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Lower calorie diet reduces inflammation in inflammatory bowel disease?

comptonelizabeth
comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
in Debate Club
This interests me as I have ulcerative colitis and I know there are a few people on mfp with ibd. Thoughts?

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/reduced-calorie-diet-lowers-signs-inflammatory-bowel-disease

Replies

  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    It was in mice so the likelihood of the results being completely transferable - ehhh
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    It was in mice so the likelihood of the results being completely transferable - ehhh

    Yeah, I know.... :neutral: It was followed up on humans but only a very small sample
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    shaumom wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    It was in mice so the likelihood of the results being completely transferable - ehhh

    Except the reason that mice are used is not just because they are small and make lots of babies, but because weirdly, a lot of physical things in mice DO transfer over into people. "their genetic, biological and behavior characteristics closely resemble those of humans, and many symptoms of human conditions can be replicated in mice and rats." (https://www.livescience.com/32860-why-do-medical-researchers-use-mice.html ).

    so the results working similarly in humans might be more likely than you'd think. :-)

    I've read of anecdotal examples of people who have improved their inflammatory markers by intermittent fasting but, as I'm here to gain rather than lose weight, I've been reluctant to try it as I suspect I'd struggle to get in the necessary calories.
    And yeah, that was my understanding re mice but I notice many on mfp(who probably know a hell of a lot more than I do) disagree.
  • rhtexasgal
    rhtexasgal Posts: 572 Member
    As someone who has ulcerative colitis and proctitis (in remission luckily), I am not sure I buy it. During my recovery and remission, it has always been the type of food rather than following a low calorie, intermittent fasting approach. Granted, during my weight loss journey, I was already in remission so the parameters of this article would not apply to me. With that said, looking back during my recovery, I did not stick to low calorie foods. I just ate anti-inflammatory foods (avoided nightshades as they are inflammatory - no salsa!) and foods with good, healthy fats. I avoided trigger foods like corn, popcorn, dairy, etc. and dosed up on probiotics, added coconut oil to my diet and some other things that escape me at the moment! Once I healed, I could add many of these things back with no ill effects.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    comptonelizabeth wrote: »
    shaumom wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    It was in mice so the likelihood of the results being completely transferable - ehhh

    Except the reason that mice are used is not just because they are small and make lots of babies, but because weirdly, a lot of physical things in mice DO transfer over into people. "their genetic, biological and behavior characteristics closely resemble those of humans, and many symptoms of human conditions can be replicated in mice and rats." (https://www.livescience.com/32860-why-do-medical-researchers-use-mice.html ).

    so the results working similarly in humans might be more likely than you'd think. :-)

    And yeah, that was my understanding re mice but I notice many on mfp(who probably know a hell of a lot more than I do) disagree.

    My very vague understanding is that while mice biology seems to react similarly to human, results from mouse studies don't translate to humans nearly as often as one would expect.

    If you're interested in IF, you could try easing into it. Start with say a 10 hour window, and keep shortening it until you either can't eat enough or get too hungry outside the window.
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    comptonelizabeth wrote: »
    This interests me as I have ulcerative colitis and I know there are a few people on mfp with ibd. Thoughts?

    https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/reduced-calorie-diet-lowers-signs-inflammatory-bowel-disease

    Longo has been doing research on this subject for like 30 years. I have read one of his books and currently doing another 5 day FMD at present. What it cool you get to eat 800 calories daily and get the same results of a 5 day water fast. I am trying it for 5 days out of each month more as a replacement for the advantage of IF.

    It has been known for many years lower calories lowers risk of death from all causes. I expect that is due to lower levels of inflammation.

    Thanks for sharing the link. He is from Italy and surprise surprise he is also big on the Mediterranean WOE. :) In fact he states most people need to eat more like their grandparents and great grandparents to have the best health which means lay off of ultra processed food sources.
  • neugebauer52
    neugebauer52 Posts: 1,120 Member
    There are some interesting studies on protein over - consumption and some unhealthy side effects. In general I feel that everyone has to find his / her ideal macros percentages which in my case was a matter of trial and error. After a year with MFP I have found the right mix - no cravings, no need for binge eating. And that extra weight is slowly coming off.
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    edited March 2019
    rhtexasgal wrote: »
    As someone who has ulcerative colitis and proctitis (in remission luckily), I am not sure I buy it. During my recovery and remission, it has always been the type of food rather than following a low calorie, intermittent fasting approach. Granted, during my weight loss journey, I was already in remission so the parameters of this article would not apply to me. With that said, looking back during my recovery, I did not stick to low calorie foods. I just ate anti-inflammatory foods (avoided nightshades as they are inflammatory - no salsa!) and foods with good, healthy fats. I avoided trigger foods like corn, popcorn, dairy, etc. and dosed up on probiotics, added coconut oil to my diet and some other things that escape me at the moment! Once I healed, I could add many of these things back with no ill effects.

    I'm currently in remission too and have to say I've not noticed much of a link with food anyway, even when I'm flaring but what I have noticed is that in the days following a colonoscopy (for which you have to fast and clear out the bowel) my gut is surprisingly well behaved! Next time it flares up I might follow the suggestions above and try some moderate intermittent fasting :)
    By the way I've read elsewhere that coconut oil *might* actually be inflammatory but I now can't find the link!
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    GaleHawkins wrote: »
    comptonelizabeth wrote: »
    This interests me as I have ulcerative colitis and I know there are a few people on mfp with ibd. Thoughts?

    https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/reduced-calorie-diet-lowers-signs-inflammatory-bowel-disease

    Longo has been doing research on this subject for like 30 years. I have read one of his books and currently doing another 5 day FMD at present. What it cool you get to eat 800 calories daily and get the same results of a 5 day water fast. I am trying it for 5 days out of each month more as a replacement for the advantage of IF.

    It has been known for many years lower calories lowers risk of death from all causes. I expect that is due to lower levels of inflammation.

    Thanks for sharing the link. He is from Italy and surprise surprise he is also big on the Mediterranean WOE. :) In fact he states most people need to eat more like their grandparents and great grandparents to have the best health which means lay off of ultra processed food sources.

    I tend to cook most things from scratch anyway, not that I have anything against "processed" foods, but more so that I know what I'm eating and can avoid the things that I know upset me.
    Interesting about our grandparents and great grandparents but how then does he explain the fact that the average lifespan is longer now?
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    He talks about how his relatives that had moved from Italy to Chicago were experience shorter health spans. Longevity was the main reason he gave up being a rock star after seeing what the Standard American Diet was doing to shorten the health years and lives of his American family members. I got the book (<$20 new) to get my hands on his research data. Life spans of his family was shorter on average.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,226 Member
    edited March 2019
    comptonelizabeth wrote: »
    GaleHawkins wrote: »
    comptonelizabeth wrote: »
    This interests me as I have ulcerative colitis and I know there are a few people on mfp with ibd. Thoughts?

    https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/reduced-calorie-diet-lowers-signs-inflammatory-bowel-disease

    Longo has been doing research on this subject for like 30 years. I have read one of his books and currently doing another 5 day FMD at present. What it cool you get to eat 800 calories daily and get the same results of a 5 day water fast. I am trying it for 5 days out of each month more as a replacement for the advantage of IF.

    It has been known for many years lower calories lowers risk of death from all causes. I expect that is due to lower levels of inflammation.

    Thanks for sharing the link. He is from Italy and surprise surprise he is also big on the Mediterranean WOE. :) In fact he states most people need to eat more like their grandparents and great grandparents to have the best health which means lay off of ultra processed food sources.

    I tend to cook most things from scratch anyway, not that I have anything against "processed" foods, but more so that I know what I'm eating and can avoid the things that I know upset me.
    Interesting about our grandparents and great grandparents but how then does he explain the fact that the average lifespan is longer now?

    Not that I want to be an apologist for an author whose book I haven't read, but keep in mind that our grandparents and great-grandparents lived in times where many of themselves worked themselves to the bone from toddler to grave (even my dad was picking cucumbers and such for other farmers for pay from age 5; and there were no pensions in old age, so they kept working, mostly); medical care was limited in availability and not as advanced (one of my uncles died from peritonitis due to burst appendix, before there were antibiotics); and infant mortality was staggering, dragging down the average lifespan. There's more to mortality stats than just eating.

    (Interpretive note: I'm old (63). My parents were old when I was born (mom 43, dad 38), so my grandparents were born in the late 1800s, and my parents in the nineteen-teens. My actual grandparents lived until their 80s, from an era when the average lifespan was lower, but I don't know about the great-grands.)
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    comptonelizabeth wrote: »
    GaleHawkins wrote: »
    comptonelizabeth wrote: »
    This interests me as I have ulcerative colitis and I know there are a few people on mfp with ibd. Thoughts?

    https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/reduced-calorie-diet-lowers-signs-inflammatory-bowel-disease

    Longo has been doing research on this subject for like 30 years. I have read one of his books and currently doing another 5 day FMD at present. What it cool you get to eat 800 calories daily and get the same results of a 5 day water fast. I am trying it for 5 days out of each month more as a replacement for the advantage of IF.

    It has been known for many years lower calories lowers risk of death from all causes. I expect that is due to lower levels of inflammation.

    Thanks for sharing the link. He is from Italy and surprise surprise he is also big on the Mediterranean WOE. :) In fact he states most people need to eat more like their grandparents and great grandparents to have the best health which means lay off of ultra processed food sources.

    I tend to cook most things from scratch anyway, not that I have anything against "processed" foods, but more so that I know what I'm eating and can avoid the things that I know upset me.
    Interesting about our grandparents and great grandparents but how then does he explain the fact that the average lifespan is longer now?

    Not that I want to be an apologist for an author whose book I haven't read, but keep in mind that our grandparents and great-grandparents lived in times where many of themselves worked themselves to the bone from toddler to grave (even my dad was picking cucumbers and such for other farmers for pay from age 5; and there were no pensions in old age, so they kept working, mostly); medical care was limited in availability and not as advanced (one of my uncles died from peritonitis due to burst appendix, before there were antibiotics); and infant mortality was staggering, dragging down the average lifespan. There's more to mortality stats than just eating.

    (Interpretive note: I'm old (63). My parents were old when I was born (mom 43, dad 38), so my grandparents were born in the late 1800s, and my parents in the nineteen-teens. My actual grandparents lived until their 80s, from an era when the average lifespan was lower, but I don't know about the great-grands.)

    All good points, thank you, you're probably right (btw I'm 64 with a similar background re older parents etc)
  • jakea1963
    jakea1963 Posts: 23 Member
    I can say without question low calorie with lower carbs has reduced my inflammation. There is absolutely no doubt for me. Others will have to figure out what works best for them obviously.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    shaumom wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    It was in mice so the likelihood of the results being completely transferable - ehhh

    Except the reason that mice are used is not just because they are small and make lots of babies, but because weirdly, a lot of physical things in mice DO transfer over into people. "their genetic, biological and behavior characteristics closely resemble those of humans, and many symptoms of human conditions can be replicated in mice and rats." (https://www.livescience.com/32860-why-do-medical-researchers-use-mice.html ).

    so the results working similarly in humans might be more likely than you'd think. :-)

    Exactly. Never mind the ability to do things like analyze the brains of euthanized mice after carrying out a medical trial. That's not something we can do in humans and yet it is very important ("very" is perhaps an understatement). I suspect some people would be very surprised when they learn the sheer number of things that were first tested in mice before human trials were approved and carried out.
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    aokoye wrote: »
    shaumom wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    It was in mice so the likelihood of the results being completely transferable - ehhh

    Except the reason that mice are used is not just because they are small and make lots of babies, but because weirdly, a lot of physical things in mice DO transfer over into people. "their genetic, biological and behavior characteristics closely resemble those of humans, and many symptoms of human conditions can be replicated in mice and rats." (https://www.livescience.com/32860-why-do-medical-researchers-use-mice.html ).

    so the results working similarly in humans might be more likely than you'd think. :-)

    Exactly. Never mind the ability to do things like analyze the brains of euthanized mice after carrying out a medical trial. That's not something we can do in humans and yet it is very important ("very" is perhaps an understatement). I suspect some people would be very surprised when they learn the sheer number of things that were first tested in mice before human trials were approved and carried out.

    It occurs to me, at least with this study, that researchers first have to induce IBD in the mice. I'm wondering whether that's comparable with humans in whom it develops for a number of apparently complex reasons such as a disordered immune system. The mice were presumably healthy to start with

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