Wild Blueberries in Colitis

Launched by UNIVERSITÄT DUISBURG-ESSEN · Nov 18, 2024

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is exploring how a diet rich in wild blueberries affects patients with chronic colitis, specifically those with Ulcerative Colitis (UC) or Crohn's Disease (CD). The main goal is to see if eating blueberries can help reduce inflammation and improve symptoms for these patients. Participants will be divided into two groups: one group will consume blueberry powder daily for 12 weeks, while the other group will continue with their normal treatment without additional blueberries. After 3 months, the groups will switch, so everyone gets to try both diets.

To be eligible for this study, participants should be adults over 18 with mild to moderate UC or CD and have been stable on their medication for at least 3 months. They must also be admitted to the hospital for treatment. Throughout the study, participants will undergo routine tests and complete questionnaires about their health and symptoms. It's important to note that participants should not have consumed a lot of blueberries in the past three months or have certain health conditions that would exclude them from the study.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • age \> 18 years
• • diagnosis of Crohn's Disease (CD) or Ulcerative Colitis (UC) with mild to moderate colitis for at least 6 months (CD: Harvey-Bradshaw-Index Score 5-16; UC: Partial Mayo Score 2-6)
• • stable IBD-specific medication dosage for at least 3 months \[such as 5-aminosalicylates (5-ASA), thiopurines or biologicals (therapeutic antibodies such as infliximab, adalimumab, vedolizumab, etc.)\]
• • inpatient admission to the Department for Internal and Integrative Medicine at the Sozialstiftung Bamberg, Germany for regular treatment
• • clinical indication and performance of an initial colonoscopy with confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE)
• • signed informed consent form
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • IBD without inflammation of the colon (e.g. Crohn's Disease without colitis)
• • active flare of IBD
• • CRP ≥ 100 mg/l
• • artificial bowel outlet in front of the colon (ileostomy)
• • high regular consumption of blueberries (≥ 300 g cultivated blueberries or ≥ 150 g wild blueberries per week) or administration of blueberry therapy in the last 3 months
• • participation in another therapeutic study within the last 30 days
• • Known intolerance to blueberries or their ingredients such as contained anthocyanins or fructose (e.g. fructose malabsorption)
• • presence of known serious infectious diseases e.g. of the liver such as HIV, hepatitis B and C infection