What causes this UC?

IBD (crohn's or ulcerative colitis) can strike at about any age...I actually got sick with crohn's before my mom got sick with UC, had she never got sick with it (had it triggered) then I too would be thinking I'm the only one in my family with it, but that's not how it turned out. There is a genetic link (google IBD and genetics) but that's only part of the puzzle, there's also the fact that it needs to be triggered and there are many suspected environmental triggers related to IBD...bacteria being a strong one.

It's unfortunate your daughter is going through this.

I don't know if my UC is familial or environmental....I've inherited lots of autoimmune from my parents, and to top it off, I've also got UC-related liver disease. It all sucks.

Welcome to the forum,
quincy

I got my UC after antibiotics taken daily for 6 months as a malaria prophylactic. Talk about insanely careless and negligent - prescribing long-term antibiotic use and it's not even effective for malaria prevention.

Probiotics, liquid foods, vitamins and rest helped me into remission and I've never had to take the daily sulfasalazine I was threatened with.

I agree with mumbles. Antibiotics should be taken with far more caution. They are necessary yes but there are side effects on your bacteria that clearly doctors just don't understand or appreciate.

That is the question I like to know too, genetics are definitely part of it, stress, and probably food and drugs. There are a lot of lousy things in our food now days, and some food in the USA like about 90% of corn and soybeans are GMO's (genetically modified organisms) to either resist insects or pesticides. From sources I read and heard the GMO food fed to mice damaged their organs. So who knows. The rate of diseases, especially auto-immune in younger people seems to be on the rise.

Quincy...what is U/C related liver disease?? If you don't mind me asking. Sorry to hear you have to deal with that too...
first I have ever heard of this.

uh....actually they're called extraintestinal manifestations. Liver disease, iritis, conjunctivitis, or whatever else wouldn't be considered lesions, unless they are actual lesions in the extraintestinal disease itself as it presents.

Milk thistle would not protect the liver from PSC....sorry to pop that bubble Babe.

q

Although there is a genetic predisposition to UC, scientists have found that rates of autoimmune diseases including UC, asthma, diabetes and MS have skyrocketed in the last 50 years - but only in first world countries.

IBD incidence went from 1 in 10,000 just 2 generations ago to 1 in 250 now.

Some doctors now believe that these are hygiene diseases.

In the last 50 years we have had freely available antibiotics, we have dewormed children and used disinfectants to sterilise our kitchens and bathrooms.

While we killed the bad bugs that make us sick, we also killed the good organisms that keep us well.

Humans co-evolved with parasites such as worms and have a symbiotic relationship with them.

Without them our immune systems go haywire and attack the body.

Worms and bacteria can have an anti-inflammatory effect and help program the immune system, keeping it on target.

fascinating articles here:

NY Times:
NY Times

and at boston globe:
Boston Globe

This is one possible reason why probiotics have helped so many people here, and why antibiotics were the suspected trigger in many cases.

BabeintheWoods said...
Besides the pain and discomfort from this wretched disease there are also 'extraintestinal lesions' (EIL). The most common are arthritis and skin lesions, which I know I have. Other EILs are inflammatory eye manifestations, kidney stones and liver disease. But supposedly there is research indicating that silymarin compounds from the herb milk thistle are effective in protecting the liver from EIL damage.

So you're saying it's possible that the black eye I woke up with mysteriously could be a result of this.  Half my upper eye lid looked like a purple splotch.  I was thinking it was from my meds.

To follow on the bacteria front..... I learned over the years, before I was diagnosed, I don't tolerate old leftovers very well.   We have a 4 day rule in our house for food in the fridge.  It doesn't bother my kid, but it doesn't get eaten by me at that point.

Q...WOW, thanks for the link...again it sucks that you have to deal with this also.
Darn genetics! Let's play see if you can find the inflammation now...GOD!

BabeintheWoods said...

This is from "Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine" by Michael Murray and Joseph Pizzorno, page 594. It is available in any book store, it is still a best seller. Of course this book could be completely wrong:

"Serious liver disease (i.e. sclerosing cholangitis, chronic active hepatitis, cirrhosis, etc.) is also a common EIL, affecting three to seven percent of people with IBD. If individuals are demonstrating liver enzyme abnormalities, they should take silymarin, a group of flavonoid compounds derived from milk thistle (silybum marianum). These compounds exert tremendous effect on protecting the liver from damage as well as enhancing detoxification processes."

One doctor's term....not a one many would use. PSC is fatal, not possibly terminal until it's in a severely active state.

Taking Milk Thistle won't hurt, I've taken it in the past. URSO isn't a cure, it at least helps the bile to flow rather than get backed up in the body. It won't change the process of what PSC does, but it may slow it down a bit. I believe that controlling my UC, by keeping the inflammation down as best as possible will help not trigger the PSC into an active state.

Please read about PSC. There is NO cure. and don't think you know all there is until you've had it.

quincy

Today I took my daughter to our Family Internest because I did not like being rushed out after my daughter's colonoscopy and not being able to ask questions to the Gastro doctor concerning what he found in her colon.  I know he had other patients to perform on but I had a lot of questions as did she and we couldn't get them answered.  He basically told us that she had ulcerative colitis and that he took a biopsy and to see him in two weeks which would be the 16th of April.  My Internest told us today that the Gastro doctor did the biopsy to find out what type of colitis she really has.  He said the results come back Wednesday of this week.  He said he would call me.  It's very frustrating because she could  have Crohn's.  So now we play the wait and see game.  I understand genetics can cause this but I am an only child and both my parents are gone and my husband is an only child and has one father left who never had this so to me it is just a mystery.  We have always eaten healthy foods like salad, grilled fish and chicken and once in a blue moon a burger. 

The good news is there is no more bleeding after a two week period of it and she is starting to feel better.  We are doing the probiotic thing with food.  Yogurt, Dan Active probiotic dairy drink, miso soup, tofu, and rice crackers.  She tried a original premium cracker which caused her a lot of pain so her colon is not ready for that yet.  She has been on a liquid diet now for four days.  I also understand after reading that she can have soft cheese so we got some brie to put on the rice crackers.  I'm looking for a good smoothie drink with Kefir milk if anyone has one.  The plus here is that we have both lost 7 pounds together since we do not eat lunch out anymore.

If she had Crohn's wouldn't she have been hurting all over a lot sooner then now.  What are the first signs of the disease?  She just hurts on her left side all the time, sleeping on her right side.  Sorry this is so long but no one ever seems to be in chat.