Have you ever felt sick to your stomach after flying? Ever
think it could actually be a chronic disease like IBD?Some studies show that IBD could be triggered by high elevations.
IBD is a chronic inflammatory disease, however scientists
have not been able to pin point specific triggers that cause this condition to
flare. There is a lot of research in this area, one of the areas of interest is
hypoxia. One study analyzed the effects of high-altitudes on IBD. They surveyed
IBD patients about their habits four weeks before the flare if they had one.
Those who had flares reported traveling at height of at least 2,000
meters. Most of these consisted of
people traveling to a place of higher elevation for a few days. The study
concluded that flying and being at high altitudes were risk factors for IBD.
So
why do heights cause IBD flares, which for some might be the first time they
notice IBD symptoms? There are a few theories about hypoxia causing the
inflammatory response responsible for IBD. Studies show that hypoxia stimulates
pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha and IL-6. And this is thought to be the cause for the IBD flares following oxygen deprivation. Low blood oxygen levels
normally stimulate the Hypoxia-Inducible factor (HIF) which in turn allows
cells to adapt to low-oxygen environments. However, in states of inflammation,
HIF has shown to be linked with tumor formation. Therefore, if a low-oxygen
environment is a trigger for IBD, what can be done to cure this? This
environment can be due to high elevations, but it can also be due to microvasculature
abnormalities causing less blood and oxygen flow to the intestines. It is also smart to keep in mind that certain
normal and abnormal flora in the gut may thrive better in states of low oxygen,
or instead may not tolerate it. Is this why probiotics are being studied for
IBD patients? Taking it up a notch, if a person moves to a region of high
elevation, would their IBD be flared regularly or how would the inflammatory
response decrease if it constantly stimulated by a lack of oxygen? Comments,
knowledge, or ideas on the matter?
Resources:
I looked up further in this context but I don't think there are enough studies/researches been done on this context and the ones done cannot confirm the exact reason why? Its possible that if you are flying, skiing, or mountain climbing at high altitudes -- low oxygen content and increased inflammation may be a crucial factor contributing to IBD flares.
ReplyDeleteI Googled IBD + Peru (a nice high country) and found this:
ReplyDelete[Low prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease in Peru].Acta Gastroenterol Latinoam. 2012. Jun;42(2):146. I can't access the article (and sadly, I don't know Spanish) but anyway, it kind of suggests that living in a high-altitude area doesn't make IBD the main disease...
I'm thinking of people that fly often am pretty sure they have a high incidence and prevalence of IBD.
ReplyDeleteI went on medscape to find if there are any articles on this but to no avail.
I fly home every year and my flight is 27 hours non stop am thinking perhaps by now I should have numerous flare ups, but then again as a person whose lived in an area with numerous parasitic diseases maybe not.
Maybe if a substantive study was carried out in areas of high altitudes like say regions close to the Andes mountains or even the Himalayan mountains, then this claim would have some substance.