Methyl cellulose

[Lillibow]

Hi, I’ve had IBS for years and tried lots of medications to help with diarrhoea, eventually my dr prescribed celevac ( methyl cellulose). This changed my life, I go to the toilet normally, able to go for a walk without worrying etc. Unfortunately I was told today that it’s been discontinued and no longer available, I was wondering if there’s an alternative that anyone can recommend?

[xjrs]

I used to use methly cellulose. I am based in the UK and the cheapest way to buy it is to import it from the US - the prices are extortionate in the UK. Even with added VAT (for imports over £15) and admin fees (around £9) this still works out a lot cheaper if you buy it in bulk. Or you can make sure that your order is under £15 each time. The product is Nutricology Dietary Fibre Cellulose. You mix it with a bit of water and it doesn't dissolve so feels a bit like drinking chalk in water, but you get used to it. I've just done a google search for it and it seems the price of it have gone up (I used to pay about £5 a tub - now it's around £10):google.co.uk/shopping/produ...

I currently use Optifibre which is a prebiotic, so it depends on whether you get on with prebiotics, since they feed your gut bacteria, methly cellulose doesn't do this so much.

[Lillibow in reply to xjrs]

Thanks for the information I’ll look into it.

[EOLHPC in reply to Lillibow]

Very glad you posted & that xjrs replied! You’re the first 2 patients I’ve found who are prescribed methylcellulose...although I understand many stoma patients rely on it. I’m diagnosed with a big collection of immune dysfunction & connective tissue disorder illnesses, yet no one on any of my support group forums shows any awareness of this invaluable innocuous treatment

My NHS colorectal surgeon prescribed me long term Methylcellulose (Celevac) 2x daily years ago...it’s been crucial to managing my slow transit dysmotility & visceral hypersensitivity. You probably know the NHS considers it’s the very lowest residue & most non-fermentable of ALL laxative treatments..this is crucial to me because I cannot tolerate plant of meat etc residue & I cannot tolerate fermentable food items

since I started on Celevac, production pauses have happened twice: the first time was a few years ago & the pause lasted at least 6 months. We are now in another production pause and my friendly pharmacists say their suppliers & the manufacturers expect supply to return sometime this year

During these production pauses, I have contacts in the USA send me an equivalent form of methylcellulose called Citrucel in tablet form & same dose as Celevac. I prefer it to Nutricology because it’s in 500mg tablets just like Celevac.

Here is a link to a U.K. Source of Citrucel (i do get mine at a lower price from the USA):

ninelife.uk/products/citruc...

[EOLHPC in reply to EOLHPC]

PS I just found another similar U.K. version:

nutri-link.co.uk/shop/cellu...

I don’t understand why this nutri-link product & the nutricology product only describe themselves as cellulose (not as methylcellulose) , because both Celevac & Citrucel specify they are methylcellulose 🤷🏼‍♀️

[EOLHPC in reply to Lillibow]

PPS OH MY GOSH: methylcellulose & cellulose are a bit different...here’s the link to the comparison:wikidiff.com/cellulose/meth...

Even though they’re not identical (I think cellulose inevitably is somewhat higher residue + somewhat more fermentable), I’m delighted to now know about these cellulose products! Thanks very much xjrs!

[Lillibow in reply to EOLHPC]

Thanks for getting intouch, I’ll look into it, it’s nice to know that the celevac will probably be available at some point though.

[EOLHPC in reply to Lillibow]

You’re v welcome! I HOPE it will be back...the previous pause worried me a lot...but eventually Celevac was back...I’m keeping my fingers crossed...

[Orchid99 in reply to EOLHPC]

Would this help ibs c with overflow d, im currently on movicol 1 x sachet a day which keeps me having a bowel movement everyday but my tummy still don't feel right and I still get pain and find eating high fibre foods makes me worse . I'm waiting in motility tests to see if I have slow transit.

[EOLHPC in reply to Orchid99]

I can only say that my version of chronic early onset mouth to exit GI dysmotility characteristically involves SIBO + both slow & fast hyperreactive transit with overflow. And I cannot safely tolerate any prescription laxatives (in movicol: vvvvvv bad for me)...inc the prep they give us for endoscopies etc. I even ‘officially retained’ the video capsule during my video capsule endoscopy, as much due to slow transit as to hyperreaction caused by that quite big foreign body going through my GI tract

Over 6 decades of gastro investigations, I’ve managed all that via high fibre LOW FODMAP diet + self-help ( excercise, meditation) + every so often Gastroparesis etc meds, the dysmotility + hypersensitivity + SIBO + malabsorption & failure of the small intestine, i can no longer tolerate food residue/fibre except plain & marmite rice cakes with very thin smears of LOW FODMAP nut butters & plain old butter. So for 3+ years Gastroenterology has prescribed me longterm predigested lab-synthesised elemental nutrition ( Nutricia Elemental Extra E028) + 2 tabs am & pm daily methylcellulose. That + rheumatology’s long term daily heavy duty immunosuppression meds & immunology’s longterm daily antibiotics + IVIG have helped me avoid tube feeding, TPN, stomas of various types etc.

So, yes: when my gastroparesis is reasonably well controlled, YES: methylcellulose has helped both my constipation & diarrhea issues HUGELY! I’ve been taking methylcellulose daily for 5+ years and am thankful for it every day since it was prescribed by my colorectal surgeon. But I do always take it on an empty stomach with plenty of warm water, and I leave 15 minutes before taking anything like my elemental feed, meds, rice cakes etc

Hope that makes sense & that something in there helps! I do feel methylcellulose could help lots of folk like us, but for some reason the NHS doesn’t prescribe it much...I know cause over the years I ’ve posted on all my support group forums (for all my immune dysfunction & connective disorder illnesses) asking if anyone is on methylcellulose., but no one seems to have even heard of it 🤷🏼‍♀️

[EOLHPC in reply to Orchid99]

PS here is the link to NHS info on methylcellulose:bnf.nice.org.uk/drug/methyl...

Please do check with your doctor before trying it

[Orchid99 in reply to EOLHPC]

Thank you, can I ask are your white cells effected by your tummy issues, mine are consistently low and I have mild neutropenia which has run along side my tummy problems since they started but gastro don't think its connected but I do. I too can't eat alot of foods due to intolorences which came on because of this and I'm working with a dietitian to gain weight but even that is a challenge. Just done a comprehensive stool test privately and waiting on results, have not done a sibo test yet though.

[EOLHPC in reply to Orchid99]

Hard to say which of my diagnosed multi system ‘disorders’ is causing what because there are so many & all are early onset, progressively debilitating & inflammatory. But I study their manifestations in the published Lit. my medics read...so am well aware ALL my disorders are mainly due to immune dysfunction...you probably know our white blood cells inc neutrophils are an important part of our immune function. So, although I don’t have neutropenia, I do have chronic complex lymphopenia (another type of white blood cell disorder) and immunology has me on long term IVIG for chronic panhypogammaglobulinaemia (a Primary Immunodeficiency Disease that means I cannot make antibodies of any type)

Basically, after years of trial &error getting all my meds right, my medics & I are confident all my mouth to exit GI issues are caused by my combo of autoimmune & immunodeficiency & connective tissue disorder diseases.

My lead clinics are immunology + rheumatology + gastroenterology & I am in long term care with specialist gastroenterology nutritionists who over see my enteral nutrition etc

It’s good you’re getting the attention you deserve...going through the diagnostic & treatment process takes time for many of us...wishing you good luck & success

[Orchid99 in reply to EOLHPC]

Thank you, I hope I get the correct diagnosis and therefore get the right treatment. All the best to you too