Crohn's, IBD and Colitis. Any Nutrients Found Helpful?

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"Inflammatory bowel disease is a disorder characterized by ...inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. There are two basic disorders, ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's Disease. UC affects mainly the colon, where inflammatory changes are limited to the mucusa 'mucus membrane tissue lining]. Medical therapy using pharmacological agents can induce remission; however, in the long-term it may result in adverse side effects. 

"Dietary management of UC proves effective therapy without the adverse effects of either surgery or medications',] and exclusive enteric nutrition 'direct feeding to the intestines] using formulated food is efficacious primary therapy for active IBD, although the mode of action is poorly understood.

"Although few clinical studies suggest a dramatic influence of diet or nutritional supplementation in UC because like many chronic disease, it 'has several factors], some evidence indicates that a high intake of (n-3) 'poly unsaturated fats] such as (EPA)* may have anti-inflammatory effects in patients with UC...

'CONCLUSION OF OUR STUDIES:] Taken together, these data suggest that dietary intake of (n-3) 'fish oils], even in low-fat diets, ameliorate the intestinal damage of UC...; FO 'fish oil] supplementation down-regulates pro-inflammatory 'factors], such as tumor necrosis factor, interleukin-1 and inteleukin-6, which may in turn lessen...oxidative damage." 'Emphases are added.]

*Eicosapentaenoic acid, one of the two fish oil ingredients.

Crohn's, IBD and Colitis. Any Nutrients Found Helpful? Bibliography

The Journal of Nutrition, vol. 132, 2002. By Nieto, Toprres, Rios and Gill, Depts. Of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Cell Biology, U. of Grenada, 18071, Spain.