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UC, Malabsorption, and Medication Hypersensitivity?

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 2/26/2017 4:04 PM (GMT 0)
Hi all,

Something I've noticed over the past few years: although my UC has improved over time as I step up the medication ladder, my IBS, what I'm assuming is malabsorption, and drug sensitivity has all continued to get worse. My drug sensitivity is so bad, that this week, I realized that I can no longer deal with a single Tums chewable. I assume that this is because of the magnesium. But during one of the worst flares of my life a little over a year ago, Tums, multivitamins, folic acid, etc... was no problem. Any time I try a new medication, I get all of the side effects-severely. My psychiatrist gave me what she called "a low pediatric dose" of an anti anxiety drug a few weeks ago. After a single dose, I was awake for over 48 hours straight and had crazy GI symptoms. She insists I shouldn't have even been able to feel it.
It's the same with food. A few years ago, food wasn't a trigger for me, although spicy foods exacerbated my symptoms during a flare. Now I've eliminated meat, lactose, raw veggies, most condiments, fried food, anything acidic. I call my current diet the "beige foods diet."
I get that malabsorption can happen during a flare, but I'm not flaring and the malabsorption symptoms just keep getting worse.

Has anyone had issues with drug sensitivity and malabsorption? What did you do?
Posted 2/26/2017 7:10 PM (GMT 0)
such sensitivities would be a pain. i would not rule out psychological reactions though.

can you work with psychiatrist to set up a placebo experiment?
Posted 2/26/2017 9:18 PM (GMT 0)
You're on a drastically limited sounding diet there - are you sure you're not suffering from malabsorption?
Posted 2/26/2017 11:10 PM (GMT 0)
A nocebo effect is the opposite of a placebo effect (when one assumes a med causes side effects).
Posted 2/26/2017 11:21 PM (GMT 0)

iPoop said...
A nocebo effect is the opposite of a placebo effect (when one assumes a med causes side effects).

Yeah, I see a lot of that on this board actually. People literally attribute every single physical symptom to a side-effect without actually knowing whether it's the medication for sure.

Active UC can cause a lot of problems outside the colon. And colds and stuff happen without being on meds.
Posted 2/27/2017 12:12 AM (GMT 0)
L Rachel,

I've also grown very sensitive to foods, meds, additives since being diagnosed with UC. It's worse when flaring but also in remission. It's gotten really bad over the years. I can't generally even take vitamins. I get stomach pain from most things aside from certain foods that are safe (grain free, lactose and gluten free; everything well cooked and easy to digest). I think this is related to UC because I never had a problem before diagnosis. I also have GERD/reflux though in addition to UC. My previous GI doc thinks I have IBS too, but I think that diagnosis is just a catch all when docs can't figure things out.

Have you experimented with digestive enzymes? Have you tested for SIBO? I couldn't tolerate them either but many people benefit.

Post Edited (Jane974) : 2/26/2017 6:06:24 PM (GMT-7)

Posted 2/27/2017 12:16 AM (GMT 0)
sounds like time for some bloodwork -
Posted 3/1/2017 2:15 AM (GMT 0)
DB: I doubt it. I took me literal months to figure out I was having a negative reaction to Tums because I just assumed that they were really mild. Finally, the symptoms were occuring pretty fast after taking a chewable, so I googled it and discovered that they contain magnesium, which started giving me problems within the last year or so. Drugs that I've been totally fine on for my entire life are giving me issues that I would never have anticipated. The birth control I've been taking for over a decade, for example. I never worried about it and it took me awhile to connect my symptoms to various meds.

NiceCupofTea: No, I'm definitely suffering from malabsorption. Vitamin deficiency, hair loss, undigested food in bowel movements.

Jane: I tried digestive enzymes before I got my UC diagnosis. I'm a little scared to try them again. I seem to have severe reactions to everything. As for SIBO, I asked for a test years ago and my doc expressed doubt that SIBO even existed. I dropped it, but maybe it's something to pursue.

Soynomore: I have tons done every three months because of the Entyvio and Imuran. I had B12, D, protein, Lytes, SED rate, iron, ferritin, g-glutamyl trans, high sensitivity CRP, cortisol, CBC diff with platelets, urea nitrogen, bilirubin battery, AST, alkaline phosphatase, albumin, zinc and plasma, and creatinine tested in early January. That's the regular bloodwork I have with every visit.
Posted 3/1/2017 2:33 AM (GMT 0)
L Rachel: Can the hypersensitivity be from Imuran since it suppresses the immune system or entyvio?

Have you talked to your doc about medications that help with pain, particularly nerve pain? Pain meds can help with the hypersensitivity part (gabapentin for example).
Posted 3/1/2017 2:38 AM (GMT 0)
I can definitely ask about that. They seem to shrug off the hypersensitivity, which is kind of understandable since even I didn't realize how bad it had gotten until my mom pointed it out to me. I will bring that up at my next appointment.

I've tried gabapentin before, but not recently. I will ask to give it a try again. I can't remember why I stopped taking it.

Thanks!
Posted 3/1/2017 3:52 AM (GMT 0)
L Rachel

I have high food sensitivity (maybe hyper but don't know parameters for that) that I never had pre-UC. My thought is that my gut is missing some layer of protection.

Maybe "leaky gut" is allowing your meds to get into your bloodstream in a higher dose than normal, missing that protective layer or due to permeability.
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