How Do You Know it's IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease

IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease is a hard conditions to effectively diagnose because the symptoms are many and varied. This chronic illness affects the whole gastrointestinal tract with symptoms depending upon what part of the GI tract is inflamed at any particular time. Several bouts and attacks with certain symptoms will eventually result in IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease diagnosis.

Common symptoms of IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease are persistent diarrhea, abdominal cramps and pain shortly after eating, fever and constant fatigue, weight loss and night sweats Other symptoms include rectal bleeding, and loss of appetite. Sometimes there is pain in the joints, eyes and skin. IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease can also lead to severe complications like an obstructed intestine, usually caused by swelling, ulcers and the formation of scar tissue. Another possible complication is the onset of malnutrition caused by the body's inability to get the right nutrition to sustain itself on what food is being ingested. In addition, fissures, which are small tears or cuts may appear in the anal canal, along with pus filled abscesses or fistulas.

Doctors and researchers are not sure what causes IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease. What is known is that it is chronic, meaning it is ongoing and incurable, and it is an inflammatory disease of the digestive tract that may come from the interaction of genetics, the environment and the immune system. Still other researchers blame the Western or American diet. Whatever the cause, many researchers think the problem lies buried in the immune system, which activates, but fails to turn itself off when done working. This failure to "turn off" causes the inflammation that damages the intestines resulting in the IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease diagnosis.

IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease can begin at any age, however, it strikes most people between the ages of 15 and 35, and most sufferers are white women of European descent. About 20% of all sufferers also have a sibling, parent or child who also suffers some form of GI tract irritation. It is believed that nearly half a million Americans suffer from Crohn's Disease alone while the IBS numbers are in the millions. But the numbers could be greater because the symptoms are so similar to a number of other illnesses. So much so, that visiting a doctor is only the first step in what may turn out to be a very long process of recuperation and understanding.

When Crohn's is suspected, your doctor will order a battery of tests to eliminate all other possibilities, such as irritable bowel syndrome, which causes frequent but painless bowel movements without the involvement of inflammation. Celiac Disease is an allergic reaction to gluten, which damages the small intestine, brought on by eating wheat, barley and oats. Crohn's can also be misdiagnosed as ulcerative colitis and diverticular disease. Further tests can clear up the confusion between the illnesses.

Some researchers and doctors feel that IBS, Colitis and Crohn's Disease is curable with the right lifestyle changes and diet, and no medication necessary. None of the approaches taken to combat these disease's are quick and easy. The sufferer must decide if they're willing to live with the illness or do what is necessary to defeat it altogether, and act according with food and lifestyle changes.