After taking antibiotics

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Julie Thompson
Posts: 94
Joined: Mon Jul 08, 2013 2:24 pm
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by Julie Thompson on Fri Jul 18, 2014 9:33 pm

Re: After taking antibiotics

Hi

I can only give you information about nutrition and your weight loss, you do not say what your original weight was but it certainly sounds as if you are not managing well at the moment. When someone’s appetite is low eating energy (calorie) dense foods, usually ones higher in fats and sugar (unless you have diabetes), and smaller meals and snacks throughout the day is sometimes helpful, your GP can also prescribe supplement drinks to help if needed. It sometimes can be challenging to build up your diet if your appetite is low - start with small meals, you can always have more. Drink after and in-between your meals not 1/2 hour before, as drinks can fill you up, particularly if you are drinking lots of water. It might also be worth changing some of your fluid to something more nutritious such as milk (only if you can tolerate this.) You do sound like you are drinking lots - but this depends on your bowel function if you have diarrhoea you may need to drink lots of fluid. It is difficult to give you specific advice without knowing more about you and your medical history, so I would certainly ask your doctor for a referral to a dietitian; we often treat people with unintentional weight loss. Not eating well and losing weight can make you feel lethargic, weak and under the weather but it might be worth asking your doctor to check your iron levels, as low iron levels can affect your ability to concentrate. I am not able to comment about side effects of medications but perhaps a pharmacist may be able to shed more light on the problem and a tissue viability nurse may help with ongoing problems with wound healing.
Julie Thompson
Gastroenterology Specialist Dietitian - BSc (Hons) Dietetics

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Dr Nick Read
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Joined: Mon Jul 08, 2013 2:22 pm
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by Dr Nick Read on Mon Jul 21, 2014 9:29 pm

Re: After taking antibiotics

There may of course be a stress component in this but repeated course of broad spectrum antibiotics can alter the beneficial bacteria in your gut and cause what is known as dysbiosis. I wonder if you have considered probiotics. One new product is called Symprove and the evidence to its efficacy looks good.
Dr Nick Read
Gastroenterologist and Psychoanalytical Psychotherapist

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