COLITIS

Intestinal disease

The dietician can play a major role in treating intestinal problems. I undertake to provide nutritional treatments for:

• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Crohn’s disease
• Ulceric colitis
• Diverticula and diverticulosis
• Constipation
• Haemorrhoids
• Intestinal surgery

A few words about spastic colitis:

Spastic colitis is not a disease but a set of symptoms caused by irritation of the small or large intestine or by irregular movements of the intestine.
Irregular peristaltic movements can either take the form of increase bowel movements resulting in diarrhoea or loss of sensitivity of the rectum to the presence of stools, resulting in constipation which most of us will have experienced.
Spastic colitis, diarrhoea symptoms and constipation which frequently alternate, are often accompanied by bloating, stomach pains, sickness, headaches or even a feeling of fatigue.
The symptoms start while eating and initially entail spasms or some sharp pains in the abdominal area, usually in the lower section. The pains may also occur after bowel movements.
Factors that may indicate a predisposition to spastic colitis are nervous tension, a sense of stress, guilt, repression or anger, while some less important causes are excess use of purgatives and suppositories, smoking, alcohol, coffee, fresh fruit and vegetables, antibiotics, intestinal infections, lack of sleep, and more frequent defecation / urination than normal.
In acute phases of spastic colitis, the stools may be soft or well formed and can contain mucus which is produced as a lubricant by the inner walls of the irritated bowels.
Once the presence of spastic colitis is diagnosed, the treatment to be followed, which should be accompanied by a change in diet, must seek to calm the individual down. Long walks, cycling or other forms of exercise can help relax the body and promote proper bowl function. Moreover, patients must be exhorted and helped to adopt more normal habits in relation to their bowel movements.