Colitis

When your colon or large intestine is inflamed, you are suffering from a disease called colitis. The two types of colitis are mucus and ulcerative. Mucus colitis is the common problem of the large bowel which produces the discomfort and irregular bowel movements. Chronic ulcerative colitis is a severe prolonged inflammation of the colon or large bowel where the ulcers are formed on the walls of the colon and cause the passage of bloody stools with pus and mucus.

Both the types of colitis are caused by the irritation of the delicate membrane, lining the walls of the colon for a long period of time. 25% of ulcerative colitis occurs in the old age or it may also appear for the first time in the old age. The primary function of the colon is to store the waste matter till most of the fluids have been removed to  enable the formation of the well-formed soft stools, which contain the food matter that cannot be absorbed and have to be thrown out. People suffering from irritable colon have irregular and irritable contractions that are more pronounced on the left side.

Symptoms of Chronic Ulcerative Colitis :

• Increased urgency to move bowel accompanied by cramping pains in the abdomen and the presence of bloody mucus in the stools. Usually, chronic ulcerative colitis starts from the lower part of the bowel and slowly spreads upwards. When this happens the stools become watery and their frequency increases where you have to strain the rectal more. The loss of blood and fluid from the bowels results in weakness, fever, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and anaemia.
• Bloated feeling due to inability to absorb or expel gas normally.
• Constipation alternating with loose bowel movements.
• Persistent diarrhea for several years.
• Malnourishment and very low weight.
• Frequent insomnia.
• Diarrhea with faecal incontinence in the old age due to lower abdominal pain, tenesmus and urgency of micturition.

There is a small possibility of haemorrhage in the old age than in the young age. You might not be able to diagnose perforation with acute peritonitis amongst the elderly due to lack of pain. But there may be an acute brain failure and presence of toxins amongst the old people. If left untreated ulcerative colitis can cause severe nutritional problems. Since the foods are assimilated improperly because of inflammation, there may be deficiency problems, giving rise to nervous irritability, exhaustion and depression. When the condition becomes severe, the suicidal tendencies may develop.

Causes of Colitis :

• Chronic constipation which leads to accumulation of hard faecal matter that is difficult to eliminate.
• Use of laxatives and purgatives like Epsom salt, liver salts and fruit salts and antacid powders and soda bicarb retard the normal secretion of hydrochloric acid, causing colitis. Mineral oil laxatives like paraffin oil, neutralizes vitamin A and the other fat-soluble vitamins, whose deficiency can cause colitis.
• Poor digestion of roughage especially of cereals and carbohydrates, thus irritating the bowel.
• Allergy to certain foods like milk, wheat and eggs.
• Antibiotics that upset the intestinal flora and thus interfere with the proper digestion.
• Severe stress that causes outpouring of adrenal hormones that destroys the body’s protein, which erodes the parts the walls lining the intestines. It also strips the body of panthothenic acid, which in the long term can lead to ulcerative colitis.

Treatment for Colitis :

Usually, your doctor advises you to take suppressive drugs, assuming that the colitis is caused by germs. But these drugs harm you in the long run because all they do is drive the toxic matter back into the colon, which is actually trying to eject it. The symptoms subside temporarily but the cause is unaffected and hence the problem can recur after some time and the problem becomes chronic. Use only plain warm water or warm water with olive oil mixed in it as a washout to soften and remove the collection of the hardened faeces that are stuck to the wall of the colon.

Diet for Colitis :

Your diet plays a vital role in the treatment of colitis. Observe a juice fast for 5 days or so in a large number of cases. Dilute the juices with little boiled water. Papaya, raw cabbage and carrot juices are highly beneficial, but avoid the citrus juices. Cleanse the bowels daily with the warm-water enema.

Once the juice fast is over, take a diet of small, frequent meals of soft cooked or steamed vegetables, rice, dalia which is coarsely broken wheat and highly-ripe fruits like banana, papaya, yoghurt and home-made cottage cheese. After 10 days, add sprouted seeds and grains, whole wheat bread and raw vegetables gradually. Tender coconut water soothes the soft mucosa of the colon and hence is very useful. Cooked apple speeds up the healing of ulcerative conditions due to excess of concentration of iron and phosphorus and is very valuable. Eat the foods slowly and thoroughly.

Exclude white sugar, white bread and white flour products, highly seasoned foods, salty foods, strong tea and coffee and alcoholic drinks and foods prepared in aluminum vessels. Proteins and vitamins play an important role in the treatment of colitis. The mucous membrane of the colon needs vitamin A for its good health. When there is a deficiency of this vitamin, it starts deteriorating slowly and becomes sensitive, spongy and ulcerated. Your body’s demand for this vitamin increases at the time of illness, thus depleting the stored supply. Our modern day diet which is refined and processed lacks vitamins of B group. This causes stomach disorders, affecting the colon adversely. Vitamin C strengthens the connective tissue where the cells are embedded as well as the walls of the blood vessels. Calcium relieves the spasms in the intestines that occur in certain cases of colitis.

Include proteins in your diet to prevent the weakening of the muscular walls and ligaments, which in turn will support the colon. If the colon is weak, the food will remain undigested, the waste matters will accumulate in the colon and using laxatives to clean the bowels will only lead to irritation and colitis subsequently.

You can use ripe bananas to treat ulcerative colitis, since they are bland, smooth, easily digestible and slightly laxative. They relieve the acute symptoms and speed up the healing.

Buttermilk is very effective in the treatment of ulcerative colitis. This milk is the remnant of the process of churning of the yoghurt when the fat is removed. Take a buttermilk enema twice a day to soothe and regenerate the healthy flora in the colon.

Drumstick alleviates colitis. Take a teaspoon of fresh leaf juice, mixed with equal amount of honey and a glass of tender coconut water 2 or 3 times a day as a herbal medicine.

Since rice has a very low fiber content, it is extremely soothing in colitis. Eat a thick gruel of rice mixed with a glass of buttermilk and a ripe banana twice a day for a very nutritious, well-balanced meal in the treatment of this disease.

The enema of wheatgrass (grass that grows after the sowing wheat grains in the soil) causes detoxification of the walls of colon. Start with a warm water enema. After 20 minutes, take 90-120 ml of wheatgrass enema, which should be retained for 15 minutes. You can cure all the disorders associated with colon. You can easily grow wheatgrass at home in earthen pots.

Ensure that you have your bowel movement at the same time daily and spend 10 to 50 minutes in the process. Do not strain at stools. Drink 2 glasses of water as soon as you get up early in the morning. If there is no bowel movement, go for an enema.

Take complete bed rest and drink plenty of liquids. Do not be tensed or worried, accept your disability and be patient in your discomfort.