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Strawberry tree extracts helped treat ulcerative colitis in rats. (HJBC/Shutterstock) In a nutshell A traditional Mediterranean plant, the strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo), showed strong protective effects against ulcerative colitis in rats, performing nearly as well as a common prescription drug. The extract worked by reducing inflammation, preventing tissue damage, and restoring antioxidant enzyme levels, suggesting multiple mechanisms of action. While promising, these findings are from animal studies, and more research is needed before the extract can be considered a safe or effective treatment for humans. ======================================================================== JENDOUBA, Tunisia — A humble fruit from the Mediterranean region might hold the key...

Adopting and maintaining a healthy lifestyle might prevent up to 60% of inflammatory bowel disease cases—Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Researchers drew on participant data from the Nurses' Health Study (NHS). The researchers created modifiable risk scores (MRS) based on established modifiable risk factors for IBD to estimate the proportion of IBD cases that could have been avoided. The MRS ranged from 0-6. These risk factors included weight (BMI); smoking; use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; physical activity; and daily intake of fruit, fiber, vegetables, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and red meat. The researchers then estimated the proportion of avoidable cases...

A surgical approach pioneered in Ireland could have a global impact on the treatment of Crohn's disease. A new study has shown that the approach first developed in Ireland could have a major impact on treating Crohn's disease. Crohn's disease is incurable, with high rates of recurrence, even after surgery. It is a condition for which at least 80% of patients will require surgery to treat at some point. To add to this, around 40% of those will require repeat surgery. However, the new approach pioneered at UL and UHL dramatically reduces the possibility that follow-up surgery will be needed...

The bubonic plague killed so many people in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa that that natural selection event is still rippling through our genomes today. But the same genes that helped your ancestors survive the Black Death may be contributing to autoimmune disease today.Have an Autoimmune Disease? Blame the Black Death | 7:16SciShow | 7.77M subscribers | 572,860 views | November 7, 2023

Chronic bowel inflammation is based on an excessive or misdirected inflammatory reaction. Experts assume that the immune system also reacts incorrectly to microorganisms in the intestine that do not cause an inflammatory immune reaction in a healthy state. Now, researchers have discovered that yeast fungi could play an important role in this. Trillions of microorganisms colonize the human body, especially the intestine. This microbiome consists mainly of viruses and bacteria, but to a lesser extent also of fungi. However, according to current research, this interaction is disturbed in Crohn's disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease where the immune cells react...

An article shows that melatonin, despite its antioxidant effects and role in regulating sleep cycles, can worsen inflammation of the intestine and impair the action of gut microbiota. Melatonin is popularly known as the "sleep hormone" and is often taken as a so-called food supplement without a doctor's prescription by people with sleep problems. "It's generally thought to be harmless. However, our study shows that the ingestion of melatonin supplement can have adverse effects on health," said Cristina Ribeiro de Barros Cardoso. Melatonin can act as an antioxidant and improve several physiological or pathological conditions. "We started out in this...

Salk Institute researchers have developed a new compound that acts like a master reset switch in the intestines. In a new study, the compound, called FexD, is found to prevent and reverse intestinal inflammation in mouse models of inflammatory bowel disease. New therapeutic has the potential to treat inflammatory bowel disease by targeting a molecule that keeps order in the intestines. Salk Institute scientists have developed a new drug that acts like a master reset switch in the gut. Called FexD, the compound has previously been found to burn fat, lower cholesterol, and ward off colorectal cancer in mice. Now,...

The study found that 0.8% of same-sex patients with high-risk sexual activity were diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, while only 0.49 heterosexual men who engaged in high-risk sexual activity had Crohn’s disease. The research will enable the development of individualized, precision medicine for the management of inflammatory bowel disease in this underrepresented minority patient group. According to a recent study from Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center (UH), gay men are more than twice as likely as heterosexual males to develop inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) when both groups participate in high-risk sexual activity. The study was recently...

When the bubonic plague arrived in London in 1348, the disease devastated the city. So many people died, so quickly, that the city's cemeteries filled up. "So the king [Edward III], at the time, bought this piece of land and started digging it," says geneticist Luis Barreiro at the University of Chicago. This cemetery, called East Smithfield, became a mass grave, where more than 700 people were buried together. "There's basically layers and layers of bodies one on top of each other," he says. The city shut down the cemetery when the outbreak ended. In the end, this bubonic plague,...

Intestine Crohn’s Disease A mystery surrounding Crohn’s disease, a type of inflammatory bowel disease, may have been solved by a new study. This image depicts an intestine affected by Crohn’s disease. ========================================================= New research may have solved a mystery surrounding Crohn’s disease, a type of inflammatory bowel disease where immune defenses meant to attack invading microbes mistakenly target the body’s own digestive tract instead. Norovirus is a common infection that causes vomiting and diarrhea. It is also one of several viruses and bacteria thought to trigger disease onset in people with Crohn’s disease, but the field does not know why....

Two new treatments for Crohn's disease showed roughly equal performance in a clinical trial. This allows clinicians and patients to make treatment choices based on tolerance, according to Stephen Hanauer, MD. Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic, progressive inflammatory bowel disease, causing abdominal pain, weight loss and fatigue. Treatment for CD has typically focused on alleviating symptoms to achieve clinical remission using corticosteroids or immunomodulators, but a need for more effective treatment remains. "While there are numerous therapies and mechanisms of action for drugs approved for moderate-severe Crohn's disease there has been a therapeutic ceiling as far as outcomes are...

Microplastics—tiny pieces of plastic less than 5 mm in length –– are everywhere, from bottled water to food to air. According to recent estimates, people consume tens of thousands of these particles each year, with unknown health consequences. Now, researchers found that people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have more microplastics in their feces than healthy controls, suggesting that the fragments could be related to the disease process. The prevalence of IBD, which includes Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, is rising globally. Characterized by chronic inflammation of the digestive tract, IBD can be triggered or made worse by diet and...

It’s all downhill from 27, new research reveals. At least if you’re a millennial, chronic conditions and diseases start to rear their heads in your late-20s, and from there things continue to deteriorate, according to a new Blue Cross/Blue Shield report. Millennials as a generation are in overall poorer health than their predecessors, Gen X-ers, with higher rates of depression, hyperactivity, substance misuse, type 2 diabetes and Crohn’s disease, among other chronic conditions. The report authors warn that the healthcare community needs to be aware that millennials are facing growing and perhaps unprecedented health concerns that could cost them years...

When most people scope out a new gym, they tend to focus on the quality of the equipment, range of class offerings, and amenities in the locker room. Alison Feller, however, wants to know about the bathrooms. “I go to Orangetheory because they have three,” she says. Feller has Crohn’s disease, so knowing that there are plenty of restrooms nearby is pretty important. During a flare, patients often have frequent diarrhea, rectal bleeding, and fever. Pain, fatigue, and weight loss are common, too, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Mayo Clinic. Although every patient is different,...

The QuadrigaCX cryptocurrency exchange says it can't access some $190 million in bitcoin and other funds after its founder and CEO, Gerald Cotten, died at age 30 — without sharing the password for his encrypted laptop. Cotten was "the sole officer and director" of the Canadian cryptocurrency exchange when he died, said his widow, Jennifer Robertson, in an affidavit that is part of the company's request for court assistance as it seeks protection from its creditors. The debt filing comes weeks after Robertson announced that Cotten had died — an event she described as "a shock to all of us."...

Investigators at the Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research have discovered a surprising new role for tumor necrosis factor (TNF): namely, that it is a major regulator of small blood vessel function, the key determinant of blood pressure. The study is published online today in Nature Communications. TNF has long been tied to inflammation, giving rise to the use of anti-TNF medications for chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and IBS. Now, after years of studying TNF's cell signaling functions in the vascular system, researchers found that TNF directly impacts how the smallest arteries constrict - and thus...

This is Aimee Rouski, a 19-year-old from Liverpool, England, who has Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the digestive system. Crohn’s is an incurable disease which causes inflammation of the lining of any part of the gastrointestinal tract. It can cause abdominal pain, severe diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss, and malnutrition — which can become life-threatening. Many people with Crohn’s will have at least one surgery as part of treatment, either to widen a part of the intestine or to remove portions of the intestines or the colon and/or rectum. Rouski recently posted a few selfies with her ostomy...

What do you think of this? Despicable and outrageous, or just the school and police doing their duty?: "On March 24, cannabis oil activist Shona Banda‘s life was flipped upside-down after her son was taken from her by the State of Kansas. The ordeal started when counselors at her 11-year-old son’s school conducted a drug education class. Her son, who had previously lived in Colorado for a period of time, disagreed with some of the anti-pot points that were being made by school officials." The school called the police. Coppers showed up at Shona’s home, searched everything, and ended up...

ISIS has posted a video, claiming that they have beheaded American journalist James Foley of Rochester, New Hampshire. They say that he was beheaded by the terror group in order to dissuade the United States from its involvement in Iraq. Foley has been missing since 2012. A Middle Eastern radio station’s reporter, Zaid Benjamin, has posted pictures to Twitter. Reportedly, the photos are from the video that ISIS posted. Zaid Benjamin, the Washington correspondent for Radio Sawa, said that the location of the beheading is unknown, but he did say that he thought the accent of the man in the...

Greetings! I know there are freepers who have knowledge and experience in just about any area of interest, so I figured we could gather some info/input from you on various treatments/ success stories for Crohn's. I did a search and various interesting articles have been posted, perhaps some of you have other useful links you could share. Over a year ago our youngest was diagnosed with Crohn's disease. Not that there is ever a good time to become ill, but this has impacted her studies and immediate University plans. She has been under the care of a physician who has...