Can eating better and taking vitamins heal a sick gut?

When stressors and nutritional deficiencies are corrected in people with chronic autoimmune conditions, the body's internal balance returns to normal.

In patients with ulcerative colitis, thyroid dysfunction, vitamin D deficiency, and zinc deficiency, a 17-month supplement regimen of vitamin D3+K2, zinc glycinate, and omega-3 krill oil was associated with improved thyroid markers and restored vitamin D and zinc levels to normal.

A 37-year-old man with active ulcerative colitis, taking infliximab and corticosteroids, experienced a decrease in fecal calprotectin from over 3000 µg/g to 42 µg/g, a reduction in Escherichia and Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteria, and resolution of rectal bleeding and gastrointestinal symptoms after following a personalized diet eliminating wheat, dairy, refined sugar, and processed foods, along with specific supplements, over 17 months.

In patients with severe ulcerative colitis and high fecal calprotectin levels, a 17-month dietary change and supplement regimen resulted in a drop in fecal calprotectin to normal levels and a return of Escherichia spp. and Klebsiella pneumoniae to baseline abundance.

In a person with ulcerative colitis and severe gut microbial imbalance, a 17-month dietary intervention that removed wheat, dairy, and refined sugars and added probiotics, lactoferrin, and glutathione resulted in measurable decreases in the levels of three specific pathogenic bacteria: Escherichia spp., Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Citrobacter freundii.