Hi,
I've been taking the elemental shakes for almost three weeks to deal with a flare-up of Crohn's. Initially I tried the vanilla and saw steady improvement (reduction of abdominal pressure, bloating and cramps). However, after using the mixed berry I observed symptoms return. At first I wasn't sure it was the berry shake because I had introduced some other supplements about the same time (like Vitamin C) - not a good controlled experiment.
I was forced to return to the berry shakes this weekend because I was out of vanilla. Again I had made significant improvement on the vanilla, but as before I saw a regression after the first day of nearly all mixed berry. I saw another post where someone didn't tolerate the berry shakes well.
Unfortunately, I'm allergic to chocolate so it's vanilla from here on. My question is whether actual berries (and what kinds) are used in manufacturing the mixed berry shake. I've had berries before and I'm not aware of any allergies/intolerance (although, I know any elimination diet will manifest them more quickly). The shakes are definitely different in texture and viscosity. The vanilla tends to clump/froth more and is "stickier", while the berry almost never clumps and is very smooth going down. I also noticed my stools shifted to more liquid/soft on the berry (vanilla was surprisingly "normal" considering my flare-up).
Has anyone had this type of reaction before? Has Jini thought of using carob instead of (or in addition to) chocolate considering the allergy potential. It won't help my current situation, but I plan to use the shakes in the future even after my flare-up is healed.

Thanks,
Brett

Hi Brett,

Just to make sure you're aware of this: the natural beet color used to color the Mixed Berry flavor will turn your stool pink - so don't confuse that with a flare or think it's bleeding. The only other natural colorant to be used for a pinkish color is the crushed shells of a certain insect (can't remember the name right now - something to do with carmine).

The berry flavoring comes from an extract (think like vanilla extract).

The other thing you might want to try is mixing 3 scoops vanilla with 1 scoop berry and see if you tolerate that okay.

all the best,
Jini

Hi Jini,
Thanks for the explanation. I've heard of the crushed shells of insects being used for coloring (I believe it's from a beetle, but I'm not sure). So, I'm assuming the colored specks in the powder are the remnants of these shells. The other interesting point is beet color. I may have a sensitivity to beets (not sure, but when I've mixed beet into veggie juices I've found the juices don't agree with me as well - I've always thought it was the high sugar content). Actually, I hated beets as a kid, but my Mom insisted on making them anyway.
It's still possible it's the berry extract, but I'm less inclined to think so based on the info you've provided. I'm wondering if the crushed shells might have an abrasive effect. Another thought is that the more liquid stool (maybe because it's less "sticky" vs. vanilla shake) has an irritating effect. Regarding mixing, I did initially do that when I realized I was going to run out of vanilla. I may try that again, but I think I'll go with vanilla for a while until I've gone at least a couple of weeks without any symptoms.
The interesting thing with my Crohn's since I started on the holistic road about 13 years ago is that it doesn't present the same way as my pre-holistic flare-ups. During my flare-up several years ago, I managed to avoid some of the major pathology (severe cramps, frequent diarrhea, etc.) by controlling my diet and taking supplements. It slowed my decline (although I still lost weight) until I got into a major car accident and then my immune system dropped into the toilet (so to speak). I ended up trying the raw food diet and eventually (after great reluctance) took asacol which finally brought me into apparent remission.
This flare-up was triggered (in the physical sense) by eating popcorn on two consecutive days. However, while I had some abdominal cramping/tenderness/pain, the main symptom was abdominal pressure (presumably from my strictures). Possibly because of the asacol, though, I barely had any diarrhea. I've noticed that the pressure symptoms have steadily declined and I'm slowly weaning myself off the asacol. Another interesting develpment I mentioned to my gastro is that I noticed the asasol tablets were incompletely dissolved in my stools, but lately, they've been almost thoroughly dissolved (just the broken casing is present).
The good news is that I'm already bouncing back from the berry episode. I'm still getting some moderate cramping around the descending/sigmoid area, but it's not constant. I've introduced some of the broths you've recommended which helps to break the monotony.
I just started implementing the some of the mental/emotional/stress-relief protocols you've mentioned. I've dabbled with EFT, hypnosis, but I've never really committed/dedicated 100% (or even nearly that). I've been ahead of the curve on nutritional intervention for a long time (e.g. I used herbals like olive leaf and oregano over ten years ago). However, I've learned that all of supplements in the world won't do much if that mental/emotional axis isn't addressed (and, of course, it's always the thing we think is the toughest to deal with that becomes the weak link and derails success).
I'm grateful that you've produced the shakes and have added so much useful information since your last book. I remember reading your first book during my bad flare-up several years ago and feeling that it really resonated with me. Many thanks.

Regards,
Brett

Hi, Brett.

It's interesting reading your story.

I've found that to be true, as well. No supplement (or in my opinion, medication) in the world is going to replace addressing the emotional component of dis-ease. I truly believe that all the EFT I have done and continue to do has been a major component in how well I have done following Jini's protocols. (And really, she gets the credit for that, too....I'd never even heard of EFT until I read LTYG.)

It makes a lot of sense to me, actually. The more I look at the natural world, the more I realize how web-like the systems are....everything is connected and you can't change one thing without affecting the rest. We, as small systems in and of ourselves, are like that, too. The mental/emotional affects the physical and vice versa....both need to be supported.

Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on your healing journey.

Nicole

Hi Brett,

Yes, it's funny, because personally, I hate doing EFT! All that tapping and repeating phrases really bugs me. But you know, the dang thing works so well I have to keep doing it!

I have spent - no kidding - 20 years in therapy for emotional issues. I have tried just about every therapeutic modality out there. And I have had some huge "healing experiences" and momentous spiritual events - I've left my body, time travelled, seen visions, etc. And often these experiences would result in dramatic healing, BUT, it never stuck. Sooner or later the exact same symptoms would return and the same emotional feelings/thoughts/beliefs would settle back into place.

So much as it annoys me, I have to say that EFT - with no drama or momentous 3rd dimension experiences - is the best therapy/technique I've found that really and truly works. And it holds. Once you finally get to all the little 'branches' of an issue, feeling, or belief, and you shift it, it really does stay shifted. So, even though it's time consuming, in the long run it's probably the best use of your time - cause you don't have to keep healing the same thing over and over again!

Now, regarding the Mixed Berry - yes, I think it's called the carmine beetle. But anyway, that is NOT what i used to color it (since many people are vegetarians). Beet extract is the colorant used, so yes, that may irritate you, or it may not. I have tons of readers who can't eat beets at all, but have no problem with the Mixed Berry. So again, best is just to follow your own gut.

Since all you can tolerate at this point is the vanilla, you can create your own flavors if you like, by using organic or all-natural liquid extracts. Frontier Naturals makes some good ones. I believe you can get raspberry extract, almond extract, and orange extract. So don't know if that appeals to you or not. If you do pursue this, please post your results under a new topic (like, "Adding Flavors to Absorb Plus Vanilla"), and let us know which extracts you tried and how many drops to add per shake. In fact, thats such a good option, I'm going to put that on my list of things to do/try as well and will post my results when I have them too.

all the best,
Jini

I read the post talking about the problem with the Berry, I also did some experiments with it because it causing me to cramp when I use it AND it actually due to its different consitency forms a seperate stool of its own. I found that it settles somehow and will give me a very pinkish stool that I once thought was heavy bleeding. I can't do the cocoa, carob would be awesome, the vanilla alone is so sweet its hard to take 10 times a day.
Man I would love to see the manufacturer go back to the drawing board on this one, because I thought the cramping and pain was due to the UC but it wasn't . I have had to do shakes now for over 3 months because I had such a long crisis phase with many complications , I thank God that the shakes have sustained me I am very grateful but would love the variety that doesn' t cause UC like symptoms. By the way I can eat beets with no problem, bug shells ??? that might be another issue


Barb

Hi Jini, Nicole and Barb,
Thank you for your helpful responses. Sorry for the confusion I caused over the beetle shells. Barb, per Jini's reply above, Absorb Plus does not use shells for coloring, just beet extract.

Jini, thanks for the excellent suggestion about the other flavoring extracts!!! I never considered that. I looked at the Frontier website and there's over a dozen - I'm excited at the prospect of some different tastes. I'll definitely keep you informed about my experiences with the different flavors. It will give me a chance to try the berry extract and rule that out as an issue for my gut.

Nicole/Jini, the hynotherapist I'm seeing is also an EFT practitioner. She's been focusing first on teaching me relaxation/de-stressing techniques to calm things down. She mentioned there's a school of thought which believes IBD/IBS clients do better dealing with the "now" vs. "insight therapy" which delves into the source of past issues/traumas (that bringing the visceral events when unprepared will overwhelm the gut). Interesting idea, I'll let you know how it works out. So far, so good. She did agree that EFT can create a permanent energy shift and she'll use it when the time is right.

Barb, have you tried Jini's broth recipes? It really helps to vary taste sensations and when I sat down with my finally it felt like I was eating "normally." Also, chewing gum seems to help. I searched for a good old-fashioned "tooth-rotting" gum (just sugar), but all I found was gum laden with artificial sweeteners and other nasty chemicals. I've been using natural gums, but most use xylitol which can cause diarrhea. The gum I'm using now is called "Glee gum" (gleegum.com) and it's based on the original gum "chicle." The ingredients seem fairly benign and seem to agree with my gut.

Best regards,
Brett

P.S. Jini/Nicole, I have some ideas about reducing the spam you're receiving. Have you thought of adding the random text during profile creation (like sites such as Ticketmaster) where you have to enter a word which is distorted so it can't be scanned? I also noticed that almost every spam profile (maybe all of them) have websites - that combined with other criteria might help filter them out. The standard approach of a keyword search would probably help, too.

Hi Brett,

The software for this forum doesn't have an 'enter code' function. So that's not an option.

I've also stayed away from word censoring since this is a site that deals with bodily functions.

What we are doing is have my hubby go on morning and night and delete posts and ban those usernames.

Then Nicole and I try to get to any that pop up during the day. Hopefully this will be enough to control things. Unfortunately, I don't have the funds at this point to do anything more elaborate/custom.

I'm really looking forward to your flavoring experiments! Can't wait to see what you come up with and how it works out.

Also, your hypnotherapist's approach seems interesting. Just remember not to give your power away and follow your gut instincts (as with any therapist).

take care,
Jini

Hi Jini,
That's too bad. There may be some other approaches; I'll think on it.

Regarding the flavoring, I've already tried strawberry extract. I've noticed some very mild tenderness, but that could just be "normal" activity as my gut heals. I can definitely say, though, that it hasn't caused the symptoms I experienced with the berry shake. I used about a teaspoon for each shake (started with half-teaspoon). It's enough to change the flavor, but it's not a strong berry taste. I'm proceeding slowly, just trying this one first. I've used in about 4 or 5 shakes so far. My feeling right now is that it's the beet extract that caused my intolerance to the berry shake. Of course, the concentration of the extract and the particular berry (berries) might differ so I can't be entirely sure (unless I find beet extract somewhere). I also picked lemon and anise. I would have purchased almond, but the Frontier brand has alcohol and I'd rather not chance it.

Thanks for the advice; I'll be sure to guide with my gut. So far, it feels right to proceed with the relaxation first because it helps my reaction to stressful situations. I feel I'll be ready to dive into the deep stuff in a few weeks.

On a separate note, I saw your e-mail about the FDA up to their old tricks again. You may want to check out the Life Extensions' take on this (they have a successful history of fighting the FDA). You can read at the following link: http://www.lef.org/featured-articles/co ... 041907.htm

I've already sent my complaint to the FDA. We beat them back in 1994; let's hope we can do it again.

Thanks,
Brett

That's an excellent article and you're right, they really seem to know what they're doing.

Regarding the strawberry extract - is that in a glycerin base then?

You're right about the alcohol based extracts - not a good idea. However, you may want to try putting them into some hot water to evaporate the alcohol first and then adding to a shake. Don't know if you'd still need to use the same amount of extract per shake, or could use less?

Well, keep us posted on how it goes....

thanks,
Jini

Hi Jini,
The LEF group has been wrestling with the FDA for around 30 years, so they know the drill.
The strawberry extract has the following ingredients: Sunflower oil, caprylic/caproic triglycerides, natural flavors. I assume the triglycerides are derived from coconut oil. I always get a bit nervous when I see natural flavors since it's sometimes used to camouflage MSG, but Frontier is a pretty reputable place so I think it's probably used because there's very little actual berry extract. Also, it's labeled "Strawberry flavor" which probably makes a difference vs. extract. The lemon and anise "flavors" actually contain the real oils. I tried anise last night; definitely stronger than the strawberry and it added a real licorice taste. I'll probably experiment with that for a few days before trying lemon. Thanks for the suggestion about removing the alcohol.

Best regards,
Brett

Hi Brett,

I've just ordered some organic flavor concentrates from this company:

http://www.naturesflavors.com/

blackcurrant
amaretto almond
black raspberry
banana

and they are very concentrated, in a gum acacia base, so should need to use only 6-8 drops per shake.

I'll post my recipes here once I've got them and done some experimenting. This site is good though since it tells you the difference between extracts and concentrates.

If anyone else wants to experiment, please let us know your results!

all the best,
Jini