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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 7/21/2010 8:12 AM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone,

                   I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis 18 months ago and started on prednisone tapering down over 2 months. I was then on salafalk at 3g per day until a recent flare up. Long story short, im back on prednisone for 2 months and wondering what probiotics/vitamins/ etc that people take whilst on prednisone. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Posted 7/21/2010 1:28 PM (GMT 0)
I'm not aware that prednisone leaches any vitamins from you. I take probiotics and supplements, but not related to the prednisone I'm on.

Last time I was on prednisone I gained 20 pounds very quickely and developed a bad moonface, which together disfigured me and made me quite miserable. So this time around I'm being very careful not to overeat (stay aware of cortisone hunger), avoid sweets (avoid unnecessary calories), and especially to avoid salt since prednisone makes you retain water (causing the moonface).
Posted 7/21/2010 1:44 PM (GMT 0)

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Posted 7/21/2010 2:57 PM (GMT 0)
I take a calcium supplement (standard "caltrate" with vitamin d), 2 pills a day when i'm at a high dose of prednisone, 1 pill/day as i taper. This was recommended by my GI to overcome some of the possible bone depletion issues that can arise from prednisone.
Hope this helps.
Posted 7/21/2010 3:13 PM (GMT 0)
Prednisone - especially long term or in high doses, has been shown to deplete all of the following nutrients:

Vitamin D, Calcium, Selenium, Zinc, Potassium

UC in itself can cause depletion of Folic Acid (my GI recommends a supplement of folic acid daily).

I would talk with your Dr. and if you end up on Pred for several months you might ask for a complete nutrition panel or similar blood work be done just to check.

Good luck,
Posted 7/21/2010 6:59 PM (GMT 0)
I am on prednisone too and I don't know anything that can help you so far as vitamins or supplements but I agree with canope about eating light and not giving in to the hunger. I am always so hungry and I crave sweets. I have gained a lot of weight, I feel awful about myself. I am finally down to a lower dose but my GI said I probably won't notice any changes in weight or eating habits until I am off prednisone completely. So depressing. Especially since I haven't had luck stopping prednisone wihtout having my symptoms return. They don't return minorly either, it's a full blown flare up of the worst proportions.
Posted 7/21/2010 7:55 PM (GMT 0)
notsosicklygirl - I so know how you feel!! That's what happened to me last time. I gained 20-30 pounds in a month and got horrendous moonface. People didn't recognize me. I walked down the street deeply ashamed of my appearance. It was awful. And when you are over 50 like I am, it's very difficult to reverse the weight gain, even when you're off the prednisone.

So here is my current strategy, knowing that I can't trust my hunger and satiation cues while on prednisone:

1. Do not eat until extremely hungry.

2. Eat to 80% full, not satiation. Then drink lots of liquid and ignore the hunger.

3. Eliminate added salt and all sweets - I don't need the empty calories, I don't need the additional water retention. When you crave sweets, eliminating them entirely is easier than moderation.

That is the plan. I've only been on prednisone again for a week. I'm already hoarse from water retention and my face is puffing up a bit. So it's not a perfect plan. But I am doing what I can.

Posted 7/21/2010 9:36 PM (GMT 0)
DEF take calcium, at least 1200 (milligrams?) plus D. Usually two of whatever capsules come in the average vitamin bottle. And yep, like everyone else notes, PRED is tough but enjoy the remission it brings!
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