What You Need to know About Treating Crohn's and Colitis

With some time and effort, Crohn's and Colitis
can be successfully managed.

For anyone who is diagnosed with Crohn's or Colitis one of the first priorities is seeking out the right treatment. It is important to remember treating any form of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) can be a complicated and at times confusing journey. It will require patience and persistence on the part of the patient and the health care provider. However, with some time and effort it can be successfully managed. 

Health care providers report one of the most difficult aspects of treating these conditions is deciding what therapy is most appropriate. Your health care provider will base his or her treatment recommendations while keeping in mind several different factors. These factors can include but are not limited to:

• How your disease behaves.
• What the severity of it is.
• How old you are.
• What other medical conditions you already have.
• If you are wanting to plan a family.

The first goal will be to bring the patient total remission which means an absence of any symptoms. Then your doctor will focus on healing, maintenance, and improving your quality of life.

It is important to note your treatment for Crohn's or Colitis will be different if you are having a flare up versus staying in remission. When you do have a flare up your health care provider will be more aggressive in treating your symptoms and will focus on getting you back into maintenance status.

Many people assume they will simply have to take medication in order to treat these conditions. While this most likely will happen there are other therapies and management strategies to consider, as well. The reality is that most likely you will be treated with medication in conjunction with other therapies. One of the most important will be changes in diet. Your doctor will most likely refer you to a nutritionist in order to see what items need to be reduced, eliminated, or added to your daily diet. Many people have found great relief in their symptoms just by changing their dietary habits.

Another important component of treating these conditions can be exercise. The specifics of exercise and treating any type of Inflammatory Bowel Disease are not really known except those patients with these conditions report they can better maintain and even improve their quality of life. Weight bearing exercises are especially important since anyone with these conditions is at much higher risk for developing blood clots. Regular physical activity can go a long way toward reducing the risk of this happening.

Finally, it is important to keep in mind you will need to be a proactive participant in your treatment of Crohn's or Colitis. Your doctor will need you to let him or her know what is working and what isn’t. While there is presently no cure for these problems treatment can go a long way toward helping anyone with them manage their symptoms and enjoy their daily activities.

Learn more about these conditions.

For further information please link to this video. 

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