By: Jean Johnson for Reflux1In natural ecosystems, what happens upstream in one part of a watershed influences events downstream and elsewhere. Similarly, the human body appears to have holistic associations, particularly when it comes to conditions associated with chronic inflammation.
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The 2005 Food Pyramid encourages Americans interested in exploring new eating habits to line a triple header of whole grains, vegetables and fruits up front
Look for 100% whole grains on the labels and eat 3 to 6 servings
Try for at least one nutrient-dense dark green super-veggie a day and a total of 5 servings of vegetables all together
Get fiber from eating whole, fresh fruits instead of drinking juices
Celebrate the humble bean - pintos, garbanzos, limas and black beans
Go low-fat or non-fat on milk products
Broil, bake, or grill fish and meats and keep proportions modest
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Inflammation a systemic problem?Two recent studies published in the American Gastroenterological Association’s journal, Gastroenterology, substantiate links between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and other inflammatory conditions common to respiratory and nervous systems. Indeed, patients suffering from IBD were significantly more likely than their normal counterparts to contract asthma, bronchitis, arthritis, kidney disease, multiple sclerosis and psoriasis among other disorders characterized by inflammation of tissues in organs and joints.
“These studies remind us that the effects of inflammatory bowel disorders extend to every corner of the body including the lungs and central nervous system,” said author of an editorial appearing in the September 2005 issue of the Gatroenterology and associated professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Edward Loftus Jr., M.D. “The findings lend credence to the concept that patients with one chronic inflammatory condition are more likely than the general population to develop another.”
Inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is an umbrella term for two distinct chronic problems that can have similar symptoms: Ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD). Ulcerative colitis occurs in the large intestine where the inner lining or mucosa of the colon and rectum becomes inflamed to the extent that ulcerations develop. Crohn’s disease, on the other hand, can affect any part of the digestive tract, but is most commonly seen in the lower end of the small intestine in what is know as the ileocecal region.
Both ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease have onsets early in life and commonly strike people between the ages of 15 and 40. Some patients experience symptoms continuously, while others have periods of remission that can last in the range of 10 years with only a single relapse or flare up. Patients who have had ulcerative colitis for longer than 10 years are also at higher risk than normal populations for colorectal cancer.
Symptoms of IBD
The most common symptom of IBD is diarrhea, sometimes severe enough to cause frequent visits to the toilet that can number as high as 20 times a day. Stools often contain blood, and abdominal cramps are generally present. Diarrhea can lead to increased heart rate and a drop in blood pressure (hypotension). Worse, blood loss and dehydration can result in fatigue and anemia.
IBD, multiple sclerosis and other nervous system disorders
One of the recent studies took place in Britain where scientists confirmed an almost two-fold increase for risk of multiple sclerosis in patients with inflammatory bowl disease. Examining about 80,000 participants, 20,000 of whom were diagnosed with Crohn’s disease of ulcerative colitis between 1988 and 1997, researchers found the chances of IBD patients having multiple sclerosis or other nervous system disorders 1.7 times as high as healthy participants in the control group.
IBD respiratory, joint, and skin disorders
Like the British study, Canadian researchers found patients suffering from chronic intestinal inflammation to have significantly increased risk for asthma and bronchitis. The team also found higher risk for arthritis and psoriasis in the group of 8,072 IBD patients it studied.
“People with IBD are 1.5 times as likely to have asthma as people in the general population,” said Charles Bernstein, M.D., lead study author from the University of Manitoba in Canada. “Airway diseases are the second most common chronic inflammatory disease assessed in patients with either Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.”
Causes of IBD – Genetics? Western Diet?
Scientists state that causes of inflammatory bowel disorder are unknown, although researchers speculate that patients are influenced in part by inherited predispositions to the conditions. The disorder, however, is largely unknown in populations that do not eat Western-style diets.
A study reported at the Australian Gastroenterology Week conference in 2002 showed that patients who developed IBD had diets high in saturated fats and refined sugars and were three times more likely than healthy members of the control group to eat fast foods, sugary desserts and high-carbohydrate foods like pastries and scones.
Research dietician at the University of Newcastle, Alison Bencke, Ph.D., analyzed the reported diets of approximately 400 people, 107 of whom were diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease. Bencke indicated further research was needed to understand associations between dietary habits and genetics. But she noted that geographic trends support the idea that Western diets are factors in both ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Rates of both ailments have increased over the past quarter century in Europe and North America as processed foods high in saturated fats and refined sugars have become more widely available. More, cases of IBD have been arising in Japan, a country and culture in which the disorder was unknown prior to importing Western-style fast food and other dietary habits.
