Soy Milk - Yes, no, maybe?

I'm having a flare that just doesn't want to quit. I've been really, stressed out lately due to peri-meno anxiety, so I'm sure that's part of it.

I recently started having soy milk (no additives) because I read it can be good for all kinds of things including peri-meno.

I was just googling today and found some stuff that said soy is bad for UC, some that said it's good. Any thoughts? Could the soy be causing my flare to be so stubborn?

A lot of us switch to soy during flares because our lactose tolerance is low. Personally I think soy is kind of icky and prefer lactaid. I have soy at school because its served in the cafe and it never bothers me. Honestly though, everyone is different. Try it out and if you feel likes its giving you trouble, stop it. Simple as that.
Hope it works out for you! :)

Thank you for your replies.

Hi quincy. I'm drinking about 2 cups a day. Each cup has about 75g of isoflavones per serving.

I know through this whole process (since 2006) I've often had mini flares during my period. I usually got them under control within a few days. This flare has been rearing it's head over the last couple of months off and on. This week has been particularly bad though. I've had blood, mucous, gas, aching rectum--the whole list I started with in 2006.

I started the soy a few weeks ago and didn't notice it making things worse at the time. It's just this past week that things are really acting up. Would the soy take a few weeks to effect the colitis, or would I have seen the adverse reaction right away, I wonder?

I've been under a great deal of stress over the last couple of months due to anxiety over my health (in other areas, not UC). This is just something else to add to the list now.

I don't want to give up the soy if I don't have to, but if it's what's keeping me in a flare, of course I will. I'm wondering how long it would take to know if that's the problem???

Have you ever done enemas more than once a day? I'm thinking of trying that on days I don't work.

One thing that worries me, is that I read --think it was on this message board-- that some people can become immune to the salofalk. I surely hope that's not the case with me. What other alternatives would I have?

I would love to hear your thoughts on becoming immune to the meds. Thanks.

Thanks Christine. It sounds like soy doesn't bother most people. I had read a few accounts of it causing problems while googling. One woman said both her babies got bloody stools from it, which stopped when she stopped the soy. I imagine that could be an allergy situation??

One woman said her GI told her that soy was extremely hard on the GI tract. Yikes, I just found this.
"The last reason not to use soy milk is the famous PLASTIC effect. There are elements in soy beans which are used in making plastics. Unfermented soy beans, soy milk especially, will line the digestive track like a plastic film, impeding vitamin absorption, so soy milk as a steady diet is not a good idea."

Gotta love the internet. I wonder if that's true. If it is, it would make sense that the enemas wouldn't be as effective if your intestines are coated with "plastic".

Thanks quincy.

I'm not going to assume the meds have stopped working until I stop drinking the soy milk and see where that goes.

I should probably ask to go see a gyne. My Dr. agrees that I'm definitely in peri-meno. I had the FSH test about 3 years ago and it didn't really show anything. I've heard that your hormones fluctuate so much throughout the day, that it really doesn't reveal much.

I don't have any aversion to milk, but wanted to try something with less carbs, so I started on the soy. My blood glucose is a little high, so that's also a bit of a worry.

I don't take anything for my anxiety. I tried that 3 years ago and had a terrible time with it. I stopped taking my VSL, but will start it back up again. It can't hurt anyway. I think probiotics are a good thing. The other supplements I take are in my signature.

This isn't a ride I signed up for, but here I am. I keep telling myself there's a light at the end of the tunnel...