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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 10/9/2007 12:57 PM (GMT -6)
Hello All. Looking for advice again.

I've started to see a pattern with my colitis in terms of gas!!

The amount of gas I have in my system seems to indicate how bad my colitis will be on any day. A lot of gas and stool tends to be loose with the possibility of blood. No gas usually just means 1-2 solid BMs a day where my symptoms could be at worst described as IBS. The weird thing is that I can go from gas to no gas in a matter of hours and consequently from loose stools to perfect stools also in a matter of hours.

Does anyone else notice that gas is a good indicator of how things are going on in their bowel?

I have kept a food diary but can see no pattern. Dairy, wheat etc don't seem to cause my colon too many noticeable issues. However the one problem seems to be sugar. If I take a lot of refined sugar (pure, white and poison!) I tend to have gas problems. Stay away from sugar and I feel great.

I use the word colitis here because this isn't how Ulcerative Colitis is meant to present itself.

Posted 10/9/2007 1:07 PM (GMT -6)
yes, gas is a huge indicator for me as well. Even before a flare will hit me, I will start to have more and more gas. I can feel it going through my colon, then I am hit with a flare a week or two later. During a flare I get a lot of gas and stomach gurgling/whooshing and coming out of a flare I am pretty gassy as well (this is at the point where my stools are pretty well formed and I think it's my colon healing and air able to pass rather than just bm's). I'd give anything to be able to fart and not shart right now to alleviate the pressure.

Right now I haven't been too gassy the past two days and I am hoping that it is not a false security and have had less bm's. I am in the worst flare I have ever had, so I can't base too much on what is going on right now.

I stopped caffeine & soda, I am on a low salt, sugar and watching my refined carbs diet.
Posted 10/9/2007 1:07 PM (GMT -6)
How long after you ingest sugar that you notice gas symptoms?

where in the digestive tract do you notice it?

The gas I have that's really rectal and doesn't "come out" easily is whan I recognise it as a flare is looming.

Gas will be caused from foods that aren't in the digestive tract long enough to be digested at any given time. If you aren't able to break down the sugar in the area it's supposed to be broken down and it hits whatever area undigested, you'll have gas. At least that's how I see it.

What gas is produced where from what is what you'll have to figure out.

Have you tried sugar in the raw? Does honey cause you gas?

quincy
Posted 10/9/2007 3:09 PM (GMT -6)
Between 2-6 hours my symptoms start. I never have gas pains. I just notice that I have trapped gas in my descending colon. It's very annoying. Trapped gas makes me feel bloated.

Couldnt gas also result due to a lack of enzyme in the stomach or small intestine meaning that undigested food gets into the colon and the bacteria feed on it. So in essence the problem is elsewhere (other than the bowel) but you only experience symptoms in the bowel.

Sugar seems to be the dominating factor in my colitis. I stay off it and I'm fine but I go back to drinking sodas for a week (10 spoons of sugar in a soda) and my colon is singing sweet rumbling tunes. But then this wouldn't be UC would it? Ugh this is so confusing
Posted 10/9/2007 3:42 PM (GMT -6)
sodas....for sure it's the sugar kind..have you read all the ingredients? I'm asking because most everyone I know only drinks the sugar-free kind. Soda would give me gas for sure...I drink them very very seldom...the carbonation will cause me gas..but I get much less if I stir out the bubbles and have lots of ice in it.

It wouldn't be UC...it would be sodas.  Consider how much carbon (gas) is consumed, and yes.sugar or the artificial sweetener (which cannot be digested at all)....and if you drink it in a short period, where would all the gas go except out your mouth if it's still in the stomach or through the digestive tract.  It's good that it doesn't cause you much pain/discomfort, however.  Can't you find another alternative for soda's?  How many do you consume in a day?

Damo wrote....."couldnt gas also result due to a lack of enzyme in the stomach or small intestine meaning that undigested food gets into the colon and the bacteria feed on it. So in essence the problem is elsewhere (other than the bowel) but you only experience symptoms in the bowel"

 

I agree...since digestion or the break-down of foods starts in the mouth and other parts of the tract.  once it's in the colon, it's not broken down further because the colon isn't equipped with the enzymes to deal with foodstuff that should be broken down already.  I'll have to find the info where I read that, bookmarked somewhere..lol!

quincy

Posted 10/9/2007 5:48 PM (GMT -6)
 

   Gas occurrs when your colon is not successfully

   or promptly processing and breaking

   Leave a rotting pile of garbage in the garbage

   can and alot of gas is expelled.  So to this

   end its only useful in determining your overall

   ability to eliminate.

  

   Normally you shouldnt get any  -  gas -

   occasionally with reactive foods like beans etc.etc

   If your colon is not inflammed and you are

   properly forming and eliminating,  gas is

   not an issue. 

Posted 10/9/2007 6:32 PM (GMT -6)
Damo, this is an interesting topic and I'm trying to sort out what others are saying and what foods/gas/flares all have in common.

From my few months of experience with UC, I'm learning daily that when I am NOT in remission (which for me means there is no bleeding, no urgency and 2-4 bms/day), I can have the gas which leads to soreness and then trying to "go" with no luck and eventually leads to bleeding. However, since getting on the prednisone, I do believe there has been a reduction in the inflammation of my colon. For the past week, I have been eating lots more veggies, which I typically strayed from b/c I thought I couldn't tolerate them. Now when I eat foods that before caused that "fart-flare cycle" I just get gas and some bloating along with some diahrea, but not like UC diahrea (ha!).

My question to you is---where do you think you are at --flare or remission? If you are still in the flare zone, maybe the foods you are eating are not being well tolerated by your gut b/c the inflammation is still there more than it should or could be. I hope this all makes sense. :)
Posted 10/9/2007 6:47 PM (GMT -6)
Increase of gas after consuming sugar could be a sign of a candida overgrowth.

Candida exists in the colon normally in small amounts. The amount of Candida in a healthy person is quite small. Candida has no known benefits, but in small amounts it is harmless. In large amounts it can be life threatening. In between, it can contribute to many troubling problems including chronic female yeast infections, chronic fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, gas and bloating. It can also cause food allergies, skin rashes, and allergies to mold.

Candida in the colon can be encouraged by the consumption of sugar, alcohol and by food allergies. Candida feeds on simple sugars. Food allergies inflame the colon, which encourages more Candida. Eliminating sugar, alcohol and foods to which you are allergic can greatly help.

Candida can lead to a vicious cycle in which it causes food allergies, which in turn inflame the colon, which in turn lead to more Candida growth.
Posted 10/9/2007 6:58 PM (GMT -6)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fructose_malabsorption

That has a bunch of good information about why sugar is so hard to digest.

Also, sugar is a really unnatural for human to eat. It wasn't until the past 300 or 400 years
that refined sugar became a part of a normal person's diet.
Posted 10/10/2007 1:56 AM (GMT -6)
Well my doctor did a few basic blood tests lately and my C reactive protein levels (which measure inflammation) are normal. So either I have no inflammation at all or I have a tiny amount.

Despite this I do not have a healthy colon simply becasue, as people have said above, it is not functioning correctly. I'm not sure if this is because I have IBS or because the colon is dammaged from IBD and has not healed fully yet. But I can eat pretty much anything - I have no problem with food EXCEPT for sugar. Refined sugar seems to put me in a cycle and my lower GI tracts gets upset. But I dunno if this is because the problem is higher up and the poor ol' colon is being asked to do something than it simply can't.

Does anyone ever just get the feeling that your colon has "forgotten how to function normally, how to be regular etc" in the same way that if you had a bad hand injury for a year or so you would have to train your hand to do basic functions of life again.

Princesa,

I'm a bit of a sceptic on the Candida connection in relation to IBD but you make good points. So you are saying that Candida can inflame the colon. Is this due to the immune system attacking the Candida and the colon getting in the way or is it because Candida damage the colon wall? So Candida can cause inflammation and bleeding?
Posted 10/10/2007 9:59 AM (GMT -6)
Hi there,

I'm having very strange gas, since starting on Asacol suppositories I get gas within 1hr of inserting the supp (mid evening) and then when I get up in the morning, there's a bit of a blow out, then that's it mostly. This 'new' gas is almost odourless. Within 4 days of using the supps all my bleeding seemed to have stopped, not even any stuck to the stools. I knew by my symptoms that the flare was low down, but it took til I got my scope for anyone to listen.

By which time I'd become anaemic! So now I'm on iron. Weird how none of the oral meds or enemas worked and one little suppository at night does the trick. No rectal gurglings after food now either!

So that's my gas story!
Posted 10/10/2007 2:45 PM (GMT -6)
Yup Asacol supps got me out of a mini flare as well. Like you my flare was rectum-based. The trouble is that my doctor won't allow me anymore than 1 x 500 mg supps a day!
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