Friday, August 04, 2006
iN THE MAiL: CROHN'S DISEASE
Dr. Zhang, Back in march of this year I was diagnosed with moderate to severe Crohns. I am seeing a naturopath along with my GI. I have been symptom free for a month now after my GI put me on prednisone, i am on a tapering program and almost completely off the steroid. My wish is to not have to take any more of these toxic drugs. I have been gluten free and dairy free for a while now, and that seems to be helping along with taking probiotics. Do you have any suggestions on staying in remission and to avoid any future flareups of inflammation. Maybe I should try acupuncture, do you think that would help any? thanks,
corey
Dear Corey,
What you have been doing and planning to do is absolutely correct. Steroids are commonly used in clinical treatment for severe Crohn’s disease. I have to say that steroid therapy is great for quickly reducing intestinal inflammation. But because of the powerful side effects of the steroid it could contribute to weakening of the immune system, and in many cases the disease will likely return with even more severe symptoms.
I absolutely agree with what you’ve been doing, the best way to cope with Crohn’s disease is to a have an effective and healthy diet. In addition to what you are already doing with your diet, you may also try to avoid eating spicy foods, including onions, garlic and ginger; avoid eating seafood, uncooked foods, sugary foods, fatty foods; avoid foods or drink with strong acidity; avoid alcohol and cigarettes. It may sound as if there is nothing you can eat after all. But trust me, you will find there are plenty of other foods that are clean, tasty, nutritious and easier to digest. Just try the best you can.
Acupuncture is a great way to improve your intestines’ function and stop abdominal pain. Yoga or Tai-chi will help keep your mind relaxed and reduce your stress. Fish oil (especially Cod liver oil) is also good for dealing with Crohn’s.
Crohn’s is an autoimmune disease and in traditional Chinese medicine it is treated with Astragalus root to boost the patient’s immune system. Also most mushrooms (and especially Reishi) are good for enhancing the immune system. You can get astragalus from any Chinese herbal store and mushrooms you can buy from your local health food store (I recommend organic) or supermarket.
Crohn’s can be very chronic. Fighting this disease not only requires an extreme attention to your diet, but being self-disciplined, patient and persistent. When your immune system attacks your own body, the intestines often gets inflamed, so taking natural anti-inflammatory or natural antibiotics regularly to clean your GI tract is important. I designed my herbal antibiotics Infection formula to help subdue flare-ups, inflammations and most infections. I have used it on many occasions to help my patients fight Crohn’s disease with very good results. You can find out more about the formula on the HERBALmax website.
Yours and Dedicated to Your Health,
Dr. Zhang
Dr. Zhang, Back in march of this year I was diagnosed with moderate to severe Crohns. I am seeing a naturopath along with my GI. I have been symptom free for a month now after my GI put me on prednisone, i am on a tapering program and almost completely off the steroid. My wish is to not have to take any more of these toxic drugs. I have been gluten free and dairy free for a while now, and that seems to be helping along with taking probiotics. Do you have any suggestions on staying in remission and to avoid any future flareups of inflammation. Maybe I should try acupuncture, do you think that would help any? thanks,
corey
Dear Corey,
What you have been doing and planning to do is absolutely correct. Steroids are commonly used in clinical treatment for severe Crohn’s disease. I have to say that steroid therapy is great for quickly reducing intestinal inflammation. But because of the powerful side effects of the steroid it could contribute to weakening of the immune system, and in many cases the disease will likely return with even more severe symptoms.
I absolutely agree with what you’ve been doing, the best way to cope with Crohn’s disease is to a have an effective and healthy diet. In addition to what you are already doing with your diet, you may also try to avoid eating spicy foods, including onions, garlic and ginger; avoid eating seafood, uncooked foods, sugary foods, fatty foods; avoid foods or drink with strong acidity; avoid alcohol and cigarettes. It may sound as if there is nothing you can eat after all. But trust me, you will find there are plenty of other foods that are clean, tasty, nutritious and easier to digest. Just try the best you can.
Acupuncture is a great way to improve your intestines’ function and stop abdominal pain. Yoga or Tai-chi will help keep your mind relaxed and reduce your stress. Fish oil (especially Cod liver oil) is also good for dealing with Crohn’s.
Crohn’s is an autoimmune disease and in traditional Chinese medicine it is treated with Astragalus root to boost the patient’s immune system. Also most mushrooms (and especially Reishi) are good for enhancing the immune system. You can get astragalus from any Chinese herbal store and mushrooms you can buy from your local health food store (I recommend organic) or supermarket.
Crohn’s can be very chronic. Fighting this disease not only requires an extreme attention to your diet, but being self-disciplined, patient and persistent. When your immune system attacks your own body, the intestines often gets inflamed, so taking natural anti-inflammatory or natural antibiotics regularly to clean your GI tract is important. I designed my herbal antibiotics Infection formula to help subdue flare-ups, inflammations and most infections. I have used it on many occasions to help my patients fight Crohn’s disease with very good results. You can find out more about the formula on the HERBALmax website.
Yours and Dedicated to Your Health,
Dr. Zhang
