Children's Health Children's Diseases and Conditions Inflammatory Bowel Disease

The Complicated Life of Kids with Crohn's and Colitis

Imagine being in the middle of a heated sixth-grade soccer game and then having to run off the field suddenly to find a bathroom. This potentially embarrassing situation is all too real for kids with inflammatory bowel disease, and sometimes prevents kids from being kids.

Children with inflammatory bowel disease, also known as IBD, suffer from abdominal pain and diarrhea, and often have to take medication that has its own side effects. And certain children undergo repeated surgeries in which portions of the intestines are removed. Given the challenges of IBD and its treatment, it's not surprising that studies have found that children with inflammatory bowel disease tend to have more psychological problems than healthy children and are more likely to be picky eaters.

Dr. Laura Mackner, an assistant professor of pediatrics at The Ohio State University, has focused some of her research on children with IBD and their parents. Below, Mackner discusses how parents can help make sure their child with IBD is comfortable in social settings and at the dinner table.

What is IBD?
IBD is inflammatory bowel disease. Essentially, it's an inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. There are two different subtypes: Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. But children can also have unspecified inflammatory bowel disease.

What are some of the symptoms of the disease?
The number one symptom is abdominal pain, and then these kids can also have diarrhea and bloody stool. Children with IBD can have poor growth, so they can be smaller than other children their age, and they can also have delayed puberty.

What does treatment usually involve?
Treatment usually involves medication to put the disease into remission, and then medications to keep it in remission once it's there. A common medication is prednisone, and that's associated with side effects like having a puffy face, gaining weight, increased acne and mood swings.

Surgery is sometimes needed. Surgery is not quite as common in children as in adults, but it is something they may run into later in life.

How does IBD affect children's dietary needs?
It affects the way they absorb nutrients. The research has also shown that, due to malabsorption and prednisone, these children can be at risk for osteoporosis and osteopenia, which is a weakening of the bones. It is very important they're getting enough calcium through diet or supplements. But beyond that, the research has been inconclusive about the extent to which diet and nutrition is adversely affected. However, children with IBD definitely need to have a good diet because that's going to help in every aspect of any disease.

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