About Inflammatory Bowel Disease
What is Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)?
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is an umbrella term referring to two chronic diseases that cause inflammation of the intestines: ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). Though UC and CD are different diseases they do have features in common but there are important distinctions also. Frequently, the symptoms caused by UC and CD are similar.
Both diseases are chronic and most frequently have their onset in early adult life. Some patients have alternating periods of relative health (remission) alternating with periods of disease (relapse or flare), while other patients have continuous symptoms from continued inflammation. Fortunately, as treatment has improved the proportion of people with continued symptoms appears to be smaller.
The severity of the diseases varies widely between individuals. Some suffer only mild symptoms, but others have severe and disabling symptoms. Some have a gradual onset of symptoms, some develop them suddenly. About half of patients have mild symptoms, the other half suffer frequent flare-ups.
Medical science has not yet discovered a cause or cure, but many medications are now available to control symptoms with more on the horizon.
What is ulcerative colitis?
Ulcerative colitis (UC) is an inflammatory disease of the large intestine, commonly called the colon. UC causes inflammation and ulceration of the inner lining of the colon and rectum. This inner lining is called the mucosa. Crohn's disease (CD) causes inflammation that extends into the deeper layers
of the intestinal wall.
The inflammation of UC is usually most severe in the rectal area with severity diminishing (at a rate that varies from patient to patient) toward the cecum, where the large and small intestine join. Significant
deviations from this pattern may be a clue to the physician to suspect Crohn's disease rather than ulcerative colitis. Such deviations may include either "skip areas" and/or "sparing of the rectum". Skip areas are patches of healthy tissue separating segments of diseased tissue. They are often seen in Crohn's disease, but rarely in ulcerative colitis. Inflammation of the rectum is called proctitis. Inflammation of the sigmoid colon (located just above the rectum) is called sigmoiditis. Inflammation involving the entire colon is termed pan-colitis.
The inflammation causes the colon to empty frequently resulting in diarrhea.
As the lining of the colon is destroyed ulcers form releasing mucus , pus and blood.
UC is relatively common in the western world and at least 250,000 in the United States alone have the disease. It occurs most frequently in people ages 15 to 30 although children and older people occasionally develope the disease.
About 50% of patients are free of symptoms at any given time but the vast majority suffer at least one relapse in any 10 year period.
What is Crohn's disease?
Crohn's disease is an inflammatory process that can affect any portion of the digestive tract, but is most commonly seen (roughly half of all cases) in the last part of the small intestine otherwise called the terminal ileum and cecum. Altogether this area is also known as the ileocecal region. Other cases may affect one or more of: the colon only, the small bowel only (duodenum, jejunum and/or ileum), the anus, stomach or esophagus. In contrast with UC, CD usually doesn't affect the rectum, but frequently
affects the anus instead.
What is ileitis?
This is Crohn's disease of the ileum which is third part of the small intestine. At one time, CD was thought to affect only the ileum, and for this reason the name "ileitis" was at one time synonymous with CD but now simply refers to Crohn's disease of the ileum.
What is Crohn's colitis?
This is Crohn's disease affecting part or all of the colon. This form comprises about 20% of all cases of CD. Various patterns are seen. In about half of these cases CD lesions may be seen throughout one continuous subsegment of the colon. In another quarter, skip areas are seen between multiple diseased areas. In the remaining quarter, the entire colon is involved, with no skip areas.
Unlike UC, in which inflammation is usually confined to the inner mucosal surface, Crohn's disease typically involves all layers of the affected tissues.
What is ulcerative proctitis?
Ulcerative proctitis is a form of UC that affects only the rectum.
What is Granulomatous colitis?
This is another name for Crohn's disease that affects the colon.
What is Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)?
This is *NOT* a variant of UC and Crohn's. UC and Crohn's disease are defined by the presence of inflammation in the intestine; there is no inflammation in Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is also known as Functional Bowel Syndrome (FBS), Functional Bowel Disease (FBD) or
spastic colon . Older terms for IBS are spastic or mucous colitis or even simply "colitis". These terms are considered out-of-date; they are no longer used because they cause people to confuse IBS with Ulcerative Colitis.
IBS is characterized by a variety of symptom patterns which include diarrhea, constipation, alternating diarrhea/constipation and abdominal pain. Fever and/or bleeding are NOT features of IBS.
IBS is much more common than Crohns disease or UC and many people with symptoms of IBS do not seeks medical attention. Some patients with Crohns or UC can also have concurrent IBS.
What symptoms are experienced by IBD patients?
The most common symptom of both UC and CD is diarrhea, sometimes severe, that may require frequent proximity to a toilet (in some cases up to 20 or more times a day). Abdominal cramps are often present, the severity of which may be correlated with the degree of diarrhea present. Blood may also appear in the stools, especially with UC.
Fever, fatigue, and loss of appetite may accompany these symptoms (with consequent weight loss).
At times, some UC and CD patients experience constipation during periods of active disease. In CD this can result from a partial obstruction usually of the small intestine. In UC constipation is most often a
consequence of inflammation of the rectum (also known as proctitis); the colon has a nervous reaction and stasis of stool occurs upstream .
Inflammation can affect gut nerves in such a way as to make you feel that there is stool present ready to be evacuated when there actually is not. That results in the symptom known as tenesmus where there is an uncomfortable urge to defecate but nothing comes out. The feeling of urgency to pass stool is a frequent consequence of proctitis also. Inability to retain stool is an extreme manifestation of urgency. It is important to bring these symptoms to the attention of your physician because they may improve dramatically with appropriate local therapy.
Pain usually results from intestinal cramping or inflammation causing reflex irritability of the nerves and muscles that control intestinal contractions. Pain may also indicate the presence of severe inflammation
or the development of a complication such as an abscess or a perforation of the intestinal wall. Generally, new onset pain or a significant change in the character of pain should be brought to the attention of your physician. The pain of CD is often in the lower right area of the abdomen.
This is where the terminal ileum is located and pain there usually indicates inflammation of the terminal ileum.
Location and intensity of abdominal pain vary from patient to patient, depending upon the location and type of disease in the affected tissues. Because of a phenomenon known as "referred pain", the location where pain is produced may not be the same as the location where it is experienced.
What are extra-intestinal manifestations of these diseases?
These are symptoms of IBD that occur outside of the digestive tract.
Many IBD patients experience a wide variety of extra-intestinal manifestations of their disease. The most common is joint pain due to inflammation of the joints (arthritis). Others include various types of eye
inflammation (iritis, conjunctivitis and episcleritis), skin inflammation (erythema nodosum and pyoderma gangrenosum) liver inflammation (hepatitis and sclerosing cholangitis). Other diseases and complications may be associated with IBD but less frequently.
What other complications can occur?
Fatigue is the most common complication. Fever usually indicates severe disease and/or a complication such as an abscess. Severe diarrhea, blood loss or infection can lead to rapid heartbeat and a drop in blood pressure. Continued loss of small amounts of blood in the stool (which may not be visible) may lead to anemia (reduced blood count); this may result in fatigue.
Crohn's disease frequently results in the development of fistulas which are abnormal connections between loops of intestine. These may even involve other organs such as the urinary bladder or open onto the skin. Crohns inflammation also frequently results in the formation of scar tissue with narrowed
segments known as strictures. These strictures frequently cause bowel obstructions the symptoms of which will depend on the severity. The presence of a significant stricture is a common reason for surgery in Crohns.
Hemorrhoid-like skin tags and anal fissures may also develop.
Growth may be retarded in children with IBD or there may be a delay in the onset of puberty.
What is toxic megacolon?
Toxic megacolon is a severe dilation of the transverse colon which occurs when inflammation spreads from the mucosa through the remaining layers of the colon. It is much more commonly a complication of UC though it can be seen occasionally in CD. The colon becomes paralyzed, which can lead to eventual bursting of the colon. Such perforation is a dire medical emergency with a 30% mortality rate; many patients require surgery.
Anyone with UC or CD bad enough to be at risk for toxic megacolon should have been hospitalized and be closely monitored. This grave complication appears to have be decreasing in frequency which may reflect more effective treatment.
Use of opiates, opioids and/or antispasmodics may predispose to this complication. This is one of the reasons that these drugs should be used very carefully in both UC and CD.
What are fistulas and abscesses?
Fistulas are hollow tracts running from a part of one organ (such as the colon) to other organs, adjacent loops of bowel, and or the skin. They occur in CD as a result of deep ulceration.
Fistulas between loops of bowel can interfere with nutrient absorption. This is especially true for tracts between the small and large bowel.
Fistulas can also become infected forming abscesses. Abscesses are collections of pus that may be accompanied by significant pain, and which can become life threatening emergencies. Simple treatment of abscesses resulting from fistulas can sometimes be accomplished via a procedure called "incision and drainage" (I/D), in which an incision is made, through which the abscess is drained. However this procedure does not deal with the underlying fistula which gave rise to the problem.
Accordingly, a more elaborate procedure, known as a fistulectomy, is usually necessary for more definitive treatment.
Fistulas are relatively common in Crohn's patients and are very rare in patients with UC.
This Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Prevention and/or Curing Protocol is for people who are ready to take
the full responsibility for their own health.
"The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing
it."
Chinese Proverb.
The protocol incorporates lifestyle change, and
implements healthy diet, body cleansing, exercises and different traditional and
natural therapies. Protocol contains links to other pages that give
detail explanation for each part of this program. Please, follow the links, to
fully understand all the words. Remember: There is always something that can be
done! The first thing to do is to change your mood. If you are depressed, if you are
unhappy, you can not be healthy. Advice: start with the Laughing
cure!
Laughing provides us with the natural inner massage,
and through change of mood it can account for up to 30% of cure!
The Inflammatory Bowel Disease Cause
To understand The Inflammatory Bowel Disease Prevention
and Curing Protocol, you
should first get familiar with
The Inflammatory Bowel Disease Cause
Now, I assume that you know something about what is causing Inflammatory Bowel Disease, so we can
continue with the Inflammatory Bowel Disease program.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease Diet
Let's start with most simple part of this program: Inflammatory Bowel Disease diet. When it comes to
diet, it is very important to avoid eating
Toxins and
Foods that Kill.
Please follow those links and learn what are
The Toxins I am talking about and what are those "
Foods that Kill". Now, important part of your diet should also be
Water Cure. Please, become familiar with
Water Cure. Your Diet should
contain: Foods That Heal,
Vegetable juices,
Fats that Heal,
Unrefined Sea Salt. Also, try to
understand food tolerance. You can not find the right Inflammatory Bowel Disease diet, unless you
fully understand and learn about food tolerance.
Take some time to implement and learn all what you
have read here, and then continue reading further.
Body Cleansing (Inflammatory Bowel Disease)
Now, let's start with body cleansing. Body cleansing is extremely important
part of every prevention and curing program. You are guessing: "Dietary changes you made are
also a form of cleansing." But, most people need more then this, especially
when it comes to liver health. Body Cleansing
is even important for children. Our internal organs can hold a lot toxins, and
sometimes, it is impossible to get those toxins out, without doing cleansing.
Our liver can contain hundreds of intrahepatic stones. Those stones will block
bile flow, and affect the bases of your health, your digestion. Another problem
are parasites. You must learn as much as possible about parasites. And, don't
forget also dental toxins.
Let start with cleansing program. You are suppose to do cleansing in this
order:
- Bowel cleanse with parasite cleanse
- Dental cleanup (if you can
afford it)
- Kidney Cleanse and
- Liver cleanse.
Body Cleansing for Adults:
- Bowel cleanse and Parasite
cleanse !
- Dental cleanup - dental work
may be one cofactor of your disease: amalgam,
root canal,
nickel
crowns, cavitations
(pocket inside jaw bone left after extraction of the wisdom and molar teeth
)
- Kidney
cleanse
- Liver
cleanse and Gallbladder cleanse -liver flush!
Make sure you visit those pages and get more
info. Dental cleanup can take many years. If you have a lot of dental metal, do
not rush to replace it all at once.
Bowel cleanse should be done at least once a
year.
Liver cleanse is a procedure that, for best
results, should be repeated at least 6 - 10 times, every 2 or 3 weeks.
Kidney cleanse is simple and cheap, many herbs can be used to cleanse kidneys.
If you have no kidney stones, even
Water
Cure could be enough!
Body Cleansing for kids:
-
Parasites
cleanse
-
Dental cleanup
.. Kids older then 8 may need dental cleanup (amalgam) and liver
cleanse:
-
Liver
Cleanse - flush
Physical Activity (Inflammatory Bowel Disease)
Physical Activity helps cleansing, it brings balance and relieves
stress.
Psycho-physical activities will help you balance your body and will help
you relief accumulated stress. You will have to find a form of exercise
that suit you. I will just give you a few examples:
Mini Trampoline jumping -
rebounding!
Meditation
Walk or jog in the nature : Forest, Mountain , river / sea / lake side, beach ...
fishing, photo-safari,
rowing, riding, golf, ...
Tai Chi, Chi Gong, Meditation ...
Yoga - Hatha, Meditation, Chinese Yoga ...
Martial Arts: Karate, Judo, Kung Fu, Teakwood, Budokai,
Uechi, Aikido ...
Dancing, Aerobics, Gymnastics, Stretching ...
Swimming in non-chlorinated
water ! ( Best in minerals rich water - Ocean ! )
Weight lifting, ....
Do not exhaust yourself !
Do not exercise with full stomach ! (You may take a walk!)
Do not hurt yourself !
Sweating (Inflammatory Bowel Disease)
Sweating is powerful way to cleanse your body
from accumulated toxins.
examples:
- exercise with a lot of clothes
- Sauna
- drink warm tea in a hot room ...
- eat CAYENNE pepper! ...
It is known that some modern
industrial toxins and pesticides can leave your body only through sweat glands!
Psychotherapy and Spiritual Therapy
Human body is not just this what we can se. There
is more to it. To treat other level of us, to treat soul and to treat mind and
unconscious parts of us, I suggest you Hellinger's therapy.
Get in Touch
If you have questions, or if you would like to
get in touch with people who are dealing with same problems, then you should
visit Public Discussion Board.
There, you can read messages, ask questions and
give answers.
Support Groups (e-mail)
If you have questions, or if you would like to
get in touch with people who are dealing with same problems, then you should
become a member of e-mail support group: Group
is called: colitiscrohns
Hundreds of people become members of e-mail
support group in order to learn, or get support.
To join the group, just send blank e-mail to:
colitiscrohns-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and reply to confirmation message that you will receive shortafter.
You can also join by clicking on this link: Join colitiscrohns.
It is easy to unsubscribe from the group.
To send blank e-mail to:
colitiscrohns-nomail@yahoogroups.com.
Collection of e-mail Testimonials
Read here:
Group/collection is called: IBD-testimonials
To subscribe, just send blank e-mail to:
IBD-testimonials-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
and reply to confirmation message that you will receive shortafter.
You can also join by clicking on this link: Join IBD-testimonials.
It is easy to unsubscribe from the group.
To send blank e-mail to:
IBD-testimonials-nomail@yahoogroups.com.
