Pancreatic Weakness - You Should Know That!

What is pancreatic insufficiency?

The term pancreatic weakness describes an underactive part of the pancreas (pancreas), which is responsible for the production of digestive enzymes and bicarbonate. The enzymes for splitting the nutrients and the bicarbonate, which is supposed to neutralize the gastric acid contained in the food pulp, are released into the small intestine via an excretory duct, where they perform their tasks. In the case of pancreatic weakness, the lack of enzymes and bicarbonate leads to various physical symptoms, which, together with medical examinations, should lead to a correct diagnosis and appropriate therapy.

By the way: If the other part of the pancreas, which is responsible for the production of insulin and its counterpart, glucagon, is underactive, this is called "endocrine pancreatic weakness". However, this term is rarely used because it is simply diabetes mellitus.Therefore, this article only deals with exocrine pancreatic weakness.

However, if you would like more information on endocrine pancreatic hypofunction, we recommend our website: Diabetes mellitus

Symptoms of pancreatic weakness

The main symptoms of pancreatic weakness result from the function of the organ and thus the secretion of digestive enzymes. If sufficient enzymes are no longer produced in the case of a weak pancreas, there is an increased excretion of undigested food components. For example, if undigested fat is excreted in the stool, it turns it unusually light and makes it smell particularly bad. The impressive character of this type of chair has even given it its own name, the “fat chair”. Fatty stools may be an uncomfortable symptom, but most of those affected suffer much more from the additional diarrhea, abdominal pain and gas.

But not only fat, but also the other nutrients are not digested properly in a pancreatic weakness and so many sufferers develop weight loss over time or a failure to thrive in children. In addition, some sufferers observe an increased tendency to bleed as the disease progresses, which can be attributed to the restricted vitamin K intake.

You might also be interested in: Symptoms of pancreatic insufficiency

Due to the fact that pancreatic weakness is often caused by inflammation of the organ (Pancreatitis), the symptoms of the inflammation are also the first signs of pancreatic weakness for some sufferers: A belt-shaped upper abdominal pain that sometimes radiates into the back is typical of pancreatitis.

Read more about this at: Symptoms of inflammation of the pancreas

Causes of Pancreatic Weakness

If pancreatic weakness already occurs in childhood, it can usually be traced back to cystic fibrosis: The malfunction of a gene in this disease results in the production of a significantly too viscous secretion (not only in the pancreas, but above all in the airways). This causes the ducts of the pancreas to “stick together” and the secretion to back up. This means that the digestive enzymes contained in the secretion start to digest the organ itself.

For more information on cystic fibrosis, see: Cystic fibrosis

Acute or chronic inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) is by far the most common cause in adults. An acute inflammation is usually due to a blockage of the common duct of the gallbladder and pancreas by a gallstone. According to the same principle as described above for cystic fibrosis, this promotes “self-digestion” of the organ. Chronic inflammation, on the other hand, most often results from chronic alcohol consumption.

More detailed information on this topic can be found at: Pancreatitis - How Dangerous Is It?

Treatment of weak pancreas

In the treatment of pancreatic weakness, it is primarily the elimination of its cause as far as possible. As a result, alcohol consumption should first be kept to an absolute minimum or, best of all, given up completely. If a gallstone is the cause, it must be eliminated, which can be done in different ways depending on the composition and size of the stone. Then you have to provide the body with replacements for the digestive enzymes, which are produced in too few quantities due to the weak pancreas. The patients receive a mixture of enzymes made from pancreas of pigs, which is known as pancreatin. There are also herbal alternatives, but their effectiveness is still being discussed. More severely affected patients also need preparations that contain the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.

Proper nutrition for pancreatic weakness

Since undigested fat is the main factor in the symptoms of pancreatic weakness (abdominal pain, gas, foul-smelling diarrhea), it helps many sufferers if they reduce the amount of fat in their diet. So try the reduced-fat yoghurt or the low-fat milk, use margarine instead of butter and fry food in less oil than usual or even in water - works amazingly well!

Alcohol should be largely taboo and only consumed in very small quantities, preferably not at all. In addition, it has long been known that bitter substances can stimulate the activity of the stomach and pancreas. They are found in curry, cinnamon, rocket and artichokes. Thanks to its bitter substances, the espresso after a meal is also a tried and tested product.

In order to relieve the strain on the bowels and pancreas, you should also make sure to eat slowly and chew the food thoroughly before swallowing it. For the patient's well-being, however, it is primarily the regular intake of substitute preparations before meals, as this compensates for the reduced enzyme content in the intestine due to the weak pancreas and in this way helps to keep the necessary dietary changes at a tolerable level.

Homeopathy for pancreatic weakness

Homeopaths attribute a positive influence on the activity of the pancreas to the thick-stemmed water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes). Others advise taking Pancreatinum or Phosphorus. At this point, however, it should be emphasized that there is no scientific evidence for an effectiveness of homeopathic treatments beyond the placebo effect and that the alleged active principle of homeopathy contradicts all scientific and logical considerations. In the case of pancreatic weakness, homeopathy should therefore only be used as a supplement to conventional medical treatment and under no circumstances as an either / or alternative.

Course of the disease with a weak pancreas

A weak pancreas can usually not be reversed. The prognosis is strongly dependent on the cause, the extent of the hypofunction and the time of diagnosis and initiation of therapy: For example, it is not unlikely that an immediately recognized and treated acute inflammation of the pancreas due to a gallstone will only result in relatively minor functional impairments of the organ pulls or the functionality recovers completely even after a few weeks to months. On the other hand, chronic causes (e.g. alcohol consumption) often show an ever-decreasing function of the pancreas, which causes ever more severe symptoms and requires constant intensification of therapeutic measures.

Can pancreatic weakness be curable?

An existing pancreatic weakness is usually not completely curable. But even if those affected see themselves grappling with the disease for the rest of their lives, most of the course of the disease can be influenced very positively with the means available today. Nonetheless, over time there is usually a gradual deterioration in the functioning of the organ. In order to be able to monitor these and their possible consequences, consistent compliance with the regular check-ups is strongly recommended.

Diagnosing pancreatic weakness

The symptoms described by the patient and the physical examination usually provide the specialist with good information for diagnosing pancreatic weakness. However, a clear test result is needed to confirm the suspicion. The stool sample provides this with relatively high reliability and relatively little effort. This measures the concentration of two important digestive enzymes, which are normally produced by the pancreas and released into the intestine. If the measured concentration is below the normal range, this can be interpreted as a sign of a reduced functionality of the organ, i.e. a weak pancreas. In individual cases, a secretin-pancreozyme test can be added to confirm the test result (see below).

Which test can detect pancreatic weakness?

The standard test for detecting pancreatic weakness consists in determining the concentration of chymotrypsin and elastase-1 in a stool sample from the patient. These are digestive enzymes that are made in the pancreas and then released into the intestines to break down the nutrients in the food. A reduced concentration of these enzymes in the stool indicates a weak pancreas. Normally this test provides sufficiently reliable results, but occasionally a secretin-pancreozyme test may also be necessary. These enzymes stimulate the production processes in the pancreas. They are administered to the patient before the test and then a probe is pushed into the intestine, which can then measure the maximum secretion rate of the organ.