Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

Like so many diseases, a holistic approach to treating IBD is most effective. Naturopathic Medicine can help guide you in your decisions about what treatments are right for you. Keep in mind that medication and surgery are sometimes the best option. Naturopathic Doctors can work with you based on your options and choices. Therapeutic options include:

• Anti-inflammatory diet and increase in omega 3 fatty acids, especially fish oil
  
• Proper recolonization of gut microflora
  
• Correcting leaky gut
  
• IgG testing to discover food sensitivities
  
• Correcting nutritional deficiencies caused by the disease and the medications and procedures used to manage the disease

Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis can greatly impact a person’s life, both short and long term. Short term, there can be incredible discomfort, embarrassment and a changed relationship with food. Long term, both conditions are associated with a higher frequency of colonic carcinoma.

Crohn’s can involve the entire gastric mucosa, from lips to anus. Ulcerative Colitis is restricted to the colon. While these conditions are often similar, there are subtle differences in their symptoms.

Crohn’s symptoms include:

• Intermittent bouts of diarrhea, low-grade fever and right lower quadrant pain
• Decreased appetite, weight loss, flatulence and general malaise

Ulcerative Colitis symptoms include:

• Bloody diarrhea with cramps in the lower abdomen
  
• Mild abdominal tenderness, weight loss and fever

Although IBD can happen at any age, it is more common in young women, age 15–35. No one knows why people suffer with IBD, but there are a few categories of thought:

• Genetic predisposition
• Infection
• Abnormal immune response
• Diet
• Psychosomatic, traumatic, vascular, etc.

Many patients achieve spontaneous remission — interestingly enough, those who chose to not use steroid therapy increase these chances tremendously. Once remission is achieved, either spontaneously or through medical interventions, most stay in remission with little use of medication.

To get more information, visit the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of Canada website at www.ccfc.ca.