I spoke to my gastroenterologist on hydrogen peroxide enemas today. I told him I had recently read posts on the J Pouch Group advocating use of these enemas. He told me absolutely under no circumstances should I use hydrogen peroxide to treat J Pouch or bowel inflammation. He said he studied the use of hydrogen peroxide when he did his fellowship at Yale and that studies showed that (a) it caused colitis in many users and (b) it oxidizes and the oxidization causes a dissipation of the lining of bowel. He was adamant that I not use it and to warn against its use. Hence my post.
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We don’t even use hydrogen peroxide on wounds any more. It breaks down those newly forming skin cells and delays healing. 30 years ago when I was training to be an RN it was in use.
I treat Doctors advice with a great deal of suspicion. Basically they follow guidance for prescribing and diagnosing as directed by the drug companies.
There's no money in food grade hydrogen peroxide or something like colloidal silver hence Doctors don't advocate it.. if they did and it went wrong the docs would be sued, if a corporate drug goes wrong the drug company is responsible, so you see why docs do it (big pharma gets sued all the timee).
I don't necessarily doubt what your doc says is true, but the products he will provide are just as bad or worse.
I have used doctor prescribed picolax or citrifleet for scope prep despite telling docs it makes me feel horrible, and the scope has not been clear. I've used hydrogen peroxide off my own back, felt much better and the scoping was much clearer.
I'm not saying I advocate the use of hydrogen peroxide enemas, but i will say I have used hydrogen peroxide and similar products many times for all sorts of things on my self/ family and pets and have found it to be safe (even in excess) and effective.
I just returned from a holiday in Cuba where I used it twice, once I came down with what felt like the flu, achy and bunged up with a real temperature. I drank some in water and went to bed, next day I was fine (I've been doing this for years! It's also great for avoiding hangovers). I also used it for cleaning a nasty looking wound that looked like it was getting infected. Again it cleared over night.
I'm not trying to convince others to use it in any particular way. But I will say I'm 100% confident any doctor who tells you there are no health benefits to using it is wrong. There's literally thousands of sites online advocating this stuff, none are making money from the advice, so what is the driver? It just works for so many things, and it's cheap!
Just my 2p worth..
He didn’t say it had no benefits - he said it oxidizes in the bowels and the oxidization erodes the lining of the intestine!!!! In other words the damage outweighs the benefits!
As i specifically said above, I didn't say the doc was wrong, but the drugs Doctors prescribe are poison. It just annoys me they get righteous about free naturopathic remedies, and turn a blind eye to pharma drugs that have huge side effects. We as patients need to be aware of the reasons Doctors behave this way. I'm not saying dont take prescription drugs either, just that the doctor isn't always right and we shouldn't trust them blindly as many do.
Bobish, while there are biases at play, I don’t think you’ve characterized them quite right. In general the doctors will suggest things that are supported by proper research, and that’s a reasonable and ethical stance. Unfortunately the bulk of the research is indeed conducted by pharmaceutical companies, and is only conducted to test high-profit medications. So “free naturopathic remedies” rarely include much reliable information about applicability, efficacy, and safety. Folklore is sometimes correct and sometimes nonsense, and it can be very hard to tell which you’re dealing with.
Most natural remedies are pretty safe, but some of them are not. Doctors have no financial bias behind telling people to avoid things like hydrogen peroxide or colloidal silver. Instead they have data suggesting that these things are a poor idea. I don’t doubt that some folks will get away with these at some doses, but that’s a far cry from “safe.”
Scott we are kinda saying the same thing... Doctors would rather prescribe a drug big pharma produces and says is safe, than a cheap alternative that has been used successfully for decades. My point is absolution from responsibility, if someone had a reaction from big pharma drugs, the doctor is supported, that wouldn't be the case of the doctor told them to use a natural alternative.
My point wasnt financial reward, but since you mention it that does happen. I'm theory taking kick backs from medical companies is illegal, but in practice it just gets labelled 'payment for advertising etc'.. there's loads of info on the net about this but..
https://www.forbes.com/sites/q...tical-companies/amp/
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/ne...ear-from-drugs-firm/
I'm not demonising Doctors, I'm just saying we should consider their words as advice, they may not be as impartial or as knowledgeable as they claim.
I think there are bigger differences between scientific testing and “used successfully for decades” than may be obvious. Ineffective remedies are quite common, and in those cases the side effects are for nothing.
The real issue here is whether hydrogen peroxide enemas are harmful. My doctor told me hydrogen peroxide oxidizes in the bowel and dissipates the lining of the bowel. He told me he studied this while in Yale Medical school. Do you have other information?
BTW the suggestion that my doctor is somehow a puppet whore or shill for the Pharmaceutical industry is laughable. He is 70 years old, has made his money, and is one or two years away from retirement. He could care less about pharmacy agendas and in fact warned me/disclaimered that the Remicade blood test is based on a kit he got from the company that makes it. In the years he has been my GI, he has never recommended any treatment to me without first discussing in detail the reasons he is doing so and empirical or scientific studies associated with the treatment. He is nobody’s shill. We have discussed all treatment modalities at length and intelligently and any suggestion to the contrary is a fantasy comedy show.
I previously used H2O2 orally effectively for 6 months to control arthritis but for pouchitis I find Colloidal Silver much better.
My thoughts, for what they are worth.
Food grade peroxide is used to disinfect prep surfaces, like you use bleach.
Food grade does not equal consumable. It means it does not contain certain stabilizers.
Contact with the skin can cause burns. Contact with mucous membranes can cause internal bleeding, among other symptoms.
You have to dilute it for medical use, like teeth whitening. If you choose to do this, you better know what you are doing. Doctors do actually know more than us about the workings of the human body. They don’t know everything though.
Regarding doctors only recommending expensive drugs, that just has not been my experience. My docs recommend whatever works, is safe, and is backed by some sort of evidence based science. They start with the old, cheap, and safest treatments. I have gotten some non-traditional ideas from my MDs. That said, I have never been discouraged from trying alternative and/or complimentary methods. Maybe it is because I get my care from an HMO, the goal is cost effective health, not expensive health.
Jan 