autoimmune disease blog

What is Crohn’s disease?

Crohn’s disease is types of inflammatory bowel disease. The disease caused by an abnormal immune reaction against healthy tissue in the intestinal tract.  In Crohn’s disease, the small intestine can be damage by inflammation, making it hard to absorb essential nutrients from food.

The insufficient nutrients can lead to malnutrition and may result from alterations in taste, lack of sufficient nutrients, reduced food or nutrient intake, or the crohn’s disease process itself.

When the disease affects just the small intestine area, it leads to undernourishment and diarrhea. The diarrhea can be severe when the large intestine is also affected. Malnutrition combined with severe diarrhea often causes to problems. People with crohn’s may affect by anemia, inability to maintain a normal weight and low level of B12 vitamin, for exsample.

How Crohn’s disease diet plan works?

Most dietitians believe that people with crohn’s can identify specific foods that may trigger their gastrointestinal symptoms. By avoiding “trigger foods,” patient may find that their GI symptoms of gas, bloating, abdominal pain, cramping, and diarrhea are more manageable. At the same time, it will give the inflamed intestines time to heal.

With crohn’s disease, it’s important to follow a high-calorie and high-protein diet. An effective Crohn’s disease diet plan, based on recommendations from experts, would emphasize eating regular meals each day. That will help ensure you get ample protein, calories, and nutrients. In addition, patient will need to take the doctor-recommended vitamin and mineral supplements to replenish the necessary nutrients in the body.

Diet for crohn’s disease

• Eat a high fiber diet when the disease is under control. During a flare up, limit high fiber foods and follow a low fiber diet or even a low residue diet to give the bowel a rest and minimize symptoms.
• Drink 8 – 10 servings daily of water to keep body hydrated and prevent constipation
• Consider to takes daily multivitamin-mineral supplement to replace lost nutrients
• Avoid lactose-containing foods such as dairy if you are lactose intolerance.
• Limit alcohol, caffeine, and sorbitol as these may exacerbate the symptoms.
• High fat foods usually cause diarrhea and gas for this group of patients.
• Limit gas-producing foods such as cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, and brussels sprouts, onions, peppers, chives and carbonated drinks.
• Some research advised the role of prebiotics in the healing process. Furthermore probiotic may also be helpful in helping recovery of the intestines.