Guest guest Posted January 3, 2008 Report Share Posted January 3, 2008  Make us your home page Tue, December 25, 2007 Get Mobile Access | Place an AdEmail Newsletters RSS Feeds La Estrellatucson.comCustomer Service Jobs Cars Real Estate Classifieds Shopping Past Week (Free) Star Archives Classifieds Home | Tucson Region | UA Sports | Sports | News | AzStarBiz | Opinion | Accent | Entertainment | Neighborhoods | All Headlines | Blogs | Obituaries Site Map Contact Us Go Back Email this story Print this story Letter to the editor Discuss GeneralCasas Adobes Pet ClinicVeterninary Technician Administrative & ProfessionalManager Driver/Transportationarizona propanedriver EducationSt. College PreparatoryDirector of Development Trades/ConstructionPioneer LandscapingSupervisor Accent Ask Dr. Weil by Weil : Try treating Crohn's disease with alternative medicine Ask Dr. Weil by Weil Tucson, Arizona | Published: 12.25.2007 advertisement Q What do you recommend for treatment of Crohn's disease? ACrohn's disease is a more serious form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that usually develops in the lowest parts of the small and large intestines but can also occur elsewhere in the digestive tract. Symptoms include loss of appetite, chronic diarrhea, cramping, pain in the abdomen and weight loss. Stress can worsen symptoms but doesn't cause the disease. Although we don't know all the factors that lead to the development of Crohn's disease, a recently discovered gene may point the way to new treatments and even to a way to prevent the disease from occurring in the first place. The gene is linked to a cellular receptor for interleukin-23 (IL-23), a protein involved in immunity and the inflammatory process. New anti-inflammatory drugs in the pipeline may work for Crohn's disease and for other forms of IBD as well, such as ulcerative colitis. While Crohn's disease can't yet be cured, it can be managed successfully and can remain in remission for long periods of time. Conventional medicine treats it with a variety of drugs, nutritional supplements and, when necessary, surgery. My personal preference is to first send patients with Crohn's disease to practitioners of modern Chinese medicine, which includes acupuncture and herbal remedies in addition to dietary adjustment and, possibly, massage and energy work. I have seen some very good results from this approach. Ayurvedic medicine, radical dietary change and long-term fasting (under supervision) can also be helpful. A low-fat, high-fiber diet may also provide a benefit. But during the active stages of the illness, raw fruits and vegetables and seeds and nuts will irritate the digestive system. You can also try the following approaches, which may help bring the disease under control: ◠Avoid coffee, decaf, all other sources of caffeine and all stimulant drugs. ◠Avoid milk and all milk products. ◠Avoid products sweetened with sorbitol, xylitol or other sugar alcohols. ◠Take slippery elm in the form of gruel: Combine 1 teaspoon of the powder with 1 teaspoon of sugar and 2 cups of boiling water. Stir well. Flavor with cinnamon and drink one or two cups twice a day. ◠If cramping is a problem, take enteric-coated capsules of peppermint oil between meals to relieve the spasmodic component of inflammatory bowel disease. ◠Practice breathing exercises for relaxation. ◠Because stress can worsen symptoms, take a course in biofeedback or experiment with hypnotherapy and guided imagery to use the mind/body connection to heal the gut. ◠Consider psychotherapy or cognitive behavioral therapy to work on emotional conflicts that can exacerbate symptoms. ◠To address inflammation, increase your dietary omega-3 fatty acids by taking supplemental fish oil. Start with 1 gram a day and increase slowly to 2 to 4 grams a day. Watch for any increase in diarrhea, and cut back the dose if necessary. Aiming for ultra-thin Q My daughter is only 10, and she's already worrying about her weight. She's not overweight, and no one in the family is too heavy. I'm worried that she'll get into unhealthy eating habits. Any thoughts on how to prevent this? AI was glad to read not long ago that the fashion world has finally begun to back away from stick-thin models — the kind that many young girls strive to emulate. Sad to say, it took the death due to anorexia nervosa of Ana Carolina Reston, 21, a Brazilian model, to get the fashion folks to tune into this problem. Some fashion houses in Italy and Spain have agreed to ban from runways those models whose body mass index is less than 18. When she died, Reston was 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighed only 88 pounds. Her BMI was 13.5; a BMI in the neighborhood of 15 is considered an indication of starvation. Government officials in England and India have also voiced concern about young girls who diet to become ultra-thin. Another welcome development came when -nominated actress Kate Winslet spoke out against the ultra-thin trend. The mother of a 6-year-old daughter, Winslet said in a BBC interview that she refused to keep magazines in the house because she worries that her daughter would see the models and buy into thinness as an ideal. One tip-off to an unhealthy preoccupation with weight among young girls is how often they weigh themselves. A study from the University of Minnesota published in the December 2006 issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health found that girls who weighed themselves frequently were more likely to skip meals, use diet pills or laxatives, smoke, and binge and vomit to lose weight. Ten percent of the Minnesota junior high and senior high school girls who took part said they weighed themselves often, and 92 percent of that group said they engaged in some type of unhealthy behavior designed to lose weight. Interestingly, junior high girls who said they weighed themselves often gained an average of 33.3 pounds over five years, compared with an average weight gain of 18.6 pounds for girls of the same age who didn't weigh themselves frequently. The findings didn't apply to the boys in the study. A total of 2,516 boys and girls participated. If your daughter's preoccupation with her weight leads her to any of the behaviors that suggest an eating disorder, be sure to get professional help promptly. ◠Ask Dr. Weil a question at www.drweil.com. Click "Ask Dr. Weil" and then "Ask Your Question." If your question is selected, look for Weil's response in an upcoming article. "Ask Dr. Weil" does not provide specific medical advice and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your doctor. Always see your physician to discuss specific symptoms and conditions. 0 Comments on this story $2 7-day delivery - Subscribe to the Arizona Daily Star Email this story Print this story Letter to the editor Discuss Copyright © 2007 Go Back Wildcat newslettersARIZONA• sign up nowU of A basketball coverage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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