Mucous Colitis

Does fasting help mucous colitis?

As few on today's Internet have both the theoretical and experiential background to answer his question, I've tried to provide a wholly-informational response, as is
the non-commercial intent of alt.support Newsgroups. I trust this does not
imply that the vast majority of us also inhabiting the professions
cannot offer such wholly-informational responses. If an M.D.'s re-
sponse would be seen as being 'commercially-motivated' here (if she/he
were qualified to answer this question), then I, too, would prefer to cancel
this post immediately, if the Gate Keeper would be so kind as to advise me.
Thank you so much, from my personal, as opposed to my professional, aspect.

Glen's request:

>I have a very mild case of Crohn's disease. I am not losing weight or energy.
>I have some blood in my stool, and have slight irritiation in my intestines.
>I also am not taking any medication. . .just watching what I eat and taking
>some natural things. Does anybody know if fasting would be advisable? What are
>the benefits or drawbacks?"

As is noted in the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons' COM-
PLETE HOME MEDICAL GUIDE; "Some patients with Crohn's colitis may have assoc-
iated nondigestive abnormalities, such as pinkeye (uveitis), arthritis-like
joint pains, the presence of kidney stones or gall stones, and certain rare
types of skin rashes." (p. 529) The presence of kidney or gall stones could
preclude skillful juice-fasting.

The CHMG (p. 530) adds that: "Nutritional deficiencies may well be treated
with supplements of iron, folic acid, vit. B12, and calcium." It goes on to
list the various medical treatments, depending upon your symptoms, adding: "If
the patient does not respond to medical treatment, surgical removal of part of
the intestine may be necessary. Since the disease may recur even after surgi-
cal removal of the abnormality, medical treatment is used whenever possible,
before surgery is considered."

Perhaps America's best-known physician, Deepak Chopra, courageously states
part of our present problem, Glen: "NONE of our Western medical interventions
get to the root CAUSE of disease." Prior to his passing, one of our world's
finest nutritional biochemists, Finland's Paavo Airola, N.D., Ph.D., wrote
the following on colitis, in his best book--HOW TO GET WELL (p. 60):

"The underlying causes of colitis must be found before an effective
corrective diet can be advised. Often, it is caused by an allergic sensitivity
to certain foods--which must be eliminated from the diet (use Dr. Coca's pulse
test to determine this--see Referential Reading). Often, it is poorly-digested
roughage, especially of cereals and carbohydrates, that cause bowel irritation.
"In such cases, the digestion should be improved, possibly with the help
of digestive enzymes and small, frequent meals, instead of a few large ones.
Also, possible restriction of whole grains and whole-grain products can be ad-
visable, which, if not properly digested, cause fermentation in the bowels,
with consequent gas and bowel irritation.
"Often, the intake of antibiotics may upset the bacterial flora in the
intestines and interfere with proper digestion of food. In such case, plenty
of yogurt, whey powder, and acidophilus culture may be given to restore the
proper bacterial balance in the intestines. Furthermore, mucous colitis is
often of psychosomatic origin."

Recognizing, along with Doctor Chopra, that Western Medicine is generally
focused on symptoms, rather than causes, Doctor Airola became one of our world's
foremost proponents of the therapeutic benefits of skillful juice-fasting, as
well as (organically-grown, whenever possible) foods, vitamins, food supple-
ments, juices, herbs, baths, and other ancient and modern nutritional and bio-
logical modalities in the treatment of common ailments.

Re: colitis, he recommends the following biological treatments in HTGW (p. 62),
after the resting and healing effect of a cleansing juice-fast ("in most cases
of ulcerative, as well as mucous colitis"):

1. After the fast, a diet of SMALL, FREQUENT meals of raw and cooked
foods should be given, with addition of generous amounts of yogurt,
kefir, homemade cottage cheese, and whey powder. SPROUTED seeds and
grains are usually well tolerated. Millet cereal is best. Bananas
are very soothing and healing in ulcerative colitis. ALL FOODS MUST
BE EATEN SLOWLY, CHEWED AND SALIVATED WELL.
2. All refined carbohydrates should be avoided.
3. When then are NO contraindications, such as open peptic or intestin-
al ulcers, 2 to 3 tables of BETAINE HYDROCHLORIDE should be given
after each meal with a glass of water. Colitis is often caused by
partially- or incompletely-digested animal proteins and carbohydrates
in the colon and lower bowels.
4. In acute colitis caused by accumulation of gas, the following Neipp
wet pack is effective. Patient lays on her/his back with wet pack
on her/his abdomen: first one wet towel, then slightly larger dry
towel over it; finally, all wrapped with a thick flannel or a blanket.
5. Colonics once a week and daily enemas (with chamomile tea) are advis-
able during treatment, but not longer than for one month.

Doctor Airola goes on to list specific, daily vitamin and mineral supplements,
including dosages; juices; herbs; other specifics; referential reading, and
the following note (p. 63):

"Colitis-like symptoms may be caused by appendicitis. It is, therefore,
important that where there are doubts as to the origin of the symptoms and
pain, a physician is consulted without delay." This, of course, goes without
saying, Glen.

Hope you--and perhaps others--find this somewhat helpful. Pesonally, I've done
many prolonged juice-fasts over the past 30 years, most recently for 51 days--
one day for every day of my life, at that time (primarily for spiritual en-
hancement and detoxification, living, as I do, in this progressively-more-
toxic Southern California environment).

Although there have long been fine fasting clinics and centers in
many European countries, fasting, like nutrition, is generally left off the
menu in America's 126 medical schools. Thus, symptomatically-trained phys-
icians should not be expected to make intelligent evaluations of skillful
juice-fasting, one way or the other, until they've further schooled them-
selves. (The same applies re: nutrition, unfortunately, as Michael Jacob-
son, M.D., director of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Science in the
Public Interest, points out in sadly noting that in America's 126 medical
schools, nutrition is presently a "minimal" requirement in only 30, result-
ing in the "average" physician graduating today, after four years of medical
specialization, with 2.5 HOURS of nutritional input, most of which may be
faulted, if hospital food across this land is any indication.)

Doctor Airola was not alone in his advocacy of the benefits of skillful
fasting. More recently, medical researchers at the world-renowned Karolinska
Institute in Stockholm--home to more Nobel laureates in Medicine than perhaps
any research institute on Earth--clinically-monitored not well-beings, but
IN-HOSPITAL PATIENTS (the KI has an attached hospital) on skillful fasts of
up to 63 days, finding EVERY SINGLE ONE TO BE THERAPETICALLY BENEFICIAL, not deleterious.

Logically, of course, it seems reasonable that if the bowel is irritated,
giving it a prolonged rest from the digestive rigors might well be an intel-
ligent consideration. Further information on skillful fasting, of course,
can be located by using any of the major search engines, simply typing in
'fasting'.