Got My Enterolab Results, Newbie Progress Update

[Canadacan]

Hi all,
In recap, I was diagnosed with LC (sudden onset) about 7 weeks ago. No prior symptoms or intestinal issues before, but my 3-4 weeks of D was very intense. The doctor told me that the colonoscopy results showed that I had a "mild case" (sure didn't feel like it at the time - D 20-30 times per day isn't "mild" in my opinion). He told me to go light on gluten and dairy and prescribed 30 days of budesonide, and that really helped get me back on track. I finished the budesonide about 2 weeks ago. I have remained quite steady since that time, but I know I'm not yet fully "cured". I have about 2-3 loose stools every morning (2-3 times during the past 2 weeks actually D rather than just "loose"), and then no symptoms for the rest of the day. So far. I've remained gluten and dairy free since diagnosis. I have continued to eat all vegetables, including a salad daily. I just got my Enterolab results, as follows:

Fecal Anti-gliadin IgA 19 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
Fecal Anti-casein (cow’s milk) IgA 6 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
Fecal Anti-ovalbumin (chicken egg) IgA 9 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)
Fecal Anti-soy IgA 6 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)

Mean Value 11 Antigenic Foods 6 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)

Food to which there was some immunological reactivity (1+): oats, tuna
No foods in 2+ or 3+ ranges

Obviously, I need to stay gluten free for good. I am a little surprised about the dairy, thinking it was a problem for me, and historically, I eat lots of cheese and greek yogurt. Do I need to remain dairy/casein free until I am fully recovered? Or, shall I continue to be gluten free and add dairy back in? I realize that I am walking a fine line, and I want to fully recover and stay in remission long into the future... I appreciate everyone's support on this forum, and look forward to your recommendations.

[Gabes-Apg]

while ever the stools are loose, I would avoid dairy.

even though your test results show it is not a major trigger, dairy is still an inflammatory food item to everybody. It would be good to have a couple of months of 'healing' before having inflammatory type foods.

as we age, our ability to heal reduces, and takes longer. having dairy too early in the healing process could undo the progress you have made.
we also know from years of contributions to this group, that over time budenside can be less effective ie worked great now, but in 6 months or 12 months it may not work for you.
so the healing you can do now is your best foundation for long term wellness.

hope this helps
happy healing

[tex]

As Gabes mentioned, you will be lactose-intolerant as long as your small intestine is inflamed. You and your doctor may believe that the small intestine is not involved with MC, but trust me, your small intestine is just as inflamed as your colon. There are many medical research references to verify that claim. It's due to the gluten-sensitive component of MC.

Lactose-free milk, yogurt, and hard cheeses contain very little lactose, so they should be OK for you. They do contain small amounts of lactose though, so if you eat too much of them, you may run short of lactase enzyme (as long as your gut is inflamed). All milk products will be OK after you are in remission.

With an overall score of less than 10 on the 11 other antigenic foods, their rankings are irrelevant. You don't need to worry about any of them.

It appears that gluten is your only antibody (autoimmune) problem. But if you want to attain complete remission and prevent relapses in the future by diet changes alone (no budesonide), you will need to totally avoid gluten, not just cut down the amount. Antibodies are all about any amounts, not just large amounts. If the D continues, you may also need to stop the raw salads until your gut has healed, especially lettuce. Fiber is very irritating to the gut when it's already inflamed. It is capable of perpetuating a flare.

All in all, your test results look good. Just about anyone else here would be happy to trade with you.

Good luck with your treatment.

Tex

[Canadacan]

Thanks so much Tex and Gabes for your insights. Yes, I plan to be completely gluten free indefinitely. Per your suggestions, I will stay away from dairy for a few more weeks in hopes that I get more substantial stools. If things remain "less than substantial" for long, I'll remove the raw vegetables to encourage full healing. I don't want to ever go back onto the budesonide, so will do whatever I can to heal naturally and avoid future flares if at all possible. Yes, I do believe I am very lucky to have only one primary sensitivity, which I know that so many others have multiple hoops to jump through. Well, in fact, I am also jumping through hoops, as I have to reduce carbs and sugars to avoid the onset of diabetes 2 (I'm pre-diabetic). I believe this is a lifelong effort - we're blessed to have the opportunity to live so much longer than our ancestors, but we have to work harder to enjoy a lengthy, healthy and rewarding life!

[Gabes-Apg]

you maybe interested to learn that magnesium and Vit C are key in managing insulin and worth some research.

[Canadacan]

Thanks Gabes, I started taking 250 mg. magnesium AM and PM after reading on this forum. I'm currently taking Metagenics Wellness Essentials Healthy Balance with targeted blood sugar support - it's a packet of several pills, recommended by my integrative health physician. I think it is helping, along with careful attention to my diet. (it better be helping, it's expensive!) I've added cider vinegar (may be a fad, but there seems to be some indication that it helps lower both blood sugar levels and cholesterol). I'll check into the vitamin C, as I'm not familiar with that. Thanks again!

[Gabes-Apg]

are you taking a total of 250mg elemental magnesium (check the small print of the mag product to see how much it is) per day?? or 500mg elemental magnesium per day??

https://www.atkins.com/how-it-works/lib ... d-diabetes
A single kiwifruit has 70 mg of vitamin C, an orange has 63% and both are relatively low-sugar fruits

there are some veges that are good sources of Vit C like cauliflower, broccoli, Kale etc...

[Canadacan]

I'm taking Country Life - Chelated Magnesium, 250 mg capsules - 2 per day, so 500 mg total per day. The bottle says: Magnesium (as magnesium oxide, magnesium amino acid chelate, rice flour base). Is this right? recommendations appreciated!

[tex]

Yes, magnesium deficiency is a primary cause of type 2 diabetes. I've written a book called Pancreatic Cancer — A guidebook for Prevention. The book's obviously about pancreatic cancer, but it contains at least two chapters that you will find very beneficial for diabetes prevention.

You can download it free here in any format to suit your digital device:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/665808

One of the chapters is about magnesium deficiency. Read that one.

Another chapter is about diabetes. Read that one.

You can prevent pre-diabetes from turning into frank diabetes just by correcting your chronic magnesium deficiency (yes, you almost surely have a chronic magnesium deficiency if you are pre-diabetic). It isn't easy because if you are already pre-diabetic the magnesium deficiency has already caused insulin resistance and because of that it can be difficult to absorb magnesium (because insulin is needed to transport magnesium in the body). If you cannot absorb magnesium glycinate, you may have to use ReMag, a product created by Dr. Carolyn Dean. Check the references in the book. They offer medical proof that magnesium can correct pre-diabetes. The ebook has live links. It's also available on Amazon in printed form, but Amazon doesn't give the books away free.

Tex

[tex]

And yes, that's the correct type of magnesium. If it doesn't seem to be working (your markers are not improving), switch to ReMag.

Tex

[Gabes-Apg]

I have edited this reply

I checked for small print on the bottle and it doesnt mention elemental magnesium levels
as Tex has mentioned above if you are not absorbing this product as well as you could, it might be worth swapping to ReMag product and/or using topical magnesium. (either via lotion/oil or by doing Epsom salt foot soaks)

I would not increase oral intake of this product at this stage (as it may cause your stools be loose)

for me and my combo of health issues ( I was also pre diabetic) it took me 6 months of high dose magnesium (600-800mg) to correct my deficiency and see improvement with my health issues. My maintenance dose of magnesium is about 400mg-500mg per day.

hope this helps

[tex]

The labeled dose is almost surely the amount of elemental magnesium. It says serving size is one tablet (many say two tablets) so each tablet contains 250 mg of magnesium.

Tex

[Canadacan]

Hi - I'd again like to request thoughts from the experts on this forum. I just got an email from Enterolab suggesting that I also have a fat malabsorption test done now (at a reduced fee since I've already given my sample), and since my gluten results are above the normal range. I do not have fatty stools, anemia or other symptoms I have read about that may be symptoms of malabsorption.

I do wonder if I might have intestinal permeability, since I have had some achy joints but have ruled out arthritis or inflammation - just achy pain that comes and goes arbitrarily in my joints for the past couple of years - sometimes ankle/s, one or both shoulder, sometimes my buttocks, usually not all together, almost transient. I'm thinking that may be a symptom caused by my gluten sensitivity or perhaps a leaky gut?

So, is it advisable for me to have the malabsorption test done now since the stool sample has already been given? Those of you on this forum who so selflessly help so many of us in need of information and support are truly appreciated!

[tex]

My thoughts:

If you don't see the signs of fat malabsorption in the toilet bowel (oily, iridescent fringes in the water surrounding the stool) your score would probably be normal. You have to have a relatively high level of malabsorption in order to receive an elevated score. And you have to be consuming "normal" amounts of fat in order for the test to be accurate.

Many of us have reduced amounts of fat in our diets because of our diet changes. A really high result suggests either celiac disease or many years of reacting. Whether you have the test done or not, kind of depends on your level of curiosity about the degree of residual damage in your small intestine. We all probably have some degree of damage, we just don't know how much. It's a matter of how much it's worth to us to find out. The damage will heal as we slowly recover.

Bottom line — you can certainly do OK without the test. But on the other hand, it will never be more convenient or cheaper.

Tex