What are Crohn’s, IBD and IBS And What Are the Root Causes of the Constipation/Diarrhea Cycle That Lead to So Much Discomfort for Sufferers

Crohn's Disease is a chronic and serious inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract. Crohn's involves all layers of the intestine where healthy sections of bowel exist between patches of diseased bowel. Crohn's includes colitis and diverticulitis.

Crohn's is categorized, along with ulcerative colitis, as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) or Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). IBD is a group of inflammatory conditions of the colon and small intestine. IBS is a blanket term for a variety of diseases causing discomfort in the gastrointestinal tract, also called a spastic colon. With IBS, the digestive tract does not work as nature planned. There are no signs of fistulas, fissures nor strictures in the intestines.

Depending on the severity of Crohn's, IBD and IBS symptoms, a person's sleep time can be fraught with abdominal pain, gas, constipation, colitis and repeat trips to the bathroom. As a result, Crohn's, IBD and IBS are intensely personal ailments. Each person suffers from similar but distinctly different symptoms based upon their environment and the food they consume.

Yet all Crohn’s, IBD and IBS patients suffer from one common and embarrassing problem – a cycle of constipation and diarrhea that is at the least uncomfortable and for many, disabling.

The most common causes of constipation are blockages in the intestines or a swollen colon caused by the chemicals in the food a person eats. Blockages occur because of swelling that narrows the passage and can result in severe abdominal distress as well as painful constipation.

Crohn's, IBD and IBS are frequently accompanied by diverticulitis because the constipation causes food to back up and stretch the colon causing the damaged area to create pouches containing food. The pouches are caused by poor digestion and are found primarily on the left side of a person’s body.

The longer a person has had Crohn's, IBD or IBS, the greater his or her chance of developing intestinal problems -- cramps, constipation, diarrhea and rectal bleeding – that are debilitating and lead to diverticulitis and/or colorectal cancer.

Constipation also disrupts homeostasis by disrupting the balance in the intestinal bacterial flora causing food to rot resulting in the increased production of toxins. This is caused by the stagnation of food in the left side of your colon and a lack of specific enzymes to digest purine-rich foods such as red meat. This starts a chain reaction by altering a person's food and medicine consumption the next day frequently leading to constipation or diarrhea or both.

If symptoms persist, it could lead to more chronic conditions like acid reflux, ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome, diverticulosis and a host of other illnesses including primary and secondary arthritis, gout and gouty arthritis.

These infections have included bacterial sepsis, tuberculosis, invasive fungal and other opportunistic infections. In addition, some patients have experienced back pains; weight loss; abdominal pain; cough; dizziness; sore throats; fainting; headaches; muscle pain; nasal congestion; nausea; chest pain; chills; fever; flushing of face; hives; trouble breathing; runny nose; sneezing; tightness in the chest; unusual tiredness or weakness; vomiting; bloody or cloudy urine; diarrhea; difficult or painful urination; frequent urge to urinate; high blood pressure; pain; skin rash; and/or vaginal burning or itching.

It is our opinion that Crohn's, IBD and IBS are caused by a genetic defect that results in food allergies, food intolerance, constant inflammations in the digestive tract and the inability to digest uric acid contributing to weight gain, obesity, food addiction, illness and disease.

We believe that this change of lifestyle diet, including eliminating all chemical additives, avoiding genetically modified foods and factory farmed meats is the best approach for people who have these illnesses. We describe it as returning the food that your grandparents ate every day.

When we grew up, McDonald’s was made from organic and natural ingredients and no one got fat. There were rarely any fat kids in our classes despite the advent of fast foods and packaged foods. It was only after large corporations bought these food chains in the last 20 years and substituted addictive chemical additives, genetically modified fruits and vegetables and factory farmed meats for natural and organic ingredients did weight gain, obesity, diabetes, breast cancer and other illnesses statistically increased.

To stop the constipation/diarrhea cycle, once must determine which foods are causing their digestive distress and replace them with organic versions of the same food.

If you like hamburgers, make an organic one at home, you can avoid the 69 ingredients, 840 calories, 1,880 mg of salt and 56 grams of sugar in a Big Mac as well as the 46 different ingredients, 530 calories, 350 mg of salt and approximately 112 grams of sugar (including high fructose corn syrup) contained in McDonald's fries.

We estimate that a Big Mac and Fries contain more than 5,000 mg of salt and 150 grams of sugar. A Coca-Cola contains 140 calories (supersized 410 calories) and 39 grams of sugar (another 40 grams of sugar from corn syrup). A Burger King Strawberry milk shake contains more than 50 ingredients.

These ingredients aggravate Crohn’s, IBD and IBS and are a fundamental cause of the constipation/diarrhea cycle. The only way to stop it is to stop eating the foods and chemicals that cause a person to be allergic and intolerant.