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Apthous Ulcer Mystery Solved

A dairy-free diet may stop the recurrence of canker sores.

March 22, 2011 |
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Supplementary Info

Apthous Ulcer Mystery Solved, 5.0 out of 5 based on 1 rating

Sources Cited

Oral Dis. 2009 Nov;15(8):560-4. Epub 2009 Jun 29. Humoral immunity to cow's milk proteins and gliadin within the etiology of recurrent aphthous ulcers? Bsu I, Jankovic L, Magdu IU, Konic-Ristic A, Raskovic S, Juranic Z.

Acknowledgements

Transcript

Lichen planus not the same thing as apthous ulcers, also known as canker sores, which are much less serious, but much more common. Some people have a recurring problem with them, where they keep coming back over and over—and we didn’t know why in most cases, until, last year.
An immune reaction against cow’s milk proteins and wheat proteins—gliadin is a gluten protein—within the cause of recurrent aphthous ulcers? You tell me… Dairy, gluten, both, or neither?
Gluten, had nothing to do with it. It was the dairy. Two thirds of the recurrent canker sore sufferers had high levels of anti-cow’s milk protein antibodies in their bloodstream. The thought is that the milk proteins themselves penetrate deep into the lining of the mouth, inducing a major immune disorder where our body attacks the foreign cow proteins and in doing so ulcerates our mucosal lining. To test this a few of the patients stopped eating all dairy, a cow’s milk protein free diet. And the ulcers disappeared, with no reappearance of clinical disease, until they tried adding back dairy.
Same thing with the next patient—went into complete remission, with a reappearance of ulcerations only after some ice cream had been consumed. This is really exciting news for sufferers of this painful condition.

To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by veganmontreal.

To help out on the site please email volunteer@nutritionfacts.org

Dr. Michael Greger

Doctor's Note

Please feel free to post any ask-the-doctor type questions here in the comments section and I’d be happy to try to answer them. And check out the other videos on dairy. Also, there are 1,449 other subjects covered in the rest of my videos--please feel free to explore them as well!

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/mgreger/ Michael Greger M.D.

    Please feel free to post any ask-the-doctor type questions here in the comments section and I’d be happy to try to answer them. And check out the other videos on dairy. Also, there are 1,449 other subjects covered in the rest of my videos–please feel free to explore them as well!

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/MartiEverett/ Marti Everett

    Hi, I am a Vegan but keep getting ulcers in my mouth lately (last 2 weeks). Im not sure but it’s been since I stopped eating lot’s of white bread and switched to brown and I also drink 4-5 cups of coffee a day and eat a far amount of pasta (brown). Any ideas Michael?
    Cheers

    • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/toxins/ Toxins

      Perhaps you should not drink so much coffee. Caffeine is not a health promoting substance.

    • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/drdons/ DrDons

      Mouth ulcers are a challenge. The studies show clear link to milk products. People due have reactions to plant foods which can be difficult to figure out. Dr. McDougall’s December 2002 newsletter(available for free on website) contains an article, Diet for the Desperate. Below is a quote from that article which talks about the plant foods most likely to cause allergic problems. Hopefully by now the problem has vanished and is no longer an issue but if the problem has persisted you might consider avoiding some of these foods. “If the elimination diet seems too severe for you right now, then follow the McDougall Program, which eliminates six of the leading causes of food allergies: dairy products, eggs, chocolate, nuts, shellfish, and fish. If your problems persist, then the next suspects to eliminate are wheat, corn, citrus fruits, tomatoes, and strawberries–the most frequent causes of adverse reactions among foods in the vegetable kingdom.”

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/SusanDorsey/ Susan Dorsey

    I have found that using a toothpaste without sodium laurel sulfate completely prevents these ulcers. There is clinical evidence for this as well, though I don’t have a citation off the top of my head. Rembrandt made a SLS free toothpaste for this very reason- not sure if they still do. I just look in the “natural” section of my grocery store for a toothpaste with fluoride, but no SLS. Nature’s Gate, Jason, and Trader Joe’s all make them, but you need to read the labels.

    • R. Leip

      I have had great success using Rembrandt Canker Sore Toothpaste.  It does not have sodium lauryl sulfate in it.  My local stores no longer carry it so I order it directly from the company.  I think it may also be available on Amazon.  While it is expensive, it is worth the cost to avoid the terrible pain.  I stumbled on it in a magazine article about 10 years ago at my doctor’s office.   Before I found this special toothpaste I had suffered with frequent canker sores for years (since my teens), often with several at once.  They wouldn’t heal on their own but had to be cauterized with silver nitrate sticks I got from my family doctor–a painful process in itself.  I got them whenever I injured the inside of my mouth–biting my lip or cheek or scraping the tissue somehow.  Now I almost never get the sores, and if I do they heal up promptly.  What a relief!  I will consider the milk angle, but since this toothpaste has virtually eliminated my problem I’ll probably just stick with that.  I highly recommend that all canker sore sufferers try Rembrandt’s Canker Sore Toothpaste.  Don’t just look for Rembrandt though–several of their varieties have SLS–get the Canker Sore type!   : )

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/members/MartiEverett/ Marti Everett

    cool thanks I use co-op tooth paste cos it’s vegan but i’ve never read the label properly. Why is coffee bad for you? I gave it up this week and am feeling pretty good for it and I feel like I can think much better too. :-)

  • Cindy

    I’ve suffered with mouth ulcers my entire life.  I’ve never found a dentist or doctor who had an answer to the cause.  Eleven months ago, I started a whole foods, plant-based diet (thus, eliminating all animal and dairy).  I was still getting the mouth ulcers.  In January I was searching the internet for causes for mouth ulcers (as I have done many times before) and found an article about SLS in toothpaste as a cause.  I switched to a natural toothpaste and the ulcers went away.  That is until June when I spent a month traveling Europe.  The interesting thing about this is that I decided not to be plant-based while I traveled (I wanted to eat what the locals eat) and I ate dairy.  I also ran out of my natural toothpaste and switched back to SLS toothpaste for a couple of weeks.  By the time I got home, I had mouth ulcers once again.  So, was it the dairy or was it the toothpaste?  I’m back off of both, so perhaps I will never know for sure, but I suspect it is the SLS in the toothpaste since I was still getting them after several months on a non-dairy diet. They are sooooo painful and frustrating!

  • Afastidle

    Not a single canker sore in my mouth since avoiding all dairy years ago. I had forgotten all about them until I saw this video. Pleasant change explained!

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