Are there any foods or diet changes that can help people with IBD?
Yes. Nutritional therapy can help many people with IBD. People with IBD can become malnourished for many reasons: IBD damages the walls of the intestine, which makes it harder for the body to absorb nutrients; people may not feel like eating when symptoms are severe; diarrhea moves food move faster out of the body, so there’s less time for nutrients to be absorbed into the body; and IBD surgery can reduce available areas along the digestive system for nutrients to be absorbed. The goal of nutritional therapy is to give you the nutrients you need so you don’t become malnourished. Nutritional therapy may mean taking nutritional supplements such as vitamin or mineral tablets, liquid nutrition, or nutrition solutions that are injected into a vein (called total parenteral nutrition or TPN). It may also involve avoiding foods that make your symptoms worse, or using an elemental diet, a liquid nutrition product that is already pre-digested, to give your bowels a rest. It is usually given thro
