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Crohns varies with the seasons?

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 7/27/2010 8:01 PM (GMT 0)
My GI recently said that Crohns tends to be worse in the winter. This is the first I've heard of that! I haven't had CD -- let alone flares -- long enough to notice any seasonal variability. Anybody here notice their CD gets better or worse with the seasons?
Posted 7/27/2010 8:07 PM (GMT 0)
From my own Daughter's experience and many others that I have read about over the past 11 years, Fall and Spring can be really wicked for IBDers which also happens to be the Allergy seasons.

Young IBDers still in school or College really suffer in the Fall. My Daughter would flare from October right thru the Holidays. Sometimes in the Spring, but not as bad as the Fall season.
She would be totally fine all Summer though.
Posted 7/27/2010 8:14 PM (GMT 0)
Mine seems to be worse during the summer...but the summers here are HOT! I also have an inkling that mine are affected by environment (esp pesticides) and it seems when they start fogging for mosquitoes in the neighborhoods, my symptoms increase dramatically...Oh and they spray the crops too at this time...the cotton is at it's peak growing season right now!
Posted 7/27/2010 9:51 PM (GMT 0)
June & July always seem to bed the worst two months for me.
Posted 7/27/2010 10:01 PM (GMT 0)
My worst time is around March/April, and I have had my 2 serious flares then. I also have trouble in October. I attribute it also to those being times of greater stress at work, as I am a teacher. September is really busy so I usually need a few days in October to take off and rest so that I don't have problems. I am especially careful to rest up at March Break rather than travel or whatever during that week off. I think that seasons may have something to do with it as I do have seasonal allergies and it seems logical that anything bothering your immune system bothers the Crohn's.
Posted 7/27/2010 10:43 PM (GMT 0)
That is interesting because I feel like winter is my only quiet time. Summer to Fall is always my worst. If I can get through July - October with no flare I am usually good for another year. My worst flares are always July / August, I have never even been in a flare in the winter!
Posted 7/28/2010 1:28 AM (GMT 0)
Winter is my worse time. The only time I have problems in the summer is if I get overheated.
Posted 7/28/2010 2:21 AM (GMT 0)
I wish it was just seasonal with me. Mine is all year round!
Posted 7/28/2010 5:02 AM (GMT 0)
Winter is the worst for me too. Christmas is always a horrible time, unfortunately. Had my first flare on Christmas and I seem to have one around that time ever since.
Posted 7/28/2010 12:30 PM (GMT 0)
I started flaring in the fall twice-I'd always thought it might have something to do with not getting my vitamin D from the sun anymore since I've also seen that IBD is more prevelant in northern areas/colder climes.
Posted 7/28/2010 5:35 PM (GMT 0)
My husband's worst flares to date have happened March/April time frame. He's had what seemed like smaller flare ups (like last fall with his swelling joints) in the fall, but March/April is when he seems to fall into the vortex of crohn's stuff spiraling out of control.

Normally he doesn't have bad allergies, but this year the allergy season was not good for him. He had allergies really badly this year. We figured it wouldn't hurt to take some allergy meds, and he seems to have made it through this year thus far without any crohn's flare up (keeping fingers crossed).

Have any of you felt that allergy meds keeps crohn's at bay during seasonal allergy times?

PV
Posted 7/28/2010 6:17 PM (GMT 0)
For quite a few years my worst flare ups would always come once a year, in the spring. The rest of the year I'd have smaller flare-ups that I could usually self-treat with some leftover Prednisone.
Posted 7/28/2010 7:41 PM (GMT 0)
PV, Yes my Daughter has had some success when taking allergy meds from triggering a major onset flare but still had some symptoms as if she was getting ready to spiral into a flare.

I've read that if you start the allergy meds early enough before the allergy season really kicks into gear it can help and keep taking them through the season to keep a flare at bay.
Guess it works for some but not all.
Posted 8/5/2010 8:36 PM (GMT 0)
I definitely notice that my Crohn's get worse at certain times of the year. March/April are usually bad, and July/August. July is usually the worst. I have crohn's arthritis too, and that seems to be worst in the summer, probably due to humidity. It has gotten bad in the winter sometimes too though. More than anything, I think the change of the seasons seems to bother it. I'm sure it affects the immune system. Right now I'm having the worst arthritis flare I've ever had. I can hardly move, and it's been like this for a month. Some days are a little better, possibly because of lower humidity. I definitely believe there's a connection between season and flares for me though, and I think a large part of it can be attributed to allergies. It makes sense since both allergies and crohn's are autoimmune.
Posted 8/6/2010 1:39 AM (GMT 0)
Winter is always worse for me. I do pretty well in the summer and feel like moderate sun exposure helps. Doc tested my Vitamin D and said it was fine.

Posted 8/6/2010 2:04 AM (GMT 0)
For me Saturdays are bad, however it seems that I always get cankers in early August.
Posted 8/6/2010 2:23 AM (GMT 0)
My Crohn's hates the summer...like late May into early June. Used to be just in time for finals. Yuck...and also in August when the summer's over. And any time a big life change is coming, it doesn't like those either.
Posted 8/6/2010 6:46 PM (GMT 0)
I think my crohn's gets worse in the summer months.
Posted 8/7/2010 4:53 AM (GMT 0)
Could be another clue to the Vitamin D connection that is sometimes discussed,
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