Hmm, a peer reviewed article on a clay use for IBD in a rat model

I never jump into trying things without some research but this 2004 full text article may explain why some people do benefit from using certain clays for their UC:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1574279/pdf/141-0705710a.pdf

Trying to beat a stubborn, nasty flare right now. Clay is down a few items of things that I am going to try but I am definitely considering it... Like anything, I need to force myself to really start off small given my tendency to react badly to most supplements (eg , slippery elm and aloe both made things worse).

Yeah, I am still very cautious and worried about trying clays given the state of my flare- a little help, or a little injury, would go a long way to either really help or ruin things right now on the pred teeter totter... The other thing is that some clays may have aluminum, an issue with pepto bismol as well, but that's another matter.

Anyway, quite a few scientific articles of interest on clays that are of interest to the gut- here is another one, on its potential as a safer antibiotic:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3126108/pdf/nihms303501.pdf

I've been on the Terramin clay for almost 2 weeks now. The first 5 days were alright with little or no difference, then I hit what felt like a bad flare coming on, hard to tell if it was a stomach virus or the clay or what, but I had a lot of D and cramps for about 4 days, then the past couple of days its cooled off. Now I've been having markedly less urgency/cramps/gas than before starting the clay. But again, its hard to tell what's causing what. They clay does seem to have an effect of calming cramps for me, especially in the mornings after drinking on an empty stomach.

I highly recommend to read this about clay research:

http://calciumbentonite.net/htmls/claysandmineralsasdrugs.html
I also would like to say that it take some serious commitment, diet and time. If you take a lot of different things, it might not be a good idea to add the clay. When I started on the clay I stopped all the supplements, even the probiotics. So, I know what clay can and can not do or cause. Yes, you might have some detox reaction. It could be some headaches, some diarrhea and feeling tired. The same reaction that you can get from probiotics, antibiotics or Fecal therapy. You are killing a lot of bad bacteria and candida. The more of your colon is effected and inflamed, the more time you will need to heal. I had 2feet of my colon ulcerated and I had a lot of pain, cramps, blood and 10-15 trips to the bathroom per day. I actually tried 1 clay from the local health food store, it did not help much. The 2d clay firstly constipated me and then caused me to have more pain and blood. Terramin within a few days noticeably relieve the pain and cramps and cut the BM's. I also was very careful with my diet: a lot of soups and mushy well cooked foods. Within 10 days I was doing much better. Then I started on Pascalite clay. That clay truly amazed me. So, today is day 59 on both clays. It was not a walk in the park. I had some detox symptoms and some very weird stuff came out of me. The pain did not just disappeared, but every time I had the pain or cramps ( usually after the BM or a meal) I would drink some clay mixture and within minutes the pain would go away. It happened every time, without an exception.
If somebody truly wants to try the clay therapy, you need to cut all of your supplements to the absolute minimum, as well as drugs too. Remember not to take your drugs together with the clays. It should be 2 hours time period between the clay and the drug.
Follow very gentle diet. Think baby food, soft, easy to digest.
Drink a lot of water or herbal tea during a day. It helps the clay to take the"garbage" out of the body.
Do not give up easily. You are not just "covering" the symptoms, you are HEALING your colon. It takes time.
For those who are very sick I recommend Pascalite clay. Start with 1/2 teaspoon in 8oz of water, stir with plastic/wood spoon, let it settle down 15 min and drink it at once or 1/3 of the glass. Mix this dose 3 times per day. After 3-4 days increase the dose to 1 teaspoon 3 times per day and drink all of the clay, including the heavier part on the bottom.
I wish all of you good health.

In my opinion when a person with a compromised GI system, like we with UC, take a lot of different supplements, we are not helping our bodies but stressing our digestive system even more.
During my 5+ years battle with colitis, I too, was taking a lot of different supplements. At one point around 10 per day. It did not help, but irritated my already stressed out system.
The second reason, I think is this. When you take many things at once, you do not really know what actually helps, what hurts you and if some of the supplements could "disagree" with each other. And if you add the clay to this concoction and start getting some unusual symptoms or get worse, I know many people (happened a few times already) automatically blame the clay, even if they take 1/3 or even 1/4 of the dose per day. They do not think that it could be their diet, their multiple supplements combo or a side effect of their drugs with 2 page possible bad reactions to them. Does not matter what they eat, drink or take besides the clay, it is still the Terramin"s or Pascalite's fault.
That is why I think it is good to take as minimum drugs, supplements with the clay as possible, especially for the 1st month.