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Does orange juice cause any gut related problems for you?

I want to drink orange juice every morning, but years ago it hurt my gut when I had severe inflammation. I wonder if it’s from the citric acid? I have also read that citrus fruits are “histamine liberators”, and I have problems with histamine.

I couldn’t find any articles about the “histamine liberator” concept; just some website claims. I would like to read studies on it, if you know of any.

I know citric acid can contribute to the inflammation.

Citrate as an Inflammatory Signal
While the role of other metabolites as inflammatory signals has been well discussed (21, 22) citrate also plays a role in key inflammatory pathways (Figure (Figure2).2). In M1 macrophages, there is an increased isocitrate:αKG ratio and transcriptional downregulation of Idh1 (47). This break was also seen in DCs (34). With increased glycolytic flux in both activated DCs and macrophages and a break in the Krebs cycle, pyruvate derived from glucose feeds into Krebs cycle but cannot continue past citrate/isocitrate. An increase in the levels of citrate is detected in both mouse (LPS-stimulated) and human [tumour necrosis factor α (TNFα)- or interferon-γ (IFNγ)-stimulated] macrophages (24, 48). This coincides with upregulation of CIC and ACLY, both of which occur in an NF-κB-dependent manner where LPS or TNFα is used to activate the cells, or IFNγ can also induce CIC and ACLY via STAT1 (32, 49). The export and breakdown of mitochondrial citrate has been linked to the production of several important pro-inflammatory mediators in macrophages, namely NO, ROS, and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production in human macrophages (32, 48, 49). Inhibition of CIC activity or its genetic silencing with siRNA leads to a marked reduction in NO, ROS, and PGE2 production in LPS and cytokine-stimulated macrophages. Infantino et al. suggest that the decrease in PGE2 production is due to a decreased availability of precursors for PGE2 synthesis as adding exogenous acetate rescues the effect of CIC inhibition on PGE2 productions. Acetate can be converted to acetyl-CoA by acetyl-CoA synthase (ACSS) (50). Inhibition of fatty acid synthase (FASN) with C75 in DCs also reduced LPS-induced PGE2 (34). Endogenous PGE2 is essential for the production of LPS-induced pro-IL1β (51). This implies that citrate may be critical to IL1β production.
IMAGE: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/core/l...oom&p=PMC3&id=5807345_fimmu-09-00141-g002.jpg

Front Immunol. 2018; 9: 141.
A Role for the Krebs Cycle Intermediate Citrate in Metabolic Reprogramming in Innate Immunity and Inflammation
Niamh C. Williams and Luke A. J. O’Neill
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5807345/

Does OJ cause any gut related issues for you?

Does the ripeness of the oranges make any difference in terms of its effects?
 
Sugar can also cause inflammation and fruit juices have a lot of sugar. The issue I get from orange juice is acid reflux.
 
I think the ripeness of the oranges could be the determining factor in the fruit's inflammatory effects. When I try the homemade OJ again, I will make sure the oranges are ripened naturally.
 
I don't know how many oranges go into a glass of juice but if it was me i would try to eat half (or even quarter) of an orange.
Chew it up and spit out the pulp if that is an issue.
Work up to a whole orange and see how you go.......
 
Personally, no. However it is acidic it should be avoided in conjunction with any antibiotics being used at the time as the pills are known to be less effective in more acidic environment.
 
I can’t drink it AT ALL. I was fresh squeezing it and it gave me horrendous stomach pain. I won’t even go there now.
 
For me I can’t drink freshly squeezed orange juice as it causes severe heartburn for me. And do the pain is unbearable and it does cause inflammation for me in my stomach and in the small bowel, so I tend to stay away from it. And it’s the same with any other acidic fruit and juice
 

kiny

Well-known member
Fruit juices, especially when they are very ripe, are a popular remedy to treat constipation.

The fecal stream high in bacterial load is behind most of the inflammation in crohn's disease, (see the rutgeerts / segal studies I posted).

If you get that fecal stream moving with ripe fruits, it seems likely that in people with active inflammation, that will result in a temporary increase in inflammation after a number of hours or the next day, but the inflammation should subside once that fruit juice induced movement of fecal content has passed.
 

Bufford

Well-known member
I have no trouble with orange juice and have a large glass each morning with breakfast. I do have problems eating oranges and must avoid swallowing the pulp from the sections and seeds.
 

hawkeye

Moderator
Staff member
Never had any problems. Don't drink it anymore in the mornings though, dropping it was an easy way to cut sugar and calories.
 
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