New To UC Help!!!

Hello,
My boyfriend was diagnosed with UC about 8 months ago. He has been in the hospital 3 times and keeps losing a lot of blood. His doctor really hasn't advised on anything but to take his meds of Asacol 3 times a day. Please advise to me things he should and should not be doing including food intake, taking vitamins...he is severely anemic and tired all the time. Please help...I have a feeling he will be in the hospital again soon

I agree that if the doc is not explaining things or not doing much to help, please have him get another one. If he is severely anemic, he hasn't been started on iron supplements or offered a transfusion??? Anemia is nothing to mess around with. It can lead to some pretty serious health conditions. Do you know his blood count?

We push probiotics on this forum majorly because it really can help with some of the symptoms of Uc. I believe that anyone that has gut issues should be on a probiotic. A probiotic is good bacteria that is designed to replace the bad bacteria in the large intestine. With an abundance of good bacteria, it can allow the large intestine to be a more favorable environment which in turn allows healing.

Oh dear! I'd find a new doctor quick! This is not something to mess around with. And if he is taking his Asacol correctly and it's not helping he needs something else. There are lots of other drug options. Obviously he is have a severe flare to be in the hospital 3 times. How much of his colon is involved? Did the doc even mention rectal meds? They can really help with the lower inflammation in conjunction with oral meds for the rest of the colon.

Read through this forum, you will find lots of information. And I second Fruitgirl...ask anything, there are lots of people here who have had this disease for years and they are very helpful.

And I also second Sherry...probiotics are very helpful as well.

I hope you guys can get him straightened out soon! Poor guy sounds miserable! Good luck.

Thanks for the quick answers!  Where do we get probiotics?  Is it over the counter or is a prescription needed?  Also, what should he do about his diet...what should he eat?

Probiotics are over the counter but you will probably need a health food store/vitamin store to get the best selection. You need one with billions of bacteria. There are different recommendations but the one I take has 50 billion cultures per capsule. There are so many different kinds and different ones work for different people so don't buy the huge bottle at first...make sure it helps. And they can cause some extra gassiness and bloating at first so don't be concerned if that happens.

As far as diet....it is good for everyone to eat healthy, UC or not. Now some with UC are greatly affected by diet and others are not. But since he is in such a flare, I'd say cut down on all the bad stuff as it can make symptoms worse. You can look up anti-inflammatory foods and gets lists there. Just try to eat healthy overall.

And yes, I had to call my doc to get rectal meds as well.

Assuming you're in the U.S., look at the Physician Finder on ccfa.org Website to see if any gastroenterologists subspecializing in IBD treatment are available for consultation in your area. It's best to pursue care by a doctor experienced in dealing with UC because many generalists just do not understand intestinal issues. If your boyfriend has bleeding/multiple bms daily, he should be on a low-fiber diet because it's less irritating to inflamed tissue in the colon. Avoid carbonated drinks, excessive sugar, & heavy spices & fats, junk foods, & anything with poor nutritional value. Being anemic, he needs a daily multivitamin with iron at the very least. There's  a vitamin called Forvia that many forum members take; it's especially formulated for IBD patients. You can look it up on the Web. Also check out the Salix Pharmaceuticals Patient Newsletter series (Archive) for solid info on diet, meds, lifestyle, etc. written by top IBD gastros in the U.S. Best wishes for your boyfriend to get the help he needs ASAP! / Old Hat (30 yrs with left-sided UC ... [etc.])

As for diet, when I was flaring, I stuck to low residue. So, no nuts, seeds, raw veggies or fruits, or anything "scratchy." I ended up eating pretty simply, honestly. Now that I'm in remission, I have no issues with food (other than MSG and artificial sweetners, which I couldn't eat before). I ate pretty healthy before UC, too, though. Some people, however, find that they have to avoid certain items. It's all trial and error when it comes to diet.