Dr. Mercola.....

[nnj925]

Did anyone see this? Sorry if you all already know..but I just read this today...I did NOT KNOW that GRAINS could be a problem????

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

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Interstitial cystitis is typically an inflammation in the lining of the bladder that often results in urinary frequency and quite disabling pelvic pain. It looks like a bacterial infection, but cultures are negative and the diagnosis is made by exclusion of other causes and typically requires a cystoscopy.

I am always amazed at the innovative ways that traditional medicine comes up with to treat chronic conditions. I just shake my head in disbelief that so much energy and effort is wasted on destructive Band-Aids that at best treat symptoms and at worst do nothing to resolve the pain and cause permanent disability.

However, there are simple and practical alternatives that result in dramatic improvement in this condition. Even though the traditional literature is fond of stating that diet doesn’t have an effect in IC, I have seen many women improve by changing their diets.

Grains are frequently the culprit among women who have this problem and many find that eliminating grains and all sugars results in an enormous and rapid relief of their symptoms.

It sure seems much easier to try some simple diet changes and follow the nutrition plan prior to consenting to the radical therapies discussed in the article.

Krill oil will also likely be helpful as they are useful in normalizing inflammatory conditions and autoimmune disorders


Does this mean that whole grain foods like Whole Wheat bread etc..can be bad...is that what he means or am I misinterpreting it.???

[ICNDonna]

I agree with this partially --- it's pretty well known in the IC community that diet can be very important in controlling IC symptoms. However, to eliminate all grains doesn't make much sense to me unless there are other factors present.

The IC diet (the link to the latest food list is in my signature below) was developed with input from thousands of IC patients, as well as professionals.

Donna

[cmclien]

I agree Donna. I think the grain statement is probably true only of people who are gluten intolerant or celiac which I am neither. It would makes sense if you have one of those conditions that it could cause histamine reaction or inflammation in the bladder.

[MamaZ]

I take whatever Mercola says with a grain of salt but you'd be surprised by how many nutritionists agree with the connection between gluten and pelvic problems.
The way I look at it is why not try it? Why not do a true elimination diet to see if there is one (or several) foods that are contributing to your pelvic issues? One does not need to have a Celiac diagnosis to consider the fact that grains might be taxing to your body and cause a host of auto-immune type symptoms.

Clues to Gluten Sensitivity

A new study in the journal BMC Medicine may shed some light on why. It shows gluten can set off a distinct reaction in the intestines and the immune system, even in people who don't have celiac disease.

"For the first time, we have scientific evidence that indeed, gluten sensitivity not only exists, but is very different from celiac disease," says lead author Alessio Fasano, medical director of the University of Maryland's Center for Celiac Research.

[nnj925]

I dont think I am gluten intolarent? *shruggs shoulders*...??

[MamaZ]

I dont think I am gluten intolarent? *shruggs shoulders*...??

There is no test for sensitivities -- the only way to tell for sure is to eliminate it entirely for at least 2 weeks. You have to be vigilant and read labels because it's in so many things and goes by different names. Here's a lengthy list of foods/ingredients you'd need to remove from your diet. And then once it's out of your system for a while, you can retest your body. Eat a piece of bread or something and then see if you react. Because it's been out of your body for so long you should react immediately if you're going to at all.

I did it before I was in remission and had good results. I'm currently on my 2nd week of gluten-free and even though I'm feeling better, I think it's way too early to tell so I'm sticking it out for a month and then reassessing.

[nnj925]

ok..i dont want to sound stupid here so please be kind...but is all things that have gluten...also GRAINS???/

When they say grains are bad is that things that say 100% whole grain??? or Whole Wheat??? Like is White Bread> GRAINS???

I dont have any of the symptoms listed in the link above.

[ICNDonna]

There are hundreds of diets out there. nnj925, if you don't have celiac, you should be fine with wheat. I eat bread with no problem --- I do read labels. One of the problems with eliminating grains from the diet is that they are excellent sources of fiber, which is a necessity for colon health.

Donna

[Christine222]

Interesting but confusing

I have no idea what to eat and am afraid to eat much as my sysptoms have been sort of steady. I haven't had the stick stuck up the wizzer feeling for almost a week so that is a relief but I still get the sore/irritated/full bladder feeling that sometimes causes urgency and sometimes not. I can usually take a Predium or Baking Soda in water and it's gone in a few hrs. Heating pad also helps. I just eat such a limited amt. of food as I don't know what will hurt and I am so tired of hurting. I eat basically eggs, butter, pork or chicken, broc or col. flower, and organic cherrios and milk. Tried Almond milk one day with Ezical bread and peanut better and I flared bad so I am not sure what caused it. I'm also afraid to try most of the supplemts I bought except the Cystopreck (sp?).

[nnj925]

christine..im w/ you im afraid of the meds the food..lol..its crazy... the baking soda w/ water what does it help with ?? frequency/ spazams? urges? or pain? and how much do you do?

[Christine222]

I take about 1/8 to 1/4 of a teaspoon in a glass of water when I first feel the bladder start to burn. With me, when I feel the burn coming on that is when the frequency and urgency start. If I don't feel any relief after 20 min. I drink another glass. It usually helps stop the flare, if that doesn't work I take a Predium (sp)? I just don't like to take too much of these as they are supposedly not good for the liver.

[teacher2be]

I'm in remission, and I don't eat sugar or wheat. I think my diet has contributed to my remission. I eat a very healthy diet that includes rice, kamut, oatmeal, fruits, proteins, and vegetables. Since giving up wheat and sugar, I have a lot more energy.

[Landish]

I think Dr. Mercola talks about eliminating all type of grains, rice included, and as I know people with Celiac disease can eat rice because it is gluten-free.

Imagine if you cannot eat any grains, no sugar, no dairy because it has sugar in it, no fruit because of the sugar and the IC, no beans because they turn into sugar, so what you going to eat? Only veggies, vegetables and meat ? Ok, may be for a certain time, but all your life?

My IC is so bad that I can’t even eat some vegetables and veggies, like carrot, spinach, asparagus, broccoli, or taking a green beverage would just kill me. Even though I only eat fish, chicken, beef and some vegetables I am not pain free I’m just with less pain, and I am still going to the restroom more than 50 times a day. If I limit more things in my diet to feel better I get constipated and it’s bad but if I going regularly, I feel a burn and urgency after bowel movement for hours.

Many years ago the specialist who diagnosed me told me that living a life not eating many things was not the solution, and it’s true for me because the human body needs a balanced diet to work properly. The solution is a real treatment that can fix you, in case there is one, to have a relatively normal life or close to normal. I tried too many diets for months without success, inclusive sugar, gluten and dairy free and I am worst than ever.

I know we are all different and I am not trying to scare anybody. I am just venting my experience with 10 years with IC, unfortunately diagnosed only 6 years ago and unfortunately losing my insurance only a year after be diagnosed. I was unable to get a new insurance in 5 years even with all the huge deductible that you have to pay through your entire life, and just to talk with an IC specialist it costs about $360 without doing anything else. So I see beautiful hospitals with a huge piano on the first floor but I scream in pain and to see a doctor is a luxury..

Even though my IC is progressive I think people who are diagnosed have to try everything, all types of diet, celiac, oxalate, alkaline, IC, whatever to try to recover their bladder. I think if IC is diagnosed on time diet can really help and maybe go into remission but when you have a peace of raw meat like my bladder everything hurts you.

I tried all chemical medicine (burns and stinging pain that lets me in the bed), installation (burns), tens ( absolutely nothing) and acupuncture (I have pain even I look like a porcupine with so many needles on me, I am unable to finish the session without going to pee, the last time I had to catheterize myself in the acupuncturist bathroom).

I have an enormous bag at home with all the natural supplements that I tried without success, traditional, Chinese or whatever. Normal things like calcium in any form cause me pain, magnesium and glucosamine chondroitin and msm get me to scream because I feel like my bladder is broken in thousands of scars.

Aloe, Cystoprotek and marshmallow root cause me pain and retention. I cannot drink any tea, not even chamomile and peppermint. I am not going to mention you here all the supplements I tried because they are too many.

Exercise is out of the question, walking hurts me so badly that I feel a huge inflammation, burn and pain and I have to recover for hours drinking water and going to pee a dozen times trying to get back to normal. Pelvic floor relaxation hurts instead of helping, if I relax I feel like I have broken the scars in my bladder.

Sitting bath is the worst thing for me, the water with so many additives absolutely dries my bladder and I am not able to urinate because of horrendous pain. With cold packs I can’t relax the urethra, with hot packs I have more inflammation. FWI, all this is happening to me without infection or yeast.

Relaxation, yoga, meditation, oh my God I can’t meditate because I have PAIN!!! and URGENCY and if I wait just a little or I can’t being able to find a bathroom immediately I can’t urinate because while my bladder starts to fill I have more pain and cannot relax the urethra, so I have the use a catheter and I become more irritated because of that. By the way I even cannot use the famous Lo-fric because the jelly in it causes me a strong burn.

Sorry to be so blunt, I am just tired of feeling pain and trying everything that hurts me even more. I’ll say it again, this is not to scare anybody, we are all different and my IC is severe and progressive. I think that if I would have been diagnosed on time and keeping on treating I would be better condition.

Since my IC the only thing that really helped was Hydrodistention (but just for a week, of course and I can’t go to general anesthesia every week I just couldn’t afford it) and steroids but they are very dangerous for the liver.

I don’t know the cause of IC, but I know I was perfectly normal before the horrendous day that all started and after that I never went to in remission and I never was normal again. Maybe I don’t have the ability to recover the lining by myself even eating a healthy diet.

I strongly recommended to all IC diagnosed to try everything in a safe way to try to save the bladder and take action immediately seeing a urologist, naturist, homoeopathist , ayurvedic, acupuncturist or whatever that can help, of course, along with a healthy diet.

[Mothergoose]

Hi

For a totally other reason I went on a diet that I won't get into now, but it did eliminate most foods, for sure no grains or carbs, no sugar. I was on this for a total of nine weeks, during this time my bladder was the best it has been since going on the IC diet.

I did not really associate it with the grains and sugar because I eating only about 15 different foods at the time, so I figured it was just from not eatting any IC trigger foods.

I now am back to eating way more types of foods, but I really limit sugar, almost nil, and simple carbs/grains almost nil too.

It may just be me but my bladder is back to bothering me even without eating sugar and grains, and I do follow the IC diet quite strickly.

So I couldn't say whether no grains and sugar helps my bladder or not, maybe if I was eating them my bladder would be worse.

MG