Our gut controls the body's control center, controlling how we absorb nutrients, get rid of toxins, and fight off illnesses. When our immune system becomes overly stressed, whether it's from environmental, behavioral, or even genetic factors, it begins to fight itself. Ulcerative colitis and other autoimmune conditions are becoming more common in the U.S., with 15,000 new cases every year. Ulcerative colitis is caused by inflammation in the larger intestine and colon. It creates a lot of unwanted symptoms, and some people can't live their lives without medication. In this article, I will be sharing with you ways that you can naturally manage Ulcerative colitis, protect your immune system, and even enhance your gut health.
What is Ulcerative Colitis?
Ulcerative Colitis is an inflammatory bowel disease that causes chronic inflammation and ulcers in the superficial lining of the large intestine, more known as the colon. This disease develops slowly over time and currently has no cure. They have not found a direct cause of this disease, but from a different hypothesis, I have found that different forms of stress, food, lack of sleep, and even genetics play a role in the development of this disease.
They have found in multiple studies a correlation between the Western diet, which consists of high amounts of processed foods, high in refined sugar, and low in fiber, which has been shown to predispose individuals to IBD (ulcerative colitis). They have also found that when we are exposed to chronic stress, the neurons in the ENS (enteric nervous system) and the GI tract usually stop working. This can lead to impaired bowel movement and exacerbated IBD symptoms. There was another study conducted in 2020 in the journal Chron's & Colitis on 360 people with IBD who sleep poorly fall into worsened IBD symptoms.
What are the Potential Causes Of Gut-Related Inflammation?
Inflammation in the gut begins with what we decide to consume, whether it be bread, ultra-processed foods, alcohol, fast food, fried foods, or any other foods that are considered to be inflammatory. What happens in the gut when these foods are present? They damage how our microbiome and immune system communicate, causing a stress response in the gut and leading to inflammation. Over time, as this communication gets worse, the more symptoms and signs you begin to see of IBD.
I am not a doctor nor a medical professional, and please talk to your doctor before discontinuing or getting off your prescriptions. When we take over-the-counter or prescribed medications for too long, they destroy our microbiome and guts' ability to break down foods, identify toxins, and confuse the communication between our microbiome and our immune system, leading to chronic inflammation. According to a study on public med, medications, such as Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, can cause inflammation to the mucosal lining of the gut with long-term use.
When we don't have enough good bacteria in our gut, which are from quality nutrients like probiotics, prebiotics, and minerals, our body will have an inflammatory response and cause IBD-like symptoms, which could explain why when you start eating healthy your gut doesn't respond well because it doesn't have enough good bacterial yet to handle the load of fiber and good nutrients. Harmful bacteria from refined sugar, wheat, soy, corn, alcohol, and other inflammatory foods cause dangerous bacteria to grow. This could explain why you don't notice symptoms of these foods for long periods of time because your gut adapts to them until it can't handle the inflammation anymore, causing your body to reverse the symptoms, leading to IBD-like symptoms.
What Makes Symptoms Worse When Struggling With UC or IBD
When struggling with UC or IBD, you are constantly facing inflammation in the gut with painful ulcers and bowel irregularities. Understanding what foods could make those symptoms worse gives you the power to make decisions to help you prevent and manage your symptoms.
Ultra-processed foods: research has found a strong correlation between consuming ultra-processed foods and Gastrointestinal inflammation. Research has discovered that the commercially made ingredients disrupt the microbiota, causing potential gastrointestinal inflammation in the large intestine and colon.
Fast food: The abundant number of options available to us with fast food creates a more convenient option for people, especially people with stressful jobs and other stressful external stimuli. With this added stress mentally and within the gut, what we have found is IBD and other gut inflammatory issues have become more common. The main issue with these foods is the oils and components used to make these foods. Seed oils contain trans fats that can cause inflammation in the gut and spike a flare-up with UC or IBD.
Sugary drinks(soda): beverages that contain carbonation and other ingredients can cause significant gas within the gut that can cause an inflammatory response.
Alcohol: Alcohol can also affect the gut microbiome. It can negatively impact the protective molecules in the gut and increase gut permeability, both of which are signs that worsen UC. Research suggests that alcohol can aggravate inflammatory responses in the gut and make UC worse.
Raw vegetables, nuts, seeds, & legumes: the skin of raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes contain insoluble fiber that can cause an inflammatory response and make UC symptoms worse. The best way to fix this is to soak and cook your foods thoroughly. Soak your nuts and beans for a couple of days and peel them. Steam or prepare your vegetables until they are a little soft. With fruits, make sure to peel them thoroughly before consuming.
External stress: Stress induces activation of the brain-gut axis, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis), the autonomic nervous system (ANS), and the enteric nervous system (ENS), contributing to the development of the IBD via dysbiosis, alterations of secretion and mobility, disruption of the intestinal barrier and the release of inflammatory mediators. This means your brain and gut are connected, and when you face external stress, it causes disruption in your digestive tract and releases stress hormones, which can flare up inflammation and UC or IBD symptoms.
Top Natural Methods to Prevent and Manage IBD/UC
Natural Probiotics: Probiotics are essential for our gut and mental health. Probiotics are live bacteria that live in our gut microbiome, which affects our immune system and our digestive system. These bacteria are essential for proper bowel excretion, nutrient absorption, and hormone secretion. Getting enough bacteria in your gut is vital for your digestive tract to stay protected, but most people donate more bacteria, especially those who eat a highly processed diet. Foods rich in probiotic bacteria are Grass-fed kefir, raw kefir, saurekraute, and other pickled vegetables (pickles, onions, etc.). All of these contain live bacteria strains that can contribute to a higher concentration of bacteria in your gut, helping to prevent inflammation and improving overall gut health.
Proper Prebiotic Fiber: prebiotic fiber comes from an array of fruits and vegetables that contain fiber, antioxidants, polyphenols, and other vital nutrients that help care for your probiotic bacteria. These nutrients are essential for your bacteria to stay strong and recognize nutrients that come into your body. These foods help your gut break down certain foods and absorb the proper amount of nutrients in each food you consume. I recommend incorporating most foods, such as berries, avocados, cucumbers, watermelon, pumpkin, pineapple, mango, papaya, bananas, and honey, all containing high prebiotic fiber. All other fruits and vegetables are just as good, but these are great options. What makes these foods so important is that they contain digestive enzymes. Digest enzymes such as amylase, protease, and lipase are essential in helping the gut recognize proteins, carbs, and fats and break them down properly.
Minerals/hydration: Minerals like sodium, magnesium, potassium, zinc, and the rest all help with the hydration and motility of the digestive tract. The easier your gut can absorb and pass food through, the better it can function, and you reduce the risk of flare-ups and inflammation. I recommend supplementing with a magnesium complex and electrolytes daily to help with proper hydration and digestive motility. When we are low in these minerals, our gut is at risk for leaky gut and other bowel-related diseases.
Sleep: Sleep is crucial for proper gut recovery; the better you sleep, the better your digestive tract can do its job. While resting, our gut repairs tissue and feeds the good bacteria for a proper bowel movement the following morning. It's crucial to get at least 6 hours of sleep each night, and getting to bed before 11:00 p.m. sets your body into REM sleep, which is when your gut is doing the most of the repair it needs.
Fasting: fasting is a fantastic way to give your digestive tract a break but also allow your gut to recover from inflammation. When the gut has a chance to heal, it can reproduce new bacteria to help with the recovery process. I recommend fasting 12 hours a day for females and 16 hours for males; these are the best times for optimal results. It is best to fast starting from your last meal; for example, if you eat at 6:00 p.m., you will eat again at 6:00 a.m. the next day, or for males, it would be 10:00 a.m.
There may not be a singular cause of IBD or ulcerative colitis, but we can't deny the connection between what we eat, how we sleep, and what is stressing us out. If you struggle with IBD, ulcerative colitis, or any other gut issues, please get checked out and take an analysis of your day-to-day habits.
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