Aa
anyone else with similar problems?
My problems go back 30+ years,in the last 5 months have become intolerable. I was anorexic and always had stomach/digestive problems from it. Past issues were GERD and sloshing in my stomach or intenstines, often so bad it would make me nauseated. My doctor could hear the liquid, couldn't figure out what it was. I didn't pursue it much then, was more a nuisance,not debilating. I am very meticulous about what I eat, still very much anorexic but I eat 'cause I have to-no spices,fat,colas,caffeine, fried, greasy-cannot tolerate dairy, drink lots of water,nowadays I eat water-packed tuna from the can,nothing added to most foods. Have had GI tests in the past for various reasons,extremely slow digestion found. Since August 2002, noticed burping/GERD/burning much increased and goes nonstop. I put on a lot of weight and am extremely bloated; sloshing and liquid in intestines still there, can barely tolerate any food at all. Started with a GI doctor who put me through colonoscopy/endoscopy. Only thing found was irritation near esophagus ring at stomach, put me on Nexium which didn't help much. Each day my symptoms seem to get worse-really bad days w/tightening in chest-strangling feeling in stomach - ofter feels like I swallowed a balloon...did Barium enema-neg results & CAT scan, also negative. Dr. has no answers-nobody can explain the liquid in intestines or weight gain. Getting to be tough to just live with this. Anyone out there w/similar problems who can help?
I was diagnosed with Barrett's Esophagus in October. I have been troubled by the diagnosis since. Mostly due to the pathology report that said " There is a singlegland at the junction with goblet cell metaplasia which may indicate early Barrett's. The GI Dr. said I had an irregular Z line. Could it be possible that the stomach was biopsied and not the esophagus?
I have read that it is difficult sometimes to determine the line.
Since the diagnosis, I have been very concerned about developing esophagial cancer. I would like to not have Barrett's. Any Dr.'s out there that could interpet this pathology for me? I did get an email from a Dr. that said you either have it or don't. The "maybe" is unsual for a pathology report. Thanks.
I have read that it is difficult sometimes to determine the line.
Since the diagnosis, I have been very concerned about developing esophagial cancer. I would like to not have Barrett's. Any Dr.'s out there that could interpet this pathology for me? I did get an email from a Dr. that said you either have it or don't. The "maybe" is unsual for a pathology report. Thanks.
Here's some interesting information I pulled off of a web-site. I'll have to look it up again. I think I searched "anorexia and
Researchers in Sweden have preliminary evidence that the brains of people suffering from anorexia and/or bulimia might be under attack from autoantibodies.
This would put the disorders in the category of autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis, which occur when the body's immune system turns on itself and starts to destroy different parts of the body.
The finding, if true, would also radically alter the perception and treatment of these two prevalent eating disorders, which have traditionally been described in behavioral and developmental terms.
"We've seen hints of these abnormalities for a couple of years but this is a very, very strong paper that demonstrates quite convincingly that there's more to eating disorders than meets the eye," says Dr. Henry Anhalt.
"What is becoming clear is that energy metabolism is much more involved," adds Anhalt, director of the division of pediatric endocrinology at Infants and Children's Hospital of Brooklyn at Maimonides Medical Center in New York City
The results of the new study are detailed in this week's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Bulimia and anorexia usually manifest themselves as obsessions with weight and body appearance. People with anorexia try to starve themselves to lose weight, often when no weight loss is needed. Those suffering from bulimia have uncontrolled eating binges followed by purging or vomiting. Often, individuals suffer from both disorders at the same time.
No one knows what causes anorexia and bulimia, but there is at least some suggestion of involvement from neuropeptides, which are chemicals that regulate metabolism and are secreted by the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland.
The Swedish researchers hypothesized that the hypothalamic system in the brain, which is responsible for the regulation of food intake, might be targeted by autoantibodies in women with anorexia and/or bulimia.
To test the theory, the investigators withdrew blood serum from 57 women between the ages of 17 and 42 who had anorexia, bulimia or both. Most of the women (74 percent) produced antibodies that, when applied to sections of rat brains and rat pituitary glands, selectively attached to cells that produce three specific neuropeptides: alpha-MSH, ACTH and LHRH.
Although that's all the researchers know right now, it is possible that the antibodies are destroying or interfering with the brain signals that regulate food intake and body weight.
"This is a possible scenario which we suggested, but it should be ultimately proven," says Dr. Serguei O. Fetissov, lead author of the study and a member of the department of neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden.
The fact that a small number of healthy control subjects carried similar antibodies may help unravel the mystery further.
"It may be that the presence of autoantibodies... is related to activation of the stress axis," Fetissov says. "The presence of these autoantibodies could be a stress-related risk factor for the development of anorexia/bulimia, but other factors may trigger this disorder, including those which make women more vulnerable for anorexia."
More research is needed before these and other questions are answered.
"We are going to screen a larger group of patients with stress-related disorders for the presence of autoantibodies against neuropeptides of the stress axis," Fetissov says of his lab's next project. "We are also planning to work with experimental models of disorders potentially linked to autoantibodies against neuropeptides."
Even if the results are verified, it's likely that they would apply to a subset of people with anorexia and bulimia. But they may also apply to people who struggle with obesity. Obesity, of course, is one of the most pressing public health concerns facing Americans, Anhalt says.
"The study really expands our horizons and gives us food for thought," Anhalt says. Right now, physicians feel like "carpenters in a microchip factory," he adds.
Studies such as the Swedish one open the way for new, more finely tuned therapeutics that could target more specifically and more effectively the mechanisms that are responsible for other disorders, such as leukemia, Anhalt says.
What To Do
For more on anorexia and bulimia, visit the National Eating Disorders Association or KidsHealth.org. or drkoop.com or nature.com and find - Brain reaction may up anorexia
Researchers in Sweden have preliminary evidence that the brains of people suffering from anorexia and/or bulimia might be under attack from autoantibodies.
This would put the disorders in the category of autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis, which occur when the body's immune system turns on itself and starts to destroy different parts of the body.
The finding, if true, would also radically alter the perception and treatment of these two prevalent eating disorders, which have traditionally been described in behavioral and developmental terms.
"We've seen hints of these abnormalities for a couple of years but this is a very, very strong paper that demonstrates quite convincingly that there's more to eating disorders than meets the eye," says Dr. Henry Anhalt.
"What is becoming clear is that energy metabolism is much more involved," adds Anhalt, director of the division of pediatric endocrinology at Infants and Children's Hospital of Brooklyn at Maimonides Medical Center in New York City
The results of the new study are detailed in this week's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Bulimia and anorexia usually manifest themselves as obsessions with weight and body appearance. People with anorexia try to starve themselves to lose weight, often when no weight loss is needed. Those suffering from bulimia have uncontrolled eating binges followed by purging or vomiting. Often, individuals suffer from both disorders at the same time.
No one knows what causes anorexia and bulimia, but there is at least some suggestion of involvement from neuropeptides, which are chemicals that regulate metabolism and are secreted by the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland.
The Swedish researchers hypothesized that the hypothalamic system in the brain, which is responsible for the regulation of food intake, might be targeted by autoantibodies in women with anorexia and/or bulimia.
To test the theory, the investigators withdrew blood serum from 57 women between the ages of 17 and 42 who had anorexia, bulimia or both. Most of the women (74 percent) produced antibodies that, when applied to sections of rat brains and rat pituitary glands, selectively attached to cells that produce three specific neuropeptides: alpha-MSH, ACTH and LHRH.
Although that's all the researchers know right now, it is possible that the antibodies are destroying or interfering with the brain signals that regulate food intake and body weight.
"This is a possible scenario which we suggested, but it should be ultimately proven," says Dr. Serguei O. Fetissov, lead author of the study and a member of the department of neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden.
The fact that a small number of healthy control subjects carried similar antibodies may help unravel the mystery further.
"It may be that the presence of autoantibodies... is related to activation of the stress axis," Fetissov says. "The presence of these autoantibodies could be a stress-related risk factor for the development of anorexia/bulimia, but other factors may trigger this disorder, including those which make women more vulnerable for anorexia."
More research is needed before these and other questions are answered.
"We are going to screen a larger group of patients with stress-related disorders for the presence of autoantibodies against neuropeptides of the stress axis," Fetissov says of his lab's next project. "We are also planning to work with experimental models of disorders potentially linked to autoantibodies against neuropeptides."
Even if the results are verified, it's likely that they would apply to a subset of people with anorexia and bulimia. But they may also apply to people who struggle with obesity. Obesity, of course, is one of the most pressing public health concerns facing Americans, Anhalt says.
"The study really expands our horizons and gives us food for thought," Anhalt says. Right now, physicians feel like "carpenters in a microchip factory," he adds.
Studies such as the Swedish one open the way for new, more finely tuned therapeutics that could target more specifically and more effectively the mechanisms that are responsible for other disorders, such as leukemia, Anhalt says.
What To Do
For more on anorexia and bulimia, visit the National Eating Disorders Association or KidsHealth.org. or drkoop.com or nature.com and find - Brain reaction may up anorexia
Depending on where you live, you can get it from both Canada and Mexico, but I order mine at Planet Pharmaceuticals in New Zealand. Their toll free number it 1-877-271-6591. they are about 20 hours ahead of us, so I call in the late afternoon. They are legal, safe, reliable and inexpensive. It is the brand name, and is shipped in the sealed original manufacters container. I take 30 mg. four times a day before meals and at bedtime, but I think the normal starting dose is 20 mg, four times a day for people with stomach motility disorders. It's a great drug, I hate to think how sick I would be without it. I have been on it since April of last year and am much better with it.
How do you order domperidone? I've read about it. I know that the U.S. is medically far behind with gastointestinal disorders and diagnosing them. Italy and Spain check when people are born for Celiac Sprue disease. The insurance companies spend so much money on patients who are Gluten intolerance or have parasites because the doctors are stupified by gastrointestinal problems, unless of course it's an anatomical diagnose.
I think prunes can cause gas though. So if your suffering from bloating and gas this might not help that situation. I swear by Experience made by the Awareness Corporation. It is the only product the helped my daughter AND helped her stomach problems. I read that gastroparesis can be caused by anorexia too, but I already knew that my daughter wasn't starving herself and she definately wasn't bulimic. Various tests concluded that. If anything she would of died if she didn't eat copious amounts of food while she was going through this. She had to eat like it was Thanksgiving day or she would lose weight immediately. She lost 6 pounds for the colonoscopy prep. She lost another 6 pounds for the endoscopy prep. She lost 5 pounds from the CAT scan prep. After the colonoscopy she weighed 80 pounds. That was the last invasive test she had done. She's a very strong person to survive this.
The sloshing, bloating, nausea, etc, all go hand in hand. I have delayed stomach emtpying (gastroparesis) and have done a lot of reading and research about it, and have learned a lot. Diet is very important; your body simply cannot digest foods that are high in fiber or fat. So those healthy sounding veggies and fruits are actually BAD for your stomach, because it simply doesn't have the strength to digest them. And yes, eating disorders have been know to damage the stomach, that is not uncommon. The medication I take that has made all the difference is called domperidone. I have to order it from New Zealand because it is not manufactured here. But it is made by a major drug company and has been available all around the world for about 40 years. It promotes stomach motility, and helps the stomach to digest food. Constipation is also a common problem. I also take Zelnorm for that, and have heard that good old prune juice can be very effective. One person I know drinks it three times a day, and says that with the zelnorm, she is back to "normal".
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
We're still in the process of determining what caused this. We might not ever know what originally caused it because the test for parasites came back negative. We thought that she was lactose intolerant because the abdominal pains would happen when she ate dairy products, but it wasn't consistent. I never thought of gluten because I didn't know anything about it. Her biggest problem for the past three years was an extreme abdominal pain and constipation. I mean she would not produce a single bowel movement, even with prescription laxatives, stool softener, and mineral oil, nothing would happen. Now she has a Klebsiella infection. The Klebsiella is caused from a few different things. Klebsiella pneumonia tends to affect people with underlying diseases, such as alcoholism, diabetes and chronic lung disease. Classically, Klebsiella pneumonia causes a severe, rapid-onset illness that often causes areas of destruction in the lung. She didn't get pnemonia
She also has protein digestion impaired. That is what caused the loss of weight and has caused her to not thrive on food. She would eat copious amounts of food and still lose weight or not gain weight. No it's just the opposite with my daughter. Right now she's stuck on this restricted diet that she hates to enhance the healing of her gut and get rid of the bacterial infection. When we get to the end of this diet her gut will be healed and we will know which foods she can't eat. I have a feeling that she is either Lactose and/or Gluten intolerant. She has delayed gastric emptying. When they did the colonoscopy they saw inflammation. She has a gliadin antibody. Her doctor explained that the results of the stool analyst test has determined that my daughter is not lying about a thing. We have had blood tests done too that ruled out anorexia. I had everything checked, even drugs.
She also has protein digestion impaired. That is what caused the loss of weight and has caused her to not thrive on food. She would eat copious amounts of food and still lose weight or not gain weight. No it's just the opposite with my daughter. Right now she's stuck on this restricted diet that she hates to enhance the healing of her gut and get rid of the bacterial infection. When we get to the end of this diet her gut will be healed and we will know which foods she can't eat. I have a feeling that she is either Lactose and/or Gluten intolerant. She has delayed gastric emptying. When they did the colonoscopy they saw inflammation. She has a gliadin antibody. Her doctor explained that the results of the stool analyst test has determined that my daughter is not lying about a thing. We have had blood tests done too that ruled out anorexia. I had everything checked, even drugs.
The sloshing and the nausea go hand-in-hand...i work out a lot and when the sloshing is REALLY bad, it is impossible to exercise. Is your daughter's weight loss due to her feeling of nausea or is it self-imposed? Are you knowledgeable of the signs of anorexia? People with ED's can be VERY slick and do well with hiding their disease...believe me, I know because I was there once. Does your daughter have any other symptoms? Can you remember what may have happened when this first occurred? 25lb weight loss is huge, especially if she's not overweight to start. Can she eat anything at all? Does she make an attempt? I was eating about one meal (more or less) a day until about September when my problems exacerbated to the point where the smallest bit of food was intolerable. I should be losing weight with the little amount that I've been eating yet my other problem is that I've put on weight and I cannot understand why...please let me know about your daughter....I'm interested to hear about her prognosis and followup with what they've told you so far.
I think the sloshing happens when you have delayed gastric emptying. The food that doesn't get digested either ferments or putrifies and that causes toxins, etc. That would explain the stuff that stays there and makes you sick. I read that people with IBS should chew their food to a liquid. One other thing I forgot to mention. She had a hep b vaccination three months before the onset of her illness. That's a 3 step vaccination. I read that people get very sick from vaccinations that are immune deficient. That's another test I am waiting on.
When your stomache sloshes and bloats do you feel nauseated. My daughters problem started with a major weight loss and abdominal pains for 3 years. She lost 25lbs all together and 14lbs in two weeks. She feels the same way you do as far as the lack of appetite and food repulses her. It's really bad and she complains about having no appetite all of the time.
My years of anorexia caused the digestive problems from what I can determine, although the way I feel lately is enough to make me never eat again! (I'm barely able to eat anything now anyway). my doctor said slow motility is quite common in people with ED's. I don't think I've ever had a gastric emptying scan per se. Many years back, I had many GI tests done where they check the transmit of the barium stuff you drink and how long it takes to get to the stomach and beyond and I was there longer than any other patient in history-like 7 or 8 hours so for this I don't need a test. The slow digestion does not bother me as much as the sloshing and bloating. I don't have much calcium because I'm so lactose intolerant and cannot have dairy. I try to do calcium supplements (like Tums-may as well kill two birds with one stone) but I think I'm going to be changing physicians soon. I was not very happy with the fact that my doctor did no initial blood workup and is not giving me many answers. I'll keep you all apprised of my progress.
Are you anorexic from the digestive problem or visa versa? My daughter has the same sludge problem with nausea. She's been taking enzymes that kind of help it. Thorne puts it out. It's called Bio Gest. She has delayed gastric emptying. We are waiting for a hair analyst test to come back from the Great Smokies Lab. She has been diagnosed with a intestinal Klebsiella infection. Did you know that a calcium deficiency can cause these problems? I will keep you informed when I find more out about the test results.
You mention slow digestion. Have you had a gastric emptying scan? It is a non invasive test that measures the amount of time it takes your stomach to empty. There is a wonderful drug called domperidone (brand name Motilium) that I take for this disorder, also called gastroparesis. It has helped me enormously. I order it from an excellent pharmacy in New Zealand, as it is not sold here. That does not mean it is not safe, it is. It's sold all over the world, has been for about 40 years, for some reason just not sold here. It is a very safe drug, with few side effects. It is similar to a drug called Reglan, which most can't take because of nasty side effects. But this does not cross the blood/brain barrier, just goes to the source of the problem to increase stomach motility. If you do some research online, I think you might find this sounds very much like what you describe.
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