Hi, Susanna -
I have both IBS and IBD (mild acute colitis) and I'm just a wee bit confused: is your research on IBD (inflammatory bowel disease, such as Crohn's and colitis), or is it on IBS (irritable bowel syndrome)? While they can certainly exist concurrently (comorbidity), they are quite different. I'm not a health-care professional, but this is how I understand the difference (and if I write anything that's incorrect or inaccurate, someone on the board will probably notice and update us both - for which I'm grateful!):
IBS (irritable bowel) is a "functional" GE disorder (not a disease) - from mild to disabling but not life-threatening in and of itself. The distressing symptoms, either diarrhea-dominant, constipation-dominant, or alternating D & C, along with abdominal pain, gas and bloating (and if you read some of the posts, you'll see these seemingly benign, very common complaints can be excruciating and intractable!) can be managed (not necessarily "cured") by eliminating foods and beverages (and even some common medicines and vitamins) and other stressors that trigger episodes (which can occur several times a day or only once in a while), and by adding elements such as biofeedback, massage, hypnotherapy, exercise, etc, to one's lifestyle. Certain "home remedies" also tend to help, depending on the particular IBS symptom: peppermint, chamomile or fennel tea, for example, and the application of heat to the tummy via heating pad or hot-water bottle. You may have heard it said that the gut is the "second brain" - the same serotonin which appears in the human brain also appears in the gut - and actually there is more serotonin in the gut! This could be the reason that some IBS sufferers experience some relief with a very low dose SSRI antidepressant. I've read that there is some evidence to suggest that psychotherapy ("talk therapy" probably) can be very helpful, as well, in not just coping with IBS but actually mitigating the symptoms (I can't remember the most recent article, but it was in a large daily - possibly Miami Herald?).
Inflammatory Bowel Disease, which can be life-threatening, produces physiological changes in the gastrointestinal tract which can be seen, identified and quantified by clinical examinations, tissue biopsies, etc. The disease process in IBD requires medication as its primary line of defense (if the disease is in the mild stage) and surgical intervention if the disease has progressed. Diet is a factor in IBD but with fewer restrictions (red meat and alcohol are the prime offenders as far as food goes, according to my GE - these are both "out" on the IBS diet, as well).
If your article is truly only about Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, may I suggest that you approach the editors at Health.com about doing a second article about IBS? Perhaps including an interview with Heather Van Vorous? IBS is probably vastly under-diagnosed or misdiagnosed (people just tolerate it, or self-treat by trial and error, not knowing there's help, or, when they finally do tell their doctors, they are all-too-often told it's "just stress" or just "gastritis", etc. Doctors are woefully uninformed about IBS, as is the public, and there's just not enough interest in research - perhaps because there's little potential for mega-bucks from a pharmaceutical development). Just a thought!
Blessings,
Kaybee C
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