Urso side effects?

[WendyMarie]

Does anyone experience side effects from Urso. Particularly hair loss or weight gain? The phamplet names diarhhea as a common effect, but does anyone have constipation?

[Annflanagan]

Hi wendymarie, iv had all what you said there, my hair fell out in the front and is only growing back now, im on urso 3yrs, also my eyebroes and eyelashes thinned, i eat brown bread cause the consitpation is a killer, never suffered from that before, my weight goes up and down my tummy can swell i sometimes look like im ready to give birth.

[WendyMarie]

Thank you for your reply Annflanagan. Hmmm....I already experence the bloated belly & constipation, for years. So, I am worried that the urso will make this worse, or maybe it will help (since its known to cause diarrhea) that things will balance out. I am very worried about hair loss.

[Alley27]

Hi, I have been on urso for 10 months now....I suffer weight gain and my belly swells so much I look like I am ready to give birth, I also have both diarrhea and constipation, and I mean I can be constipated at 8 in the morning and have runs at 10 am...my weight is a losing game as I also take steroids and mercaptopurine (PBC/AIH overlap)..but I did stop the urso for one week, my first week at slimming world and I managed to lose 8 Lbs...took it the second week and put 6 Lbs on..so I know its the urso.....yes it is important for us to take if we have PBC.but weight is just as dangerous as our complicated livers.. My hair is also thinner..and far more coarse and dry.

xxconniefused

[Hidden in reply to Alley27]

Just a thought conniefused, have you tried cutting out gluten as in wheat for a short spell to see how you get on?

My son had what appeared a temporary wheat gluten allergy 2yrs ago (he did have an hospital test but he wasn't found to be a coeliac) and it was said that antibiotics for a skin problem that was too much in a short space of time could have been the cause. I bought some gluten-free flour (potato, rice and maize mix) and over time the whole family enjoy fruit crumbles and pies I occasionally make with it. I also use it as a thickener in cooking and gravy.

I know that it seems that gluten-free cooking is better digested as it is known that wheat products can make one feel bloated at times. Also it has to be noted that apparently a high intake of fibre-rich food when one has not been used to it can cause bloating for awhile whilst the body adapts. Hence people changing diets to one that has more wholegrains in them as well as a higher consumption of fruit and veg can also cause temporary flatulence too.

I know steroids can make one put weight on as steroids speed up the organs, that is why one is weaned off them after being put on a temp high dose. Maybe it is a combination of the drugs you are taking and not actually urso altho....

I have also read on this site last year that some of us are prone now to gaining weight, whereas others start to lose weight with it.

[Jeannie31]

Hi, I've been taking Urso for three years and my disage was increased frim two tablets to three last October. I've been lucky and not suffered any side effects. I joined Slimming World three years ago and managed to lose just over 20 pounds to reach my target weight in seven months. I haven't been back to Slimming World since then but I've managed to maintain my target weight. I do Pilates twice a week and I walk with a friend for an hour twice a week both of which knocks me out and I sometimes have to have a snooze when I get home. I do suffer from fatigue, and from indigestion if I eat the wrong food, and sometimes get the dreaded itch but that's more or less the only symptoms I experience. Reading some posts on this site I know I'm lucky but I try very hard not to let the PBC interfere with my life!

[Hidden]

Hi, I have hair loss, constipation, bloated stomach, indigestion, feeling sick and sometimes not wanting to eat, I am now on one a day as I told my consultant I had stopped it and he asked me to just try one a day, when I take the three a day i suffered weight loss drastically, I also have terrible dry skin and the itches, tieredness and pain all over my body, I also have severe established osteoporosis and take protolos. And this morning my glands are swollen.

can't win but i do know I feel far better without the urso.

[mumofthree]

I have had a very similar experience to connifused - weight gain, swelling tummy, constipated one minute and diarrhoea the next - I have not had the hair loss thank goodness but the condition isn't as good as it used to be.

My weight is a real bug bare with me, I have always had weight issue, a bit of a yoyo dieter especially when I was having the children. A couple of years before I had my last child I had lost 3 stones in weight and reached my target weight and then fell pregnant again. During the pregnancy I had only put on half a stone and after giving birth I had actually lost 10 more pounds in weight. I was eating healthily and managed to maintain that weight within half a stone here and there for over 10 years and was really proud of myself. I have gained over a stone since I've been on URSO (2 years). My diet seems to have gone all to pot. I eat what I used to but still seem to have put on the weight. My weight seems to fluctuate from day to day but don't know why. I have even tested myself over a few days by eating exactly the same things, one day my weight stays the same, the next I may have lost a few pounds and the next I can have put on up to 3 pounds. Its so depressing and I can't afford to feel like that because comfort eating was a huge problem years ago and I don't want to go back there.. I have had a hysterectomy so I know its not caused by the time of the month

[Hidden]

Hello WendyMarie.

You haven't stated how long you have been on urso but when I started Dec 2010 I suffered temporary side-effects of a bit of stomach bloating and especially heartburn. These vanished within a few months.

However one thing that I did start with that I had never had prior to urso was constipation. Diarrhoea can be caused with one on urso and I think from what I can gather from others on this site, you tend to get either one or the other and in some cases alternate bouts of both.

I know for me if I haven't been to the loo for a couple days I don't actually bother but it is when you start to feel that you need to go and then find a struggle. I have always had a diet that is fibrous (wholegrain, fruit, veg., etc) but since taking urso over time I have switched slightly and find it seems better. I have no known problems with gluten or wheat so when I feel the need, I will have something like the Weetabix (in England) as in wholegrain wheat bars with warm milk for breakfast. I also buy wholemeal breads even though I don't partake of bread much every day. We also try to have wholegrain rice as opposed to the standard white.

I think from what I can sum up in the last two years on being informed I have PBC and then taking urso, you may find that on a day when you have slightly more of a fat consumption then you can tend to know you have had such given that bile has a lot to do with fats going into the system.

Obviously also if you are on other drugs for other medical reasons then I expect symptons that are described on the urso leaflet for just that could well be different if on other meds.

[WendyMarie]

Thanks for your reply Peridot. I appreciate that you always respong to my questions. I have not started yet. This week I will have another liver ultrasound & more bloodwork, than I start. Did you have any hairloss?

[Hidden]

Hi I have been fine with urso, but have to take the tablets rather than the capsules as I reacted to those with hives. I take flaxseed/linseed with my porridge that seems to keep me regular. No other symptoms so far have been on it for 2 years.... Which has gone really quickly.

L

[WendyMarie in reply to Hidden]

Thank you, I am glad to hear that some people do not experience negative side effects. Hopefully, I will be as lucky.

[VamBam]

I just started urso 6 weeks ago and have some diarrhea and no appetite. I'm hoping that will go away. Good luck, it seems different for everyone.

[sherikaye]

I gained 20 lbs while taking it. I feel bloated all the time.

[WendyMarie]

Do you still take Urso?