Citric Acid/Citrate

I dunno but magnesium citrate is a laxative, in fact it is used as a colonoscopy prep.

Natural citric acid is found in many fruits especially citrus fruits like lemons, limes, and oranges. However artificial or manufactured citric acid is one of the most common food additives in the world.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/citric-acid#safety
"Manufactured citric acid is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
No scientific studies exist investigating the safety of manufactured citric acid when consumed in large amounts for long periods. Still, there have been reports of sickness and allergic reactions to the additive.

One report found joint pain with swelling and stiffness, muscular and stomach pain, as well as shortness of breath in four people after they consumed foods containing manufactured citric acid.
These same symptoms were not observed in people consuming natural forms of the acid, such as lemons and limes.
Researchers acknowledged that they couldn’t prove the manufactured citric acid was responsible for those symptoms but recommended that its use in foods and beverages be further studied.
In either case, the scientists suggested that the symptoms were most likely related to the mold used to produce the citric acid rather than the compound itself."

Bothering you how exactly? It can cause looser stool in elevated amounts, not a bad thing if one is constipated. It won't make UC worse, however...but it will have an effect on stool consistency.

q

IBDGal said...
Has anyone noticed aggravation of ulcerative colitis due to citric acid and/or citrate? It seems to be an irritant in a similar way that alcohol is an irritant to an ulcer. That is my observation but sometimes, when you eat several things in a day, its hard to pinpoint which specific item caused the aggravation.

I eat unprocessed fresh food to try to avoid these irritants as much as possible. I don't know about citric acid, but the additives that make IBD worse i've seen in studies are Carrageen and Polysorbate 80. There are a bunch of other fillers to avoid as well, but I don't recall all of them.

I have family that are very sensitive and have a corn intolerance. They avoid citric acid because commercially produced citric acid is often a by product of corn. Are you bothered by corn? What is the citric acid in when you are bothered by it? I would have a hard time separating out the citric acid from the other possibilities myself. I used to think pickles made me flare. Over the years I have realized I craved certain things leading up to a flare. I tend to see more as a warning, rather than the cause, now.

Jane974 said...
the additives that make IBD worse i've seen in studies are Carrageen and Polysorbate 80. There are a bunch of other fillers to avoid as well, but I don't recall all of them.

Along with carrageenan and polysorbate80, you can add maltodextrin to the list.

Yeah like more cramping, pain, looser bowls but not sure if that was the problem or it was some other ingredient. I have a food log and there are times in the past where i took citrate, in the form of magnesium citrate, and had no issues whatsoever - no cramping, no pain, no loose bowels. Sometimes its also the combination of certain things. Its just so hard to figure out what might cause issues on any given day.

quincy said...
Bothering you how exactly? It can cause looser stool in elevated amounts, not a bad thing if one is constipated. It won't make UC worse, however...but it will have an effect on stool consistency.

q

Thank you that is very helpful!! I try to avoid ingredients that aggravate potential bio-film problems and I must have missed seeing maltodextrin but it looks you are right, this is a bad one too. What are the other ingredients you see as avoid? For me it has been carrageenan, xanathan gum, and now I will probably add maltodextrin. There is also the ingredient soy lecithin which I am not sure but seems like it could be another bad ingredient.

IamCurious said...

IBDGal said...
What is the issue with maltodextrin? What is it specifically doing to cause problems?

I go by what my gut says and my gut doesn't like maltodextrin. But here is some science behind it. Maltodextrin was originally researched by Old Mike and I immediately followed up because I could see that OM really hit the nail on the head. Sharing information like this is what makes HW so valuable.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc4133521/
Maltodextrin, a polysaccharide derived from starch hydrolysis that is used as food additive, has been shown to markedly enhance AIEC biofilm formation and adhesion to intestinal epithelial cells and macrophages. Maltodextrin favors type 1 pili expression, which is required for biofilm formation and adhesion.

https://health.usnews.com/health-news/news/articles/2012/05/21/could-compound-in-artificial-sweeteners-worsen-crohns-disease
Researchers then repeated the experiments, culturing E. coli with maltodextrin alone, and the same sticky biofilm formed.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25000398
The dietary polysaccharide maltodextrin promotes Salmonella survival and mucosal colonization in mice.

I agree on foods. But, I believe there are certain ingredients that at the very least aggravate colitis and maybe even can cause new ulcers. I know for sure that carrageenan and xanathan gum are 2 of those ingredients for me. I have kept a food journal and, a majority of the time that I get bleeding after not having bleeding for a while, I can trace it back to a food that had carrageenan or xanathan gum. You pointed out a very good one in maltodextrin and so I have been going back and looking to see which of my foods have that ingredient because I think that one also causes bleeding for me but I may have not realized it. Interestingly, all three of these ingredients are polysaccharide types in nature and have research studies linking them to biofilms. I have long suspected biofilms as being a critical component to my ulcerative colitis and possibly most people's ulcers in general.

But the main point is that I think there might be more ingredients out there than just these three. Do you have any issues with soy lecithin? I think it would be great if we can identify the ingredients as "dangerous for colitis" or something and try to avoid them. I will say that I think these ingredients are different that foods that might cause irritation like nuts or chocolate. I think these ingredients do more than just irritate.

IamCurious said...
What are the other ingredients you see as avoid?

You can check out my signature and see other items like Sorbitol, malitol, etc., not just processed food additives but some foods too. But food is an individual thing, e.g. I have trouble with shellfish but others have no trouble at all. And I love corn and popcorn but apparently it drives other people to the toilet. So I recommend keeping a food diary.

I know - it is so frustrating! These harmful ingredients seem to be put in so many foods! One time I had a salad thinking it was healthy and was confused why I felt so sick the next day. Then, I realized the dressing had carrageenan AND xanathan gum in it. Those ingredients give me (and seems like most UCers) absolute hell.

IamCurious said...

IBDGal said...
You pointed out a very good one in maltodextrin and so I have been going back and looking to see which of my foods have that ingredient because I think that one also causes bleeding for me but I may have not realized it.
Do you have any issues with soy lecithin?

Maltodextrin is so frustrating for me because it is in so many vitamins and supplements, and I take tons of supplements. I know it can only be inside those capsules in minute quantities but it really makes a difference for me. So I have to carefully inspect labels.

Lecithin or phosphatidylcholine (PPC) was originally extracted from egg yolks and is used as an emulsifier in cooking and as a food supplement to lower cholesterol.

I used to take PPC to lower cholesterol and later for my UC and it seemed to halp for the first couple of years. Then all of a sudden it made things worse. Maybe my body chemistry changed or perhaps it might be that phosphatidylcholine is no longer derived from egg yolks but from soybeans, and about 95 percent of soy is GMO saturated with Roundup (glyphosate).