What do you think about moving the holiday season to a different time of year?
I’m into it. 🙋♀️
Living in the Northeastern U.S., someone is always sick for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year’s Eve… you name it.
My family is currently on day 5 of some unidentified virus and crossing our fingers we’ll be well by Thanksgiving.
And based on the number of sneezes I’m hearing everywhere I go, we’re clearly not alone.
“’Tis the season” has basically become the new “bless you.”
All this sickness means many of us are turning to “immune health” supplements — vitamin C, zinc, elderberry, etc. — anything to feel better fast.
But sometimes those products end up causing their own set of symptoms.
Just last week, someone emailed me about sudden diarrhea… only to remember she’d recently added vitamin C supplements to combat cold symptoms.
High-dose vitamin C often leads to diarrhea — I actually recommended it yesterday to someone for constipation.
Zinc is another popular one.
Supplementing with zinc may help with cold symptoms, but too much zinc taken orally can cause nausea, abdominal cramping, indigestion, and diarrhea.
Zinc lozenges — the form most people reach for — can be helpful, but like many “immune support” products, they often contain ingredients that aren’t always gut-friendly: sugar alcohols, fructose, lactose, inulin, gums… all of which can lead to gas, bloating, or loose stools in certain individuals.
It reminds me of a patient I told you about this summer: 40 minutes into our visit she casually mentioned she’d started sucking on sugar-free mints… and that ended up being the cause of her diarrhea.
So consider this a friendly reminder (for myself as much as for you) to check whether any of these short-term “immune health” supplements might be worsening symptoms.
In my practice, I focus on the basics first: hydration, rest, balanced meals, and adequate vitamin D — a supplement that most people, especially those with IBD, can benefit from.
After that, if an “immune health” supplement makes sense, we add only one new supplement at a time and review labels carefully for ingredients that may worsen GI symptoms.
