Have boyfriend with UC and would appreciate some advice!

Hello everyone,
My boyfriend has been suffering from UC for about 4 years. He is currently having one of his worst flare ups. I am concerned because I can see that he is starting to change. He seems to be falling into a depression and i know it is because of UC. He has been taking an oral medication (i do not have the name at this moment) and it worked preiously, but seems to have no effect on him now. He said he wants to try Asacol, but from reading reviews it does not seem to work well for everyone and causes more problems than it solves. Do any of you have "home remedies" you use, or certain foods that he may be able to try to lessen the effects of UC. or simply medications that have worked for you. Thank you for any help/advice. I have been trying to read up on UC but there is so much that remains unknown...
-Milagro

Does your friend have a GI he has a good relationship with? That would be a good place to start.

But, to address some of your questions.....
I had taken azulphidine prior to starting Asacol almost 20 years ago. There are several meds in the class of Asacol, the 5-ASA meds, and different ones work better for different individuals. They are generally the standard meds to try first. They are very safe. If your fellow's meds used to work and now don't, maybe he needs a change, or maybe just an increase in dosage?
Also, as Malkavian said, rectal meds help a lot. There are 5-ASA preparations for that, and they help a lot of people. I recently slipped into a bit of flare that needed more, so I'm doing steroid enemas while continuing to take the Asacol orally . (The advantage of steroid enemas over oral steroids is that the medication - and therefore side effects - are not systemic.)

I have found probiotics to be immensely helpful, and twice they have helped me squelch a flare - I have experimented with myself by stopping them at two points and my flare has started to come back - and, again, there are a lot of them out there. My GI says one with a high bifido count has been shown to be most helpful.

Other than staying away from whatever foods bother him in a flare, it's hard to say what helps, diet-wise. I find it helpful to stay away from raw or scratchy things in a flare (salads, popcorn, coleslaw).. gassy things; and have more chicken and fish than red meat.... but these things, again, are individual.

Good luck!

It is good to come here and get ideas but the truth is that this disease is very individual and something may help one person and not help someone else. I, like your boyfriend, used to be greatly helped by my medication and a month ago I was thrown into a very bad flare which I could not control and now I have to use prednisone. I am tapering off and doing well so far, thankfully, but it is very stressful and difficult to deal with. I recommend you try to reduce stress and eat clean foods. I don't think diet effects my situation too much but I eat much healthier when I am flaring because I know my body is struggling as it is. Nothing short of drugs has ever provided me too much improvement in my condition. You should find out what he is taking currently and see about adding some rectal medication, maybe he even needs prednisone if he is in bad shape. You need to get him to a good GI quickly. Does he have a GI he has a relationship with that he can see?

I take Asacol and I really worry about my kidneys. I hope I can switch to something else if I ever get medical insurance.

Your boyfriend should be very disciplined if he wants to reduce the flare ups
Start by eating only fresh foods without manufactured sauces and additives
Drink water and white or green teas
Watch breads for additves, use celtic Salt
No dairy, coffee, biscuits, ice-creams confectionary
Psyllium seeds, chia seeds can help
Definitely watch 407 additive, in mouthwash, toothpaste,soaps, foods (that's the stuff they use to bring on colitis in mice)
Don't combine fruits, and eat them 20 minutes before meals
Bring meats back into the diet slowly after things have settled (never eat pork or by products)
Slippery elm, barberry root, marshmallow root. chinese liquorice root, fish oil and MSM can help
Basically start from scratch and introduce foods slowly and document the effect of each food - no pain no gain