Newly diagnosed, thoughts on Aloe Vera please?

Digestive health
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Hi everyone, I am 23 and was diagnosed with proctitis a month ago through a colonoscopy. I was prescribed 60 days worth of pentasa suppositories, and am half way through my one a day dose. I don't seem to be making any improvement. Although my bleeding is somewhat better, I am definitely having more trouble with stomach cramps and needing to go more frequently. The pain arrives and is excruciating in seconds. If I can manage to let it pass, sometimes I need to go urgently again in a few minutes or I can be ok for a few hours. 

Anyway the reason for my post is because I would like to know if anyone else has been prescribed the pentasa suppositories and how you found them? Should I persevere with them? 

I also visited my local Holland & Barrett health store today and they advised me to buy an Aloe Vera gel/juice and to take 1tblspoon of this 3 times a day.. Does anyone have any advice or experience to share on this type of aloe Vera product? 

All comments greatly appreciated, I just want to feel better. Symptoms started in February. 

Thanks, Shannon

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What, Aloe Vera for use as a stool softener or to have some sort of medicinal effect  Nah, take Lactulose, buy it cheap at the chemist, follow the attached instructions

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We have to be careful with aloe Vera products. Personally, I haven't risked it. I have heard from many people that it has caused them harm but others say it has worked. If you are not bleeding I don't see any reason to try it.

If you don't like the suppositories then I would ask for pentasa enemas, as they are liquid. I didn't want suppositories either!

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Holland and Barrett are quack chemists.

They think that all this mumbo jumbo herbs help well the don't and harm can result.

Any herbs that do work will be in prescribed medication.

Proper pharmaceutical chemists will have checked herbal stuff as ingredients for the medications that they make.

I don't take anything that is not prescribe by a DOCTOR.

I am an engineer and I am often asked by people shall I put additives in my cars engine oil. My answer is all ways the same no because the oil companies would have put the stuff in the oil themselves if it worked.

Also don't get taken in by the big company conspiracy theories, that say that so and so product is to good to be allowed on the market. The conspiracy theories are absolute rubbish.

Protitis never quite clears up and you have a life changing illness. You will learn to manage it because you have no choice.

The meds you are taking effect different people in different ways. Go to your GP and tell them.

The Doctors can't second guess, if you don't tell them.

I have blood flow related Colitis and have had bad diarrhoea since Christmas last. I am one new meds. One of them is Salofalk. This this slows the diarrhoea.

Any meds that are for diarrhoea or constipation need extra caution.

Exercise is good for you. No alcohol. Lots of cordial and tea and coffee.

Despite my condition I am fixing and old car up as a hobby.

Its important that you do stuff and not just watch TV.

.

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Hi Shannon. I personally found the suppositories much easier to use than liquid enemas when my colitis/proctitis was flaring. the liquid enemas can be hard to administer when you are sore & inflamed. I found the suppositories were easy to insert with some simple lubricating gel from boots; dont use vaseline as this creates a barrier so medicine cant be absorbed. If you have been using supps' for a month now & no improvement I would ask your doc for some steroid supps' for a week or 2 to kick start improvement, then go back to pentasa supps to maintain. i did also use a steroid foam enema which was easy to adminster (much easier than liquid enema). Also from personal experience, I tried aloe vera capsules & they made everything much worse including starting off bleeding again, so I stopped them after 4 days, & things improved again, so personally I would steer clear of them. As well as colitis, I was later diagnosed with bile acid malabsorption which causes urgency, diarrea, stomach pain & constant rectal/anal soreness & irritation which feels like proctitis-I am now on questran sachets for this which has made me 85% better-greatly reduced diarrea, urgency, pain. It could be worth you asking to be tested for this with a sehcat scan. I still take oral meds to keep colitis in remission. hope this helps, take care x

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Effectiveness of Pentasa in Ulcerative Colitis (UC)

Physician Global Assessment (PGA) - Complete or Marked Improvement[7]

Clinical Trial 1:

Placebo - 36%

Pentasa 4 grams/day Dosage - 59%

Pentasa 2 grams/day Dosage - 57%

Clinical Trial 2:

Placebo - 31%

Pentasa 4 grams/day Dosage - 55%

Pentasa 2 grams/day Dosage - 41%

Note: Pentasa is 5ASA (and I consider either 4 or 5 ASA an excellent medication, some 5 brands have idential "low" concentration.....2  others have very high concentrations that are are usually prescribed to force remission, only

one's attendtng Gastroentrologist should prescribe either of these 2)

Extracted from a 65 Patient Trial of  the prebiotic (VSL#3)

"In all, 65 patients in the( VSL#3)  group and 66 patients in the placebo group completed the study. The decrease in ulcerative colitis disease activity index  scores of 50% or more was higher in the (VSL#3) group than in the placebo group (63.1 vs. 40.8; per protocol.

Study period 8 weeks. Conclusion “not adequately significant” to warrant use? The end" Point of the trial was 71%…it reached only 63%.

IMO, there is a genetic component to UC as well as “diet”…while we cannot change our  DNA easily, we can control diet. Establishing or reestablishing good bacteria Into the digestive system via foods,drinks, and supplementations  ought to be ones priority, A qualified Nutritionist can be quite helpful. My only concern re tablet/capsule Supplements are “content”, as they may not have the % as labeled. Many good bacteria Come from fermented, dairy, vegetables and fruits, vitamins and minerals from plants Marine Fish, and to a lesser extent,  various other meat sources.

 

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