileum and the colon, is the reason why we are almost certain to be magnesium-deficient when we have active MC. Instead of absorbing magnesium, the colon tends to purge it from the body.

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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Post by tex »

Gabes wrote:In the lead up to her routine colonoscopy she ate gluten daily for 2 weeks, there was villi damage to extent that GI specialist classed her celiac.
Call me paranoid, but there is no way that 2 weeks of eating gluten could cause enough damage to the villi of the small intestine to yield a marsh 3 level of villi damage (which is the minimum level of damage to qualify for an official celiac diagnosis). It normally takes at least 6 weeks to 6 months to accrue sufficient damage for a positive diagnosis. For someone who has a truly clean diet (so that their gut has actually healed), it can take over a year or more of challenge to produce enough damage to qualify for an official celiac diagnosis. That's the problem with the celiac diagnostic criteria — they are obsolete and they fail to properly diagnose far too many people, because they lack reasonable sensitivity and reliability.

I would bet a GF cookie that your friend's diet is cross-contaminated with small amounts of gluten (or some other serious food sensitivity) regularly, and because of that, the damage never heals completely. That's why she responds so quickly to food challenges. She would probably test positive without the challenges, because her level of villus damage is probably always elevated.

Recent testing (published a couple of years ago) showed that most herbs are virtually guaranteed to be adulterated with various contaminants. Naturopaths tend to trust herbs above all else, and that could be the source of her cross-contamination.
This study doesn’t represent the first time the supplements industry, which goes largely unregulated in the United States, has been called out for contents. Almost a decade ago, experts were talking about how these supplements often contained “just a fraction of the ingredient on their labels–if any at all,” along with pesticide and heavy metal contamination. Just this year, news emerged that dietary supplements are tops in drug recalls for containing ingredients that pose a risk of “severe adverse health consequences or death.” One of the USA’s most prominent pediatric hospitals, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, banned the sale of supplements in its pharmacy in October over concerns that the pills and potions hit the shelves without being regulated. And just emerging from a scientific conference this week are reports that liver damage from supplements is on the rise.
Study: Herbal Supplements Full Of Contaminants, Substitutes, And Fillers
The investigation, led by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, focused on a variety of herbal supplements from four major retailers: GNC, Target, Walmart and Walgreen Co. Lab tests determined that only 21 percent of the products actually had DNA from the the plants advertised on the labels.

"This investigation makes one thing abundantly clear: The old adage 'buyer beware' may be especially true for consumers of herbal supplements," Schneiderman said. His office issued cease and desist letters to the retailers on Monday telling them to stop sales of the products.

The investigation found supplements, including echinacea, ginseng, St. John's wort, garlic, ginkgo biloba and saw palmetto, were contaminated with substances including rice, beans, pine, citrus, asparagus, primrose, wheat, houseplant and wild carrot. In many cases, unlisted contaminants were the only plant material found in the product samples.
Herbal supplements filled with fake ingredients, investigators find

Trust me, I'm speaking from experience — it's tough enough to get all traces of gluten out of one's diet without taking herbal supplements. I've been at it for over 13 years now and my last EnteroLab test (in September) still showed a result of 11 (it's slowly gettin' there). 3 years and 10 months ago, it was still 62. :shock:

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.
Jimbo1968
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Post by Jimbo1968 »

Gabes and Tex I guess you've gathered all this knowledge from years of suffering and trying to learn what's causing it. I really appreciate you sharing it with me. It given me a better understanding of what is happening.
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