Does anyone have EPI (Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency)?

Anthem BCBC hmo ppo
I’ve been waiting to see if Abbvie can help me with some of the cost. We are sad, yes we are. Thanks for sharing. My appeal was denied. Donut hole and was told I needed prior authorization. Hang in there.
Rebecca

I am sorry your EPI has had such a negative impact on your life! I am not aware of any link to Covid vaccines, but there’s so much we don’t know yet about the effects of both Coving infections and vaccination.
I am wondering if your lack of response to Creon is inadequate dosing. My understanding is that some people can require up to 15 caps a day: 3 with each meal and rwo with each snack. I am lucky in that 1 cap for lunch and dinner each controls my symptoms fairly well. Have you been checked for bile acid malabsorption? It’s possible that anoproblem coexists causing the diarrhea. It often occurs in people who have had gallbladder removed. The National pancreas foundation has good information on EPI and the dietary restrictions that help. I hope you get better control so your quality of life improves! It’s a learning process, sometimes lengthy, to manage this condition. A good dietitian might help as well. Hang in there and keep reading posts on EPI on this site. Experienced people with valuable information!

The Vital nutrient pancreatic enzymes do work.! Both my sister and I have EPI and take these successfully. Just be sure to check the back label for lipase dose of around 36500 units. Amazon has these. I take 2-3 a day with meals but you can take more if needed. Staying away from fried and fatty foods helps. It took me a long time to get this figured out. You will feel better! Hang in there. 😀

First you need to see a nutritionist who specializes/has experience with this issue. There is a lot of information on the internet. Your pancreas is not producing sufficient enzymes to digest the food in your stomach when eat, thus the Zen pep/Creon/Panarese, etc. In addition to the compromised digestion, which causes malabsorption issues, you possibly face nutrient deficiencies. My personal instructions were: include, daily, vitamins K/A/D/Coq10/E/B complex/Good multi. Most of these are absorbed better with some kind of oil in your meal. Even taking all these, I still had a ferritin (part of your iron) and B2 deficiency, which manifested in my tongue and it has taken three months of supplements for those to clear, not to mention the medical tests to rule out oral disease of some kind. The iron deficiency developed due to not eating beef or pork. You are advised not to eat pork or beef, as they are harder to digest than chicken and fish and can cause extra stress. I eat a lot of vegetables, dried beans, grains, avocado. Have found that raw vegetables. slaw, salad do not digest well for me, so I only eat cooked foods, or experience pancreas discomfort while the raw items digest. Eliminate processed foods - fast food, chips, candy cakes, canned soups, frozen foods, sugar, as little processed as possible. These have little nutritional value and are harder to digest. No fried foods. I use Daves Killer and Ezekial breads, as they (especially Ezekial) have more nutritional value (for store bought bread) than most of the others. If you aren't familiar with Ezekial it is found in the frozen section, due to lack of preservatives and I thaw, and keep, it in the refrigerator. I use Vegenaise instead of mayo, Violife plant butter and cook with only olive oil. Eat a lot of tune and salmon salad and have a vegetable soup I make and freeze, so I always have something on hand. Have a crustless quiche each day for breakfast, with broccoli, peppers and onions

All of this information is trial and error for ME and working with a nutritionist. I am also pre-diabetic, so my diet is a little more restricted on the carb side. This diagnosis can be overwhelming at first, as they all can, but when you start working with it, you will figure out what works best for you. Good luck and find a good nutritionist and read medical articles about this disorder.

Hi I just joined I was diagnosed with EPI 10 years ago I took the Zenpep but it was super expensive.I found it did not really help me and stopped.
Now I am 65 and start to have heat indigestion really severe and pale loose stool.
Trying to stay healthy with green red and orange veggies and fruit .No bread or grain.
Cheese dairy chicken fish eggs mostly.
2 good days a week 2 bad ones and 3 in between .
Wonder if I should give the enzymes another go

Diagnosed one week ago and SO many questions. Prescribed very expensive Zenpep. Can I eat as normal while taking these capsules? Need info on dosing, foods I can eat without dosing, etc. Doctor no help with this. He just says take one capsule before a snack and two before a meal.

Is anyone else struggling with friends and family regarding changes to your diet? Many of my friends are 'Foodies' and it is difficult to get together because they are always focused on food and drink. This for me has been one of the most difficult issues with my EPI diagnosis.

Diagnosed one week ago and SO many questions. Prescribed very expensive Zenpep. Can I eat as normal while taking these capsules? Need info on dosing, foods I can eat without dosing, etc. Doctor no help with this. He just says take one capsule before a snack and two before a meal.