1. colitis
    andrew scott andrew scott United Kingdom says:
    August 12, 2012 at 3:34 PM

    I'm 41 years old (m) and have suffered with  colitis now for over 5 years
    And was also a smoker for 20 years, I gave up smoking and that's when I had
    My first flare up of colitis and was taken to hospital for 2weeks .
    I won't go into detail about the different drugs and diets I've been on but after the first flare up
    I started smoking again, but over the years since I was first diagnosed I have tried given up smoking
    And every time the colitis has returned . I gave up smoking back in July this year  and yes it has returned again. I am convinced that there is a chemical in the cigarette that either
    Helps stop a flare up or masks it.
    I dont want to go under the knife and I'm hoping one day soon a cure can be found.
    I'm not going back to smoking this time hopefully the flare up will
    Settle down again through watching what I eat and medication.
    So here is hoping.
    Andy scott

    Reply
    • On the other hand
      Ratty Hall Ratty Hall United States says:
      May 30, 2013 at 11:29 AM

      I, on the other hand, had never smoked, but after a serious flare of UC, which I've had for 12 years, and finding that none of the medications seemed to work to control it, I gave smoking a try...very unhappily, but I felt I'd be hospitalized soon if I didn't do something drastic.  It seemed like my last hope and with all the research I did on the topic, I was very hopeful it would help.  Well, it did work. It helped dramatically within 2 weeks, but it took about 5 weeks to achieve full remission.  I smoke about 6 cigs a day.  I don't like it (the cigarettes make me dizzy although the dizziness goes away within a few minutes of putting it out) but it is so worth it, even with the remote risks involved.  I believe the risks are remote with light smoking compared to the high risk of complications involved in uncontrolled UC.  It's a strange sort of blessing but I really count it as that because I finally have my life back.

      Reply
The opinions expressed here are the views of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of News Medical.
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