Crohns Disease Symptoms

According to studies and surveys performed by the National Institutes of Health, many patients are unhappy with conventional crohns disease treatment and more than half seek alternatives.

To be sure, crohns disease symptoms are difficult to live with and affect the quality of a person’s life, so it is understandable that those who suffer from the condition would seek alternatives, particularly when traditional therapies are ineffective or cause unwanted side effects.

The specific crohns disease treatment depends primarily on the severity of symptoms.

Crohns disease symptoms may include: abdominal pain, diarrhea, loss of appetite and weight loss. Primary symptoms may lead to complications including abscesses, ulceration of the deepest layers of the lining of the digestive tract or abnormal openings, called fistulas, in the intestine.

There may be intestinal bleeding and, if combined with recurrent diarrhea, may lead to vitamin deficiencies, malnourishment and anemia.

Initially, when symptoms are mild, crohns disease treatment may include an anti-diarrhea medication such as Imodium A-D, which is an over-the-counter product that is designed to stop diarrhea and reduce abdominal pain.

When crohns disease symptoms are moderate to mild, aminosalicylates or corticosteroids may be prescribed. If neither of these is effective or if stopping corticosteroids causes symptoms to return then prescription medications that suppress the immune system may be prescribed.

It is theorized that this inflammatory bowel disease is caused by a dysfunction of the immune system. The theory is that the immune system overreacts to bacteria that normally lives in the bowel and attacks it in the way that it would normally attack invading bacteria or infection, resulting in inflammation.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, are not recommended for crohns disease treatment, because they have been linked in clinical studies to flare-ups or worsening of crohns disease symptoms. Thus, corticosteroids are the most common treatment choice to control inflammation.

Corticosteroids are not safe for long term treatment, however, because they may have serious side effects including high blood pressure, osteoporosis and increased risk of infection. When used for extended periods of time, some people become steroid dependent, even though the corticosteroids themselves become ineffective after long term use and symptoms return.

When a crohns disease treatment plan includes medications to suppress the immune system and control inflammation in that way, there is a greater risk of infection. Obviously if the immune system is suppressed, it cannot fight infection effectively. In addition, there is a greater risk of cancer, because the immune system normally attacks and destroys abnormal cells that, if left unchecked, may eventually become cancerous.

Aminosalicylates relieve crohns disease symptoms in some cases, but cannot be used by certain people and may reduce white blood cell counts; once again, lowering a person’s resistance to other infections and diseases by impairing the immune system.

Prescription medications for crohns disease treatment are obviously lacking, both in effectiveness and safety. Scientists continue to research new drugs.

When crohns disease symptoms are severe, surgery may be recommended to remove the affected portions of the bowel. This choice for crohns disease treatment is extreme and is understandably avoided by most patients. However, those who have had surgery no longer suffer from symptoms, which may improve quality of life.

There are numerous support groups both for people who are considering surgery and for those who have had surgery, since certain adjustments and lifestyle changes may be necessary at least immediately following surgery.

A recent study (August, 2006) found that crohns disease treatment was inappropriate 52% of the time. A group of gastroenterologists, surgeons and general practitioners evaluated the treatment plans of their colleagues for appropriateness.

For those who suffer from crohns disease symptoms, this may be discouraging news. Many people choose self-treatment with aloe, slippery elm, mangosteen or other botanicals.

While the effectiveness of these natural products has not been proven, there is evidence suggesting that they may effectively reduce inflammation and relieve pain. There is also some historical use of slippery elm and mangosteen as digestive aids among native peoples. Mangosteen, in particular, has been used extensively throughout Asia to relieve diarrhea, pain and inflammation.

Mangosteen has been scientifically proven to be a natural anti-inflammatory and a natural pain reliever. Many researchers, doctors and scientists believe that natural anti-inflammatories may be gentler to the body, safer overall and more effective, because they target several inflammatory responses; synthetic anti-inflammatories, by contrast, may target only one molecule.

Natural anti-inflammatories do not hamper the immune system, as do corticosteroids and aminosalicylates. In any event, relieving inflammation can relieve crohns disease symptoms.

While decisions about a crohns disease treatment is a personal choice, those who suffer from the disease should advise their doctor about natural products they are using, including mangosteen, particularly when using prescription medications at the same time.

This is simply because botanicals and herbals may sometimes interact with prescription medications.

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