Toot toot: Sjogren's, gas & digestion

[phalo]

I don't know if this is TMI: I was wondering what people thought about the dryness of Sjogren's affecting the digestive system, thus causing either constipation or in general gas from trapped air because there is less water & more effort to digest the food. Or is it related to IBS? Other times, if I've waited too long to eat dinner, my system sometimes gets crazy, incredibly bloated, and gassy.

I eat a pretty balanced healthy diet, poop often (LOL), and am a thin petite female, but FOREVER, probably since college & now in my early 30's, gas is an issue. I feel like I'm an 80 year old man sometimes. Right after 6pm every day, it's like here comes all the gassiness! Sometimes it's because of the type of food I ate for lunch, but basically every night up through bedtime- toot, toot, toot! (loud) stink, stink, stink

It's not good for the social life.  or if even if you're sitting around watching tv with friends.    That's the worst, I have to get up every 5 minutes. IS this normal?
I'm trying probiotics (as my GI tells me), and have found that yoga helps- but you can't be twisting & stretching after every meal (and it's not good to). I have been taking Plaquenil for 6months, but I hear it gives more people diarrhea.

[Bucky]

FOREVER, probably since college & now in my early 30's, gas is an issue.

Hi phalo - I'm not sure if I ever welcomed you as a newbie . . . welcome!

Since you mention you have had gas issues "FOREVER", this might not apply to you, but I found out by doing a little test for myself, that if I drink milk when I take my Plaquenil I have gassiness all day.  If I take my pill with food and no milk, I'm fine.  On the bottle it says, "take with food or milk", but milk and Plaquenil just don't mix for me.

Just a thought.

Bucky

[MaryBee7]

No gas but everything else and waiting on a GI work up this week ... please help me count down the days!  I have suffered through a bunch of GI problems over the years and nothing ever showed in GI barium tests, etc...but I also didn't have a SjS dx.  This is becoming the most troubling complication of SjS for me. 

[gurs]

could be any number of things..medications, supplements, and foods...wheat was the biggest thing for me, as well as artifical sweetners like sorbitol and mannitol..oh my. After my hysterectomy and instant menopause, my gas is horrible..I cant even go out to eat, because immed my tummy fills up with gas. Its a bit better now. I take some of these red gas gel-tabs that seem to help a bit..you prob  need to take some digestive enzymes found at the health food store (source naturals makes a good one) before every meal to help break down your food etc.

Gursie

[cargillwitch]

I still have some GI issues with Sjogrens( intially diagnosed as SIBO, gastroparesisand IBS) but they have settled greatly the passed two years.

I found for me this has helped:

no gluten or casein,  no grains at all.

I also restrict fruit to only 15 grams at most per day - THIS change made the biggest difference in terms of gas for me, too much sugar ( fructose in this case) fed the "bad" bacteria that had taken up residence in my small intestine- where it should never have been. Probiotics helped but it would never go away completely as I kept feeding it it's preferred food source in my daily diet.

I also started taking digestive enzymes ,   my pancreas just wasn't kicking out enough to full break down my food- undigested food just is a real trouble maker when it comes to digestive health ( read bloating ,nausea).I don't have to take them daily now but at the first sign of trouble I get back on them.
I also have to watch that i don't go too crazy with raw veggies when my GI tract is " unhappy" as a predominate vegetarian this is hard sometimes but it sometimes fires the " musical parade" that follows eating!

[Sleepy In Seattle]

Taking probiotics and eliminating dairy for a couple of weeks might be a good thing to try....TONS of people get gas from dairy. Not saying that's definitely it, but it's often a culprit....and at least something simple and easy to try!

Many times people who don't tolerate cow's milk well do okay with goat and sheep milk, cheeses, etc...but eliminate ALL dairy during the trial period.

Read ingredients lists - anything with "casein" in it, or "whey" is made from milk.

Hope that helps!

[Scottietottie]

I've read before that Plaquenil can cause gas. I think it did with me.

[prunella]

Plaquenil causes gas? No kidding?? Never knew that!

I definitely get gas from wheat and GMO corn. Not sure if it's possible to get non-GMO corn products. Dairy brings on constipation.

Several months ago, I began to eat fermented veggies, such as kimchee. Better than any probiotic I have ever taken.  I eat a bout 3 Tablespoons daily of delicious grated ginger carrots that I get at Whole Foods. DH prefers kimchee. It has to be a live culture. Not all kimchee is live.   Live sauerkraut might also work.  Healing begins in  the gut.   

Another effective thing I've done to heal my gut is to follow the Blood Type Diet protocols for intestinal healing, while following the dietary recommendations for my blood type.   I haven't mentioned Blood Type Diet (BTD) before on this forum, as I wasn't sure how effective it is.  But I have seen significant IBS improvement during the past month.  Unbelievable, actually!  Prior to following BTD, I had been dairy/gluten-free for a year and felt some improvement, but still had a rumbly belly.
Now things are much improved.

It's kind of a lot to take in when you first encounter BTD,  but here's the link:
dadamo.com/

[MaryBee7]

Prunella, so glad for this info.  I love kimchee but with loss of taste buds honestly have no appetite for ANYthing anymore...so have strayed from most all of previously loved foods.  I have a lot of nausea right now and even the thought of kimchee makes me wanna...you know!  But, point well taken, healing does begin in the gut. 

[phalo]

So no one thinks it may be the dryness associated with Sjogren's that can affect the digestive system to cause gas? (either an empty growling stomach that ends up producing painful bloating, or gassiness right after eating, the digestive system could be possibly working, but not well because it's dry?)

One summer I joined a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) with a local farm and my digestion was SO good for 5 months, with zero gassiness at night. I was eating zucchini, kale, chard, beets, cabbage, brussel sprouts (maybe a little gassy), melon, tomatoes with every meal (frittattas, soups, sides), plus grains. What gives now?

What I don't get: yogurt- good, milk- bad/inflammatory. Cabbage-gassy, kimchi probiotics-good?   

FYI: I had been following an anti-inflammatory diet, more related to a Lupus diet, but I feel it has helped (as far as general cognitive, fatigue, migrant symptoms). A few sources say not to eat: anything fermented, pickled, sprouted. Soy products, smoked meats, preserved meat (deli, bacon) & products, limit canned foods shellfish, fatty meats. Less salt, sugar, citrus. No nightshades: tomato, potato, eggplant. 

[star723]

Well I can relate ~ I had the same problem for years.  Then my rheumy put me on a elimination diet for 3 months.  After just 3 days without dairy I had NO MORE gas.  I have been dairy free for over a year now.  I could not believe that was the problem.  I thought my stomach was hurting and what sooth a sour stomach, milk or yogurt.  I kept eating them and it just kept getting worse.  Plus my doc said that all the inflammation that the dairy was cause in my stomach was also making the rest of my body inflamed. After the 3 months on this diet I notice that my joints stopped hurting.  Going on that elimination diet was the best thing I have ever did for sjogrens.
hang in there ~ Debbie

[brooklyntina]

No real advice but I'm with you on this. I'm a little fart machine. I think when I'm flaring my digestion can get slow and if I eat anything too dry- whoa! I look preggo. I do think dryness is abdolutely a factor and so is any autonomic neuropathy issues if you have them... Toot toot all aboard!

[MaryBee7]

So no one thinks it may be the dryness associated with Sjogren's that can affect the digestive system to cause gas? (either an empty growling stomach that ends up producing painful bloating, or gassiness right after eating, the digestive system could be possibly working, but not well because it's dry?)

Phalo, I'm with you thinking Sicca Syndrome, dryness including the gut.  I know  my gut is not the same, even from a year ago.  Changes were very slow/progressive.  I have never had problems with digestion or any sort of "inflammatory" responses from intestinal tract.  I had an endoscope done yesterday, due to nausea/constipation/diarrhea...bloating-bloating!!  No appetite.  Result was esophagitis. Gastro doc wasn't particularly tuned in to my theory about Sicca symptoms being part of it.  I had a 27 pound weight loss flare last spring...also when blepharitis hit the first time and intestinal stuff started.  That all peaked right at diagnosis, with a positive ss-b.  I don't know how much more "diagnostic" medical tests can be vs. our own bodies.

[Sleepy In Seattle]

If you are going on a no-dairy diet, yogurt is NOT good - stay away from ALL cow's milk products and additives (anything with whey, casein, etc in the ingredients list). Eventually you can add stuff back in and see how it goes - some people can tolerate certain milk products, depending on how they are fermented. I am okay with small amounts of VERY aged cheese - parmesan, romano - but not yogurt, for instance.

In the end (pun intended  ), probably no diet listed in any book will be perfect for any one individual - I think you have to just go through the process of eliminating various things and then adding them back slowly to see how YOUR body reacts. Everybody is a little bit different. Grains and dairy definitely set my autoimmune symptoms off, but I am okay with nightshades (as far as I can tell). I seem to be somewhat sensitive to soy, but not horribly. Not everyone will react to everything on the "anti-inflamatory diet" list of no-nos.

Listen to your body and see what's right for YOU....the diets are just a place to start....

[Tivia]

Dont know if this is relevant to any of you, but have you tried digestive enzymes? My doctors have me on them because my pancreas is basically on strike, I cant digest the foods I eat without them. I have to take prescription only ones, but there are ones over the counter that are just as good.

My understanding of it is , sjogrens affects the pancreas also, and can cause it to do a few unwanted things like stop producing enzymes and  beta cell death in some cases. But anyway talk to your doc, it stopped my bloating pain and gas