Crohn's is a medical condition that inflames the GI tract. The swelling associated with Crohn's ranges from mild discomfort to extreme pain. The related irritation forces intestines to expel frequently; often in diarrhea form. Crohn's affects both sexes and spans all age groups, although it is more common in younger adults between the ages of 20 and 30. In recent years, studies have experimented with vitamin therapy as a means for treating Crohn's.
Instructions
1. Check with your physician before adding any additional vitamins to your daily intake. He may determine a high potency multivitamin will be sufficient or he may recommend one or more of the following.
2. Take between 800 and 1200 IU of vitamin D. Crohn's patients exhibit an inability to absorb sufficient quantities of vitamin D for bone development.
3. Increase calcium intake to around 1200 mg per day. Patients afflicted with Crohn's lose bone mass at quicker rates than their healthy counterparts. Therefore, increasing calcium intake can prove helpful.
4. Add at least 2.7 grams of omega-3 fatty acid fish oil to the daily diet. Studies show that increased intake of this supplement allows patients to lessen the effects of Crohn's episodes.
5. Inject between 25 and 50 mg of vitamin B-12 daily. Crohn's patients often do not take in sufficient quantities of B-12 and may require supplementation.
6. Increase iron intake as recommended by a physician if tests indicate blood iron deficiency. Low iron intake can result in anemia, which can cause problems for Crohn's patients.
7. Ascertain if selenium amounts need to be increased. Scientists believe selenium acts as a powerful antioxidant, which can be helpful in combating Crohn's disease.
8. Replace fish oil with flaxseed oil or add flaxseed to omega-3 intake to lengthen the time between Crohn's episodes.
9. Add between 25 and 50 mg of zinc to the diet each day. Zinc is required to repair damaged intestinal cells.
10. Determine if a vitamin K deficiency exists. Vitamin K is not well absorbed by Crohn's patients, which can be further exacerbated by the fact that the antibiotics used to treat the disease interfere with the body's ability to absorb vitamin K.
11. Increase intake of folic acid to somewhere between 25 and 50 mg. Folic acid is needed in order for the body to repair the cells that may be damaged by Crohn's.
12. Absorb around 50,000 IU of vitamin A. It is essential for the growth of new intestinal cells as well as the repair of existing ones.
Tags: Crohn patients, , Crohn episodes, intestinal cells, iron intake, sufficient quantities