Crones Disease: What Do Your Medicines Do?

If you are taking medicines for your Crones disease, you will probably recognize a lot of the symptoms and side effects mentioned in this article. After a summary of the most problematic sides of mainstream medication, a possible solution is given to improve life quality and health in the long run on a solid basis.

Medicines are the most common Crones disease treatment. While none can cure this inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), they are used to try to reduce the swelling that causes the symptoms. The most frequently used medicines for Crones disease are Aminosalicylates and Corticosteroids to Block Inflammation, Antibiotics to Control Intestinal Bacteria, Immunomodulators to Calm the Immune System, and Biologic Therapies for Moderate or Severe Crones disease. Brand names of these medicines are (amongst others): - Aminosalicylates : Mesalamine (Asacol, Pentasa), Balsalazide (Dipentum), Olsalazine (Colazal) - Corticosteroids: Prednisone (Deltasone), Budesonide (Entocort EC) , Hydrocortisone, Methylprednisolone (Medrol) - Antibiotics: Ciprofloxacin (Cipro), Metronidazole (Flagyl) Immunomodulators: Azathioprine (Imuran, Azasan),6-mercaptopurine (Purinethol, 6-MP), Methotrexate (MTX, Rheumatrex, Mexate) , Tacrolimus (Prograf), Cyclosporine A (Sandimmune, Neoral) - Biologic Therapies: Infliximab (Remicade), Adalimumab (Humira).

Allopathic (mainstream) doctors rely on these medicines to control the symptoms of Crones disease although they know that none of these medicines will actually cure the underlying cause. If we read about the side effects these medicines have, we might want to give the whole matter another thought: Diarrhea Headache, dizziness Increased risk of bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract Indigestion, nausea, gas Hair loss Rash Decrease in white blood cells High blood pressure Mood swings, psychosis, insomnia Weight gain, moon facies Acne, increased facial hair, stretch marks Increased risk of infection Osteoporosis Vomiting Cough Sinus infections Sore throat

Some of the therapies have other drawbacks as well. Biologic therapies need frequent injections, and other medicines have a better effect when taken as an enema or a suppository. Not very pleasant if done frequently.

Corticosteroids are sometimes given intravenously. Their side effects are severe, and on the long run they can for example lessen your bone denseness and cause osteoporosis. If you want to stop taking them, you have to do that gradually, because otherwise the symptoms might worsen. I do not like to think what happens in my body if a medicine actually makes the condition worse...

Antibiotics are said to be used to control bacteria levels in the intestine and reduce the symptoms of Crones disease. They can also resolve infections caused by the condition. If you think well about it, antibiotics probably kill all bacteria in your intestines, the good ones and the bad ones, and they do not leave a healthy level of good bacteria behind. They probably leave a not so healthy level of bad resistant bacteria behind if you have bad luck... If your good bacteria are wiped out by frequent antibiotic-use, it is quite probable that you develop inflammations on gut-level, simply because there is no shield of good bacteria any more which protects your gut form attacks from outside. The question is here is antibiotics solve a problem, or actually create a much bigger problem on the not so long run.

Some researchers believe that Crones Disease is caused by an over reactive immune system. When the other medicines do not work to control the swelling, they will try to use immunomodulators which diminish the immune response. Also patients with fistulas will be treated with these medicines, often in combination with corticosteroids. Because of their effect on the immune system, these medicines tend to increase the danger of other infections or other illnesses. The effect on bone marrow, liver and kidneys has to be monitored, because of likely side effects.

Biologic Therapies are the newest, and most expensive type of Crones disease treatment. "These Crones disease treatments are used to treat moderate to severe cases that haven't responded to other treatments. They can be used for initial treatment and then to maintain remission. Biologic therapies are powerful drugs and they do have side effects. Because they suppress the immune response, biologic therapies can leave you at risk for infections. There is some evidence that they increase the risk of conditions like blood infections, tuberculosis, and lymphoma. These risks are generally considered small, but you should talk with your doctor about pros and cons. Biologic therapies are not right for everyone." (source: http://www.webmd.com)

Apart from the above mentioned medicines, you will probably have to take medicines against diarrhea and fluid loss form time to time. Medications for Crones disease can interact with common drugs like birth control pills, antacids, and even vitamins.

If we recap all the information in this article, it is clear that an alternative approach to Crones Disease is dearly wanted. Improving the natural balance of bacteria in our gut would be helpful to start with, and a general improvement of our overall immune system is vital. If we find a additional treatment which helps us to reach these goals, we could start to use it as a way to help our body to regain it's natural strength, and eventually the new approach could take over the treatment using medicines.

About the Author

Crones Disease is bad enough, and you don't want more problems and discomfort due to unwanted effects of medicines. Learn here how to take a different approach and instead of worsening your Crones Disease, treat the underlying cause.