# Mild Pancreatic Insufficiency is the Culprit for Me



## panagal (Jan 30, 2011)

Have you ever wondered why your IBS symptoms resurface right after eating a large meal or shortly thereafter? Well, you might be suffering mild pancreatic insufficiency and don’t even know it. Apparently, mild forms of pancreatic insufficiency are difficult to diagnose and there’s controversy among researchers on whether mild forms need treatment or not. It occurs when the pancreas does not secrete enough chemicals and digestive enzymes for normal digestion to occur. In others words, the partially digested food that passes from the stomach to the small intestine may be sitting around too long causing fermentation; ergo the gas, bloating and abdominal discomfort we all experience. I used to think pancreatic insufficiency meant pancreatitis or something worse. But after reading about it, I found out that on certain individuals and under certain conditions, the pancreas becomes sluggish and stops working properly. In my case, age (67) and being a female, had something to do with. Being on an unbalanced diet (Atkins) for a long time didn’t help either. Traditional medicine doesn’t believe in supplementing with enzymes so I took it upon myself to experiment with digestive enzymes. I need them all: protease, amylase, lipase, lactase and alpha_galactosidase (Beano). I take them immediately after finishing a meal. I also discovered on my own that I have too little acid in my stomach so I take HCI w/pepsin to speed up digestion before putting anything in my mouth. Lastly, I sometimes experience burping 2-3 hours after eating which threw me off b/c by that time digestion should be over with, right? Wrong! Through my research, I found out that the pancreas releases sodium bicarbonate to neutralize gastric acid and enable the small intestine to do its job. If there isn’t enough SB, the chyme will sit there until it’s sufficiently alkalinized. Sooooo, I take a tsp. of baking soda when I feel these symptoms coming on and voila, they are gone. Today, I’m happy to say that I’m keeping my IBS symptoms under control as long as I take enzymes with meals. BTW, I’ve also learned that fruits should be eaten at the beginning of a meal or by themselves. The reason is that fruits are mainly complex carbs and they go through your stomach really fast; whereas, meats and veggies take longer to digest. If you do it backwards, the fruits will sit in your stomach longer than necessary and thus create fermentation. So my motto with fruits is “Eat it alone or leave it alone”.If you’ve tried everything else and nothing’s worked, you may want to give digestive enzymes a try. Also, you may want to add HCI with pepsin and/or baking soda if you experience IBS symptoms at the beginning of a meal or several hours later. They have worked wonders for me and they might work for you too.


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## panagal (Jan 30, 2011)

Oh, I forgot to mention that the signs and symptoms of pancreatic (digestive) dysfunction in adults are eerily similar to IBS symptoms:1.	Diarrhea – It may have fat droplets in the stool.2.	Abdominal Discomfort - Some people may experience cramp-like pain and others may experience sharp pains. 3.	Unexplained weight loss – If your body is not absorbing enough nutrients, you will lose weight rapidly.4.	Gas and lower bowel discomfort especially a few hours following a meal.5.	A deficiency of bicarbonate.6.	Fermentation, putrefaction, and foul smelling stools are other possible symptoms.Sometimes we forget that the pancreas is involved in breaking down the proteins, fats and carbs to be absorbed by the body. Besides producing insulin, it produces digestive enzymes that aid in our digestion. In addition, it secretes water and bicarbonate ions to make the pancreatic juice alkaline. If these substances are not present in the small intestine in sufficient quantities, digestion slows down and IBS-like symptoms flare-up. Since my IBS symptoms are relieved when I take pancreatic enzymes with meals and baking soda 2-3 hours later, I firmly believe that pancreatic dysfunction is closely related to IBS in a major way. If you haven't tried this regimen yet, please give it a go. It may be just what you body craves. I experimented with plant-based and porcine-based enzymes before I found the formula that worked for me. Don't give up if at first you don't succeed. Hope this info helps someone out there.


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## tonyinhampshire (May 30, 2010)

So the sodium bicarb indicated pancreatic probelems ? I am wondering about my situ, I have posted today in another post. IBS label seems to convenient and having problems accepting this, though I have spine issues too.Did you get flu like fatigue as well ?tony


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## panagal (Jan 30, 2011)

tonyinhampshire said:


> So the sodium bicarb indicated pancreatic probelems ? I am wondering about my situ, I have posted today in another post. IBS label seems to convenient and having problems accepting this, though I have spine issues too.Did you get flu like fatigue as well ?tony


Yes, deficiency of bicarbonate may indicate pancreatic insufficiency. Think about it. The acidic food passes from the stomach to the small intestine. The food cannot be assimilated until the pancreas has produced enough bicarbonate to increase the foods' pH in order to break it down further. If the food sits in your duodenum longer than it should, fermentation will begin and indigestion will surely follow. My husband didn't believe that something as ordinary as baking soda could clear his belching after a meal. He was sold on the idea on a flight to California when he began showing symptoms of indigestion after dinner. He didn't have his antacid tabs handy so I gave him a tsp. of BS in water and in a few minutes, he was back to normal again. From that day forward, he runs for the baking soda as soon as he feels the symptoms building up.On your other post, you say your "eating is OK" with the exception of GERD? It sounds like the GERD might be a symptom of either not enough acid in your stomach or insufficient bicarbonate in your pancreas or both. You may need to experiment and find out for yourself. The low-grade fever sounds like a different issue altogether. Doctors need to look into it further. Good luck with your test results. Maybe you'll get an answer this time.


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## panagal (Jan 30, 2011)

willkeeptrying said:


> I read your post about pancreatic insufficiency and I believe I struggle from this. The thing is, I have no idea what to eat anymore. What do you eat? Do Yoi mind sharing a meal plan? Thank you!


I'm so glad you asked me about the foods I eat b/c up until the time I discovered I had pancreatic insufficiency, I couldn't eat anything that agreed with me. I thought I was going mad. After doctors ruled out anything physically wrong with me, I was left out in the wilderness to fend for myself. I followed the elimination diets, increased fiber intake, drank lots of liquids, ate more fruits and vegetables but the IBS symptoms wouldn't go away. One day, I read an article on the internet about digestive enzymes and how they deplete as we age, so I decided to give them a try. As long as I take HCI with/pepsin and pancreatic eyzymes with my meals, I can eat practically anything; however, I'm much more cautious now-a-days. I stay away from fried foods, tomato-based products, processed foods with high fructose corn syrup in them and/or artificial sweeteners ending in -ol. I eat fruits by themselves, try to eat dinner earlier than in the past and use small plates to keep meal portions smaller.The most important thing to remember about enzymes is that it all depends on which foods you're eating at the time. For example, if I have ham and eggs with a biscuit for breakfast, I will take 1-2 caps of enzymes containing protease/lipase/amylase. If I have a glass of milk with it, I will also take a lactase cap. When it comes to eating fruits and vegetables, I take 1-2 caps of alpha-galactosidase (Beano) b/c it helps to assimilate complex carbohydrates. In other words, one needs to tailor the type of enzymes to the foods you eat. After experimenting with various amounts, my ritual is to take 2 caps HCI with/pepsin before starting a meal and 2 ea. of pancreatic enzymes, lactase and Beano right after a meal. Two hours later, if I developed a little gas or burping, I take 1 tsp. baking soda and that does it for me. I have not had a bloating or cramping episode since I began taking these sups. Hope I answered your question. If not, please let me know.


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## tonyinhampshire (May 30, 2010)

Very interesting experiment you have done with Bicarb. Have you been diagnosed with pancreatic problems?. Im not convinced about my situ with IBS either. I have taken the bicarb, the next day my skin itched but have not had diarreah or any bowel movements which is the norm for me. I am also going to take the liversalts which I believe has bicarb in it. However, deducing pacreatic problems maybe be premature in my case at this time, perhaps the bicarb is working on the small intestine or another function. I did wonder if perhaps I have a slow transit digestion, especially since the spine issues. This could in theory disrupt colon movementDo you think it is worth having an ultrasound on the prancrease, liver and kidneys areas. Im wonder how accurate the abdominal u/sound is as I am thinking if I have a liver / kidney problem, as the colon appears normalregardstony


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## panagal (Jan 30, 2011)

Hi Tony - I've never been diagnosed with pancreatic problems. I did have ultrasounds of my upper and lower GI and they both came back negative. According to all my test results, I'm the picture of health yet deep down I know Drs. have missed something that doesn't show up on x-rays. I began reading up on digestive enzymes and tried to convince my GI to test my stomach acidity and pancreatic enzyme production but she said "she was not into alternative medicine" and left it at that. It upset me quite a bit, to say the least, but it also gave me the impetus to begin searching for answers on my own. There's a neat place on the internet called Diagnose-Me where one can find information about various ailments. Not only that, they've come up with an electronic analysis via an in-depth diagnostic questionnaire which is more thorough than any 30 min. visit with your GP. I learned a bunch of stuff about my medical condition. I'm not endorsing or recommending it, just letting you know it's out there. Anyways, here http://www.diagnose-me.com/cond/C42561.html is where I picked up the idea of supplementing with HCI w/pepsin and digestive enzymes. They even give you directions on how to do a trial yourself in order to confirm whether HCI and/or enzymes are needed. BTW, it lists IBS as one of the conditions that suggest HCI and digestive enzyme deficiency. If you have never had ultrasounds of your upper and lower GI, I think it's worth having them. I also had a colonoscopy and gastroscopy to rule out anything other than IBS. They both came back negative. Good luck in your search for a solution to your health problems. I hope this info helps you or someone else who's still looking for answers.


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## tonyinhampshire (May 30, 2010)

Yes thanks, just checked out the ' just diagnose me ', and will look more later. Not sure i want to pay for an internet diagnosis. I have booked the ultrsound for this sunday to check upper side which includes pancrease, kidneys, liver, bilary system. I understand that Ultrsound is not the most sensitive tests but it can identify many abnormal situations which might give me a clue and discount other probelms. Infact, I f ican get one bit of eveidence that suggests I have a problem then I can get my doctor to act. Unfortuntely, everything seems at this point to be behyond the normal testings I cannot leave my situation. today for example. I felt so ill, I cannot explain it, not sick, eating okay but just a sense of ill feeling, not disimilar to the onset of flu when you get chills and fatigue, feeling dizzyIts just not right and I would be mortified to learn of this as IBS because it is screwing up my life.I have been taking the bicarb but unfortunately, though the frequency has slowed, the result was just a delayed bowel movement which was like mud. A slight film on the surface of the loo pan is noticed but this is not what is called steatareah, just watery stools.And this strange odour from my skin and throat mucus, nose, like fruit smell. I have googled this and some people with diabetis get this. My blood sugar level is averaging about 5.6 mmll which is anout normal higher range. I told my GP about this smell ahe gave me a strange look.tony


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## tonyinhampshire (May 30, 2010)

Well i had the Abdominal Ultrasound on Sunday ( done privately ). Kidneys, Pancrease, liver, spleen, Bilary system look normal said the sonographer. No free fluid in abdomen either.Now I really have to consider if Im going insane and imagining some of these symptoms. This has already been suggested but it is so real to me. The other day, I read that jaundice makes you itch. Guess what, I started itching all over within a few days. How can you imagine utter fatigue and cold and hot, its crazy as I would not wish this on anyone.Im running out of ideas now. The only test result outstanding now is the CT of chest and throat to investigate the excess throat mucus. I had the test three weeks ago and have heard nothing. I officially go back to the ENT next week,tony


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## Akn1965 (Jan 13, 2017)

Very good explanation about pancreatin enzymes.I will give a try to it


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