Food Sensitivity Question

[Kixtopher]

I was diagnosed with LC in August and have been in remission since Sept 1. I did the FODMAP program and no strong sensitivities were revealed. I recently did the A1 and C1 tests from Enterolab and I came up highly sensitive in everything. I am eating all things at the moment and not having any problems. No symptoms at all and feeling great. Do I need to be concerned about the Enterolab results? Should I be eliminating some foods even though I show no daily signs of problems?

[tex]

Hi,

Welcome to the group. That's a good question. It's possible that you're just experiencing spontaneous remission. If the remission ends, that will certainly be evidence that you need to avoid inflammatory foods. One other thought is that it's possible to be asymptomatic to foods that are causing your immune system to produce antibodies. For example, I can eat dairy products with no GI symptoms at all. However dairy causes me to have osteoarthritis. Consequently, I have to avoid dairy. An Enterolab test confirmed that I do indeed produce antibodies against casein, despite the fact that casein doesn't cause any GI symptoms for me. It's unlikely, though, that anyone would be a symptomatic to several inflammatory foods, so you're probably in spontaneous remission. Spontaneous remission can end at any time, or it can last for years. Time will reveal your situation.

Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything.

Tex

[Shabnam]

This is a FODMAP issue. I am following this diet meticulously and yet I have watery D. twice a day. I used to have somewhat formed stools but for the past few weeks it is simply watery. What can I possibly be doing wrong? I eat gluten free, lactose free food.
My hair keeps breaking and falling off in handfuls and I am afraid I am not absorbing nutrients. Does anybody else have hair fragility issues?

[tex]

The reason why the FODMAP diet doesn't work to control MC is because most of us are sensitive to the primary protein in milk (casein) not the primary sugar (lactose). If you're eating yogurt, for example, or cheese, they're loaded with casein (as are all dairy products), so that might be your problem. Or, the problem might be some other food. Virtually all of us react to oats, for example. If you're eating any oats, that might be the problem. The FODMAP diet is primarily a low histamine diet. It's not a diet that we endorse for controlling MC, unless certain changes are made in the foods that the diet allows.

Tex

[tex]

Sorry, I forgot to address your question about hair loss. Yes, that's a somewhat common problem for some MC patients, especially those who are taking a mesalamine-based anti-inflammatory medication. If you're not taking any medications, then it's probably due to one or more vitamin or mineral deficiencies. Hair loss problems have been associated with deficiencies of vitamin D, B vitamins, vitamin E, zinc, biotin, and iron, for example, but I don't claim to be an expert on hair loss.

Tex

[Marcia K]

My hair was falling out & became very brittle. After I began taking Vitamin D & magnesium glycinate it was restored to its healthy, wavy state. I believe that's because the vitamins & my diet helped to heal my gut and thus the hair issue was resolved.