Healing the Gut -- March thread

[bluets]

starting a thread for March!

[bluets]

Lactococcus lactis in probiotics

the first ones that came up
http://www.ezoetic.com/showproduct.aspx?productid=565
http://www.vitaminlife.com/product-e...oduct_id/51676
http://www.consumerlab.com/results/nw_probiotics.asp

[caedmyn]

subbing...

ChinesePistache--on the digestive enzymes to digest grains in babies, from what I've read they start producing them somewhere between age one and two (bluets, have you found anything that narrows this down further?). Although really, other than grains being hard to digest, this really isn't a reason not to feed an older baby grains if you feed them fruits and veggies since the same digestive enzyme (amylase) is needed to digest these as well.

[bluets]

amylase (found in the mouth in saliva) is the first point where starches start getting broken down. which is probably why it is an ingredient on rice cereal for babies. that said, i seem to recall that amylase is also in breastmilk -- which is why when you add some EBM to rice cereal, it just keeps getting runnier and runnier...

so i've always been confused about "babies shouldn't get rice cereal" because when they're breastfed, they do get at least some of the requisite digestive enzymes through breastmilk. haven't been able to hunt this down any more though (and my understanding of starch digestion is weak still).

ETA - i tried the whole rice cereal thing (before i really knew better). but then i'm kinda lazy and mornings are very crazy so usually breakfast was mama-masticated fruit... and ds just did NOT want to be fed (probably a daycare thing - meals at daycare were not based on someone feeding them, rather based on self-feeding with a spoon no less). i had to take my naive thoughts of "spoon feeding" (like i did when i babysat in high school) and heave them out the window.

[mum2be]

Wow it's March!! Crazy!

Well, I think I'm dealing with a major Candida issue too. Does Candida and leaky gut go hand in hand, or is one more likely to cause the other??

I did the "spit in the glass test" first thing in the morning (I'm waiting on my stool results from Great Smokies, but am anxious!!) and a huge gross cloud went to the bottom of the glass. Dh's was fine...lucky guy who gets to eat junk food and still be healthy!

Does making your own yogurt help with Candida? I read on the customprobiotics.com site that you can make it with almond milk. I think I'm goign to be ordering probiotics from him today.

Also, dd is REALLY wanting food. She throws tantrums when I don't let her "taste" everything (which I thought was impossible for a 5.5 month old...). We are supposed to be delaying solids, but how on Earth can I when all she wants to do is eat?? Didn't know if any of you mamas went through this...

I hope everyone is doing well

[Chinese Pistache]

Thanks for the head up!

Okay, I have lots of random HTG thoughts.

We just started NAET 1 1/2 wks ago. So far, dd has been diagnosed with "allergies" (kind of a catch all term for foods/substances that one reacts to or isn't absorbing or otherwise has problems with due to energy blockages) to eggs, dairy, corn, grains, vitamin A, and yeast. Several of the identified allergens caused her no obvious reactions in the past, but the doctor "cleared" for corn and dairy (her big, obvious allergens), so we're currently on watch to see if her usual reactions come back. In the past 2-3 days, we've had dairy (which we've been off for 10 mths) and traces of corn (I need to buy some corn/corn products, because our house has been completely rid of it for months). (BTW, I'm ingesting the corn and dairy, too, so she'll get it through my milk and *I* feel very yucky. I'm sure I've got mild allergies to both; I can't believe how congested they've made me.)

Anyway, I'm guardedly optimistic as she doesn't seem to be reacting, but then again, I know that allergens can have a cumulative effect. BTW, she has not been treated for grains or yeast yet. Both of those will be done next week. (I'm still trying to keep my skepticism in check.)

I'm not giving up my gut-healing ways, though. Dd has had a bad yeast rash for two weeks. i wasn't sure that's what it was, but I finally ruled out the other culprits. I've been giving her a double dose of Threelac along with her regular probiotics as well as evening primrose oil and it's finally clearing up. Quickly, too. It didn't even take 2 days for it to go away and it was all over her torso, rear end and face.

We have been loosely following the FAILSAFE diet. Well, actually, we've just been avoiding her trigger foods (that give her bad rashes and diarrhea, along with general grumpiness) and when I look at the list of foods, I find that they are all high salicylate (though, not high amine). It's very interesting to me and I wonder if her sensitivity to sals can be cured through gut healing, too.

Finally, I'm very frustrated with getting dd to take her supplements. It kills me that I have supps that I believe will heal her (enzymes, glutamine, CLO) and I ca't get them into her little body! I'm taking them, too, but she reaaly needs them. Any advice/suggestions? I know all the tricks for enzymes, but with our corn/dairy allergies, many of those ideas wouldn't work. If we're really "cleared" of them (a la naet), then I might be able to try them again. But I'm not holding my breath, you know?

[bluets]

Originally Posted by Chinese Pistache

Finally, I'm very frustrated with getting dd to take her supplements. It kills me that I have supps that I believe will heal her (enzymes, glutamine, CLO) and I ca't get them into her little body! I'm taking them, too, but she reaaly needs them. Any advice/suggestions? I know all the tricks for enzymes, but with our corn/dairy allergies, many of those ideas wouldn't work. If we're really "cleared" of them (a la naet), then I might be able to try them again. But I'm not holding my breath, you know?

what about just increasing your dosage so that you increase your levels in your breastmilk? probably wouldn't work for enzymes but might for glutamine and CLO.

[bluets]

Originally Posted by mum2be

Wow it's March!! Crazy!

Well, I think I'm dealing with a major Candida issue too. Does Candida and leaky gut go hand in hand, or is one more likely to cause the other??

hand in hand. they say that candida can cause leaky gut.

before i got scared of GSE, i used GSE in combination with a modified candida diet (along with my glutamine stuff) to overcome it. i managed to get rid of most of the symptoms pretty quickly. of course, right around the time i found out about leaky gut last spring (is it only coming up to a year now?), i had one big wicked sinus infection, got drugs after suffering with major pain for about 2 weeks, then after i took the drugs, i took one magic diflucan pill. so i imagine that the diflucan helped with the remaining candida

mum2be, if you're having issues with your liver, you will want to avoid diflucan, but nystatin would probably be ok.

[bluets]

Originally Posted by mum2be

Does making your own yogurt help with Candida? I read on the customprobiotics.com site that you can make it with almond milk. I think I'm goign to be ordering probiotics from him today.

Lactobacillus plantarum is the species that is a candida killer. So you should make sure you get that in your culture

[moonshine]

subbing :

[Janelovesmax]

I am joining this thread because I really need support. I think I also might have Candida problem - finally my love for coffee and sweets caught up to me.
I've been off sugar for a week now, off dairy, and liming my potato/bread intake. Almost no grains and only one fruit a day which is green apple.

I also take probiotics, digestive enzymes, green superfoods.

How's everyone else here healing their guts? I really need support, because I'm very depressed without my coffee and sweets. I got some good support on my own Candida battleplan thread, but I think more people are visitors here.

Does anyone here take Treelac? Success?

It all started with my very first yeast infection that was so irritating and lasted for weeks. I took 2 rounds of that "what do you call it?" starts with a "D" and it seemed to help, but until I eliminated sugar it didn't clear up. Actually it's still there just a little bit.

Anyway, vent is over. I'll just keep reading.

[Chinese Pistache]

Originally Posted by Janelovesmax

I am joining this thread because I really need support. I think I also might have Candida problem - finally my love for coffee and sweets caught up to me.
I've been off sugar for a week now, off dairy, and liming my potato/bread intake. Almost no grains and only one fruit a day which is green apple.

I also take probiotics, digestive enzymes, green superfoods.

How's everyone else here healing their guts? I really need support, because I'm very depressed without my coffee and sweets. I got some good support on my own Candida battleplan thread, but I think more people are visitors here.

Does anyone here take Treelac? Success?

It all started with my very first yeast infection that was so irritating and lasted for weeks. I took 2 rounds of that "what do you call it?" starts with a "D" and it seemed to help, but until I eliminated sugar it didn't clear up. Actually it's still there just a little bit.

Anyway, vent is over. I'll just keep reading.

Yes, Threelac has definitely worked for us. It's not a cure all, in that even though it clears acute problems, when dd consumes too many fruits and grains, the yeast can come back. I definitely think it's useful as part of an overall yeast eradication plan.

[Chinese Pistache]

So, I think I spoke too soon about NAET. I've been watching dd carefully. I was especially interested in observing her today because last night is when I went whole hog on the corn and dairy and I wanted to see how that would affect her once it made its way to my milk. I was happily surprised when she woke up this morning with fairly clear skin. Now, a few hours and a few nursing sessions later, she's got eczema flare ups in all her creases AND diarrhea (which she hasn't had in a couple of months at least).

I think we'll go back to our original plan of attack. I liked the idea of trying NAET because it's not invasive and we have the money right now to afford it, but I'm concerned about continuing to expose her to her allergens in an effort to "test" them. Since her allergies (the big ones anyway) are IgE, I don't want to ruin our chances of outgrowing them by letting her eat them.

[mum2be]

Why are there so many kids on here that have leaky gut/candida issues? Is it because WE have the issues and they have it as a result, or is there some other contributing factor.

If I have candida, will dd because I am nursing her?

I just want to clarify some things...

Thanks

Oh, and Bluets-Thanks for the info! I will add that strain when I order

[bluets]

i can't believe i didn't think to look for this sooner.

from 1986:
http://www.nature.com/jid/journal/v8.../5614367a.html
Increased Intestinal Permeability in Atopic Eczema

abstract: We have investigated gastrointestinal permeability in children with atopic eczema by measuring the relative urinary excretion rates of the inert di- and monosaccharides lactulose and rhamnose following their oral administration. The median lactulose/rhamnose ratio was greater in 26 children with atopic eczema than in a control group of 29 children which included both healthy individuals and others with various noneczematous dermatoses. This increased permeability may be a primary abnormality of the gut or may reflect intestinal mucosal damage caused by local hypersensitivity reactions to food antigens.

[bluets]

Intestinal permeability is increased in bronchial asthma

http://adc.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/89/3/227

abstract:

Background: Increased intestinal permeability has been reported in one study of adult asthmatics.

Aim: To determine whether children with asthma have altered intestinal permeability.

Methods: Thirty two asthmatic children, and 32 sex and age matched controls were recruited. The dual sugar (lactulose and mannitol) test was used to evaluate intestinal permeability, and the percentage of ingested lactulose (L) and mannitol (M) in the urine, and the L:M ratio were determined. All patients were skin prick tested for common aeroallergens, and specific IgE to some food items was determined.

Results: The median value of L in asthmatic children (2.29, IQR 0.91–4.07) was significantly higher than that in controls (0.69, IQR 0.45–1.08), and that of M was almost similar. The ratio L:M was significantly higher in asthmatic children (0.20, IQR 0.11–0.40) than in controls (0.06, IQR 0.04–0.09). Intestinal permeability did not correlate with eczema, inhaled steroids, positive skin prick test to aeroallergens, or severity of asthma.

Conclusions: Intestinal permeability is increased in children with asthma, suggesting that the whole mucosal system may be affected.

[bluets]

Association of vitamin A and zinc status with altered intestinal permeability: analys

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...=pubmed_docsum

To examine the association of intestinal barrier function with vitamin A deficiency and whether supplementation of micronutrients improves intestinal function and/or linear growth, height-for-age z-score (HAZ), concentrations of serum retinol and zinc, and intestinal permeability were determined in a cross-sectional sample of 75 children in northeastern Brazil. Effects of vitamin A and supplementation of zinc on intestinal permeability and growth were also determined comparing results before and after treatment in 20 children and age-matched controls. Lactulose:mannitol (L/M) permeability ratios inversely correlated with serum retinol concentrations (r = -0.55, p < 0.0005). Increased L/M permeability ratios with reduced concentrations of serum retinol were predominantly attributable to lower absorption of mannitol (r = 0.28, p = 0.02). L/M permeability ratios (p = 0.001) and HAZ scores (p = 0.007) improved with supplementation. It is concluded that impaired intestinal barrier function and linear growth shortfalls improve following supplementation of vitamin A and zinc in this setting.

[bluets]

Factors influencing the composition of the intestinal microbiota in early infancy.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q..._uids=16882802

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the contribution of a broad range of external influences to the gut microbiotic composition in early infancy. METHODS: Fecal samples from 1032 infants at 1 month of age, who were recruited from the KOALA Birth Cohort Study in the Netherlands, were subjected to quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assays for the enumeration of bifidobacteria, Escherichia coli, Clostridium difficile, Bacteroides fragilis group, lactobacilli, and total bacterial counts. Information on potential determinants of the gut microbiotic composition was collected with repeated questionnaires. The associations between these factors and the selected gut bacteria were analyzed with univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Infants born through cesarean section had lower numbers of bifidobacteria and Bacteroides, whereas they were more often colonized with C difficile, compared with vaginally born infants. Exclusively formula-fed infants were more often colonized with E coli, C difficile, Bacteroides, and lactobacilli, compared with breastfed infants. Hospitalization and prematurity were associated with higher prevalence and counts of C difficile. Antibiotic use by the infant was associated with decreased numbers of bifidobacteria and Bacteroides. Infants with older siblings had slightly higher numbers of bifidobacteria, compared with infants without siblings. CONCLUSIONS: The most important determinants of the gut microbiotic composition in infants were the mode of delivery, type of infant feeding, gestational age, infant hospitalization, and antibiotic use by the infant. Term infants who were born vaginally at home and were breastfed exclusively seemed to have the most "beneficial" gut microbiota (highest numbers of bifidobacteria and lowest numbers of C difficile and E coli).

[Rachel J.]

subbing

[bluets]

not quite related to intestinal permeability but it fits with the whole poop thing that we seem to keep going around in our threads.

Gas production by feces of infants.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...=pubmed_DocSum

BACKGROUND: Intestinal gas is thought to be the cause abdominal discomfort in infants. Little is known about the type and amount of gas produced by the infant's colonic microflora and whether diet influences gas formation. METHODS: Fresh stool specimens were collected from 10 breast-fed infants, 5 infants fed a soy-based formula, and 3 infants fed a milk-based formula at approximately 1, 2, and 3 months of age. Feces were incubated anaerobically for 4 hours at 37 degrees C followed by quantitation of hydrogen (H2), methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), methanethiol (CH3SH), and dimethyl sulfide (CH3SCH3) in the head-space. RESULTS: H2 was produced in greater amounts by breast-fed infants than by infants in either formula group, presumably the consequence of incomplete absorption of breast milk oligosaccharides. CH4 was produced in greater amounts by infants fed soy formula than by infants on other diets. CO2 was produced in similar amounts by infants in all feeding groups. Production of CH3SH was conspicuously low by feces of breast-fed infants and production of H2S was high by soy-formula-fed infants. CH3SCH3 was not detected. Only modest changes with age were observed and there was no relation between gas production and stool consistency, although stools were more likely to be malodorous when concentrations of H2S and/or CH3SH were high. CONCLUSIONS: Gas release by infant feces is strongly influenced by an infant's diet. Of particular interest are differences in production of the highly toxic sulfur gases, H2S and CH3SH, because of the role that these gases may play in certain intestinal disorders of infants.