Those Of You That Suffer With Diarrhea

[BamBam]

I have read a lot on this message board about people with diarrhea, whether it is because of gluten intolerance or not. In the past, I have read a lot on the Web MD website about "Irritable Bowel Syndrome. I've read there many messages on how much calcium can help with diarrhea. First of all, calcium can be very constipating, so you have to be very careful. Linda (the writer of the message in Web MD) has recommended, and I have tried it, to take the Caltrate with Vitamin D and minerals. Now Linda, she takes a full caplet three times a day, one with each meal. Now if I took that much calcium, I wouldn't poop for a month! But I do take 1/2 or 1/4 of a pill once a day and it does seem to help. Her studies show that only a certain % of the calcium is absorbed into the system, and the rest of it can help "bind" up the excess bile and liquids in your system to help form a firmer bowel movement.

She has nothing to do with gluten intolerance, she was diagnosed with IBS and nothing seemed to help her, she started taking calcium as a supplement and it has helped the diarrhea part of her IBS. She is leading a more active life with her family and friends.

I still get diarrhea once in awhile, but I think it is because I am not watching my gluten/wheat intolerance well enough, but I don't get near the urgency of having to find a bathroom in ten seconds or else!

I'm fairly new to the boards, just started writing some items this past month. I do hope this helps some of you, if you have any questions, go over into WebMD and look into the "Irritable Bowel Syndrome" and find her articles. I have communicated a lot with her, and she seems to have something on this.

BamBam

[Canadian Karen]

Hi Bam Bam,

Thank you for the suggestion! I will definitely try it - after all, everything else I have tried so far doesn't seem to work......

Have a great day!

Karen

[catfish]

A lot of people have good results with this, in fact Caltrate makes a product called "Colon Care" or something like that which is nothing more than megadoses of calcium.

When I tried this approach, it didn't work too well. It did bind things up a bit but did nothing for the cramps and spasms, so it only made things worse. But that was before I went gluten-free, so perhaps it would be more effective now that I'm on a gluten-free diet.

[GEF]

I didn't know that calcium had that effect, but I take Caltrate with Vit. D because I'm lactose intolerant and am afraid I don't get enough calcium through my diet. I like the chewables and I have realized that taking them does help with the "D" issue... didn't know it was the calcium though! Thank you for the info

Gretchen

[Canadian Karen]

Hi Bam Bam,

I went out and bought Caltrate with Vitamin D today. Will start taking it three times a day, with each meal - I will post to let you know what happens.....

Thanks for the tip!

Karen

[Guest Lindam]

Hi BamBam, I have to try your recommendation about calcium. I am up in years and should have extra calcium in my diet anyway, but if I can "kill two birds with one stone" (and not have to worry about where the next closest bathroom is), I will be so happy. I really hope this works for me.

[Canadian Karen]

Okay, yesterday was the first day that I took Caltrate - I took three, 1/2 hour after each meal.....

I woke up at 1 a.m. with excruiating pain, spend the next four hours going to the bathroom, (yep, still diarrhea.....), and laying on the floor with my heating pad rocking myself trying to control the pain. It was just like a knife going through my body, literally taking my breath away...... I was this )( close to dring myself to the hospital.... finally at 5 a.m., it started to subside..... I guess my system can't handle more than one Caltrate a day.... I know for sure that there was nothing in question about what I ate yesterday.....

Oh well, back to the drawing board.......

Karen

[Guest Lindam]

Hi Karen, Reading your experience certainly brought back some bad times. I think I would start off really slow, maybe 1/2 to 1 pill a day, then gradually work yourself up to 3 a day. I have been taking the calcium (not Caltrate) and I have been seeing a great improvement, but then I only take 1 pill a day.

Have a great day!

[j9n]

Oh Karen I am sorry. I would wait a couple of days and try 1/2 a pill once a day, then twice a day if it isn't enough. I don't think I could tolerate more than 1 to 1 1/2 a day.