Colon:Ulcerative Colitis Treatment

Ulcerative Colitis Treatment : Probiotics & Bacterial Balance

Bacterial balance can be the most significant factor influencing gut ecology and health. With more than 400 microorganism species residing in the human gastrointestinal tract, their overall balance can profoundly influence gut ecology and health. Intestinal bacteria produce toxins and antitoxins, alter chemical composition of foods and drugs, produce and degrade vitamins, degrade dietary toxins and inhibit the growth of certain pathogens. Gut-derived products may also play a role in increasing the systemic immune inflammatory response. Bacterial lipopolysaccharides found in the cell walls of gram-negative bacteria, for example, have been shown to initiate immune responses and elevate pro-inflammatory cytokines.

A fundamental question is whether people with IBD have pathogenic flora, an unbalanced amount of flora, or simply an overly aggressive, improperly regulated immune response toward some of the normal bacteria.

Perhaps the most important function of probiotics is their antagonistic activity toward pathogens and other resident bacteria, which probiotics perform in a variety of complementary ways.

The first activity has been called colonization resistance — the ability of normal flora to protect against the unwanted establishment of pathogen populations.

Second, probiotics may produce various antimicrobial substances. For instance, Lactobacillus casei GG (L-casei or LGG) has been shown to produce substances inhibitory toward a broad spectrum of gram-positive and gram-negative pathogens. Other probiotics have demonstrated antimicrobial activity as well.

Competition for nutrients is a third activity. By competing for available nutrient substrate, beneficial bacteria can inhibit the growth of other, less favorable flora.

Competition for bacterial adhesion sites is probiotics' fourth strategic activity. For instance, Lactobacillus acidophilus inhibits the adhesion of several enteric pathogens to human intestinal cells. A related activity is enzymatically modifying a toxin receptor. Studies using Saccharomyces boulardii, a beneficial yeast, indicate that its interactions with host cell receptors may be important in reducing the pathological effects of infections.

A fifth activity involves a systemic effect. Human LGG, administered orally, has been shown to increase various markers of immune response.

These varied activities may also decrease the likelihood that pathogens will develop resistance against probiotic agents. Thus, probiotics may be viewed as a vehicle to neutralize or inhibit other bacteria in the gut, and increase or stimulate host immune stimulant activities as well.

We recommend SeroLife™, a targeted probiotic with 5 different strands and over 1 Billion live organisms.

Aloe Mucilaginous Polysaccharides

Aloe mucilaginous polysaccharides are long-chain sugar molecules composed of individual mannose and glucose sugar molecules connected together — which have been attributed to subduing and reducing symptoms associated with colitis, ulcerative colitis.

We recommend SEROVERA® AMP 500. SEROVERA® AMP 500 is a GI-specific supplement that has been used with great success by individuals with UC.