Several studies have shown that diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes can help prevent and treat chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and certain cancers, but can it help cure Crohn’s disease?
Well, a new case study of a man with Crohn’s disease described how he has achieved a cure after he stopped eating processed and animal-based foods. After undergoing treatment for a year that did not resolve his problem, he switched to a plant-based diet.
Study co-author Dr. Hana Kahleova said, “This case study offers hope for hundreds of thousands of people [experiencing] the painful symptoms associated with Crohn’s disease.”
Crohn’s disease is one of the two main forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The signs and symptoms include abdominal pain and cramping, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, weight loss, and fatigue.
The study authors noted that more than half of people with Crohn’s disease need surgery within 10 years of diagnosis and very few achieve prolonged clinical remission.
The exact cause of IBD is unknown. Doctors suspect that it arises from a combination of several factors, which include genetic predisposition, diet and lifestyle, environment, immune system, and intestinal bacteria imbalances.
Crohn’s disease affects more than 1 million people in the United States.
In the study paper, Dr. Kahleova mentioned that people with Crohn’s disease have benefited by following a Crohn’s Disease Elimination Diet (CDED).
The CDED diet and a plant-based diet have some features in common, which includes significant reduction of or completely avoiding processed food and dairy products. They also feature an increased intake of dietary fiber.
In the recent study, the man was 25 years of age when he was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. He had symptoms such as bloating, abdominal pain, fatigue, ulcers, and nausea for several years.
The authors said, “Doctors classed him as high risk due to his moderately severe inflammation, severity of symptoms, diagnosis under the age of 30, and his perianal disease.”
He received intravenous infliximab every 8 weeks for a year. His symptoms lessened but he did not achieve clinical remission.
During his second year of treatment, he stopped eating animal and highly processed foods for nearly 40 days for some religious reasons. The authors noted, “While he was following a plant-based diet, he experienced a complete resolution of symptoms.”
Before making this switch, he used to eat meat, dairy, processed foods, and refined grains on a daily basis with modest intakes of vegetables and fruits.
With such a dramatic result, the man decided to start following a plant-based diet.
At the same time, he made changes in his lifestyle. He started running, strength training and yoga.
After six months of following the new diet and lifestyle, he underwent a follow-up colonoscopy, which revealed, “complete mucosal healing with no visible evidence of Crohn’s disease.”
Gradually, he was able to come off his medications completely, which was in August 2017. Since then, there is no recurrence.
The researchers speculated that a plant-based diet promotes and improves microbial diversity in the intestines. They also noted that diet rich in fiber promotes bacterial growth that ferments fiber, which helps in strengthening immunity.
Please note that this study covers just a single case. So, what works for you may not work for others. Experts recommend conducting larger studies to confirm whether a plant-based diet can indeed cure Crohn’s disease.
