Who would've thought...

[scatter shot]

... that when I stopped smoking cigarettes a year ago it would cause an onset of Ulcerative Colitis?


https://www.healthcentral.com/slides...is-and-smoking


ULCERATIVE COLITISUC CAUSES
The Truth About UC and Smoking

IF YOU HAVE ulcerative colitis (UC), you might have heard through the grapevine that smoking cigarettes may improve—or even prevent—symptoms of this inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). While it does sound bananas, there is some research to suggest it could be true. But before you even think about picking up a cigarette, know that other research suggests the opposite. And that’s not even counting the gazillion other proven dangers—increased risk for heart disease, stroke, various cancers—that come with smoking. Read on to learn what we know—and what still baffles us—about the UC-smoking connection.



Ulcerative colitis is an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation and ulcers in the colon, leading to abdominal pain and diarrhea mixed with blood. So how does smoking make UC symptoms less severe? According to David Magier, M.D., a gastroenterologist at NYU Langone Health in New York City, “Nicotine or smoking byproducts suppress the immune system, which is overactive in individuals with ulcerative colitis. Medications approved to treat these symptoms work in the same manner.”

Despite some conflicting research, smoking appears to protect people from developing UC, says Stephen Hanauer, M.D., professor of medicine-gastroenterology and hepatology at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, Ill. The numbers bear this out: Both nonsmokers and former smokers have higher rates of the disease. What’s more, quitting smoking can lead to the development of UC down the line. “While most patients develop ulcerative colitis as teenagers or young adults, ex-smokers account for a smaller, second-age peak of ulcerative colitis in the fifth or sixth decade of life,” Dr. Hanauer adds.