Patients who have conditions (or surgery) that affect their digestive
system usually have special dietary requirements. The gastroenterology
dietitian specialises in identifying these requirements, and working
with the patient to ensure their optimum health is reached and maintained.
They educate the patient to manage their condition through control
of their diet, which can minimise symptoms of their condition.
Nutritional support is provided before and after surgery to ensure
optimum health during the operation and the best recovery rates.
For a number of different conditions, dietary control can work
to reduce or, in some cases, remove a patient’s symptoms:
Coeliac disease
A gluten-free diet is currently the only method of treating
coeliac disease. An inappropriate diet can lead to iron deficiency
and tiredness, calcium deficiency and osteoporosis and, in the
long term, to an increased risk of lymphoma. The dietitian educates
and supports people who have this condition to ensure that their
nutritional intake meets their requirements.
Crohn’s disease
The dietitian provides both therapeutic treatment and
nutritional support to patients who have Crohn’s disease.
The dietitian identifies those patients who would benefit most
from therapeutic dietary treatment. The dietitian can also identify
malnutrition, which is common. Specialised liquid diets can put
patients who have active Crohn’s disease into remission,
without the use of steroids or other medication.
Ulcerative colitis
There is currently no established dietary intervention for ulcerative
colitis. However, patients have found symptom relief from a low-fibre
and/or low-residue diet at times of relapse. As with Crohn’s
disease, nutritional support has a valuable role in this group
of patients.
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
A dietetic-led Irritable Bowel Syndrome Clinic has been established,
which reduces the waiting time to see a gastroenterology consultant.
The dietitian diagnoses and treats patients who have IBS. When
patients follow therapeutic diets, 51% of them have found significant
symptom relief. Research, with patient consent, is being undertaken
in the clinic regarding IBS and fermentation in the gut. Food
intolerance is also identified using an exclusion or elimination
diet.
Food allergy
Allergies to specific foods can be life threatening therefore
strict compliance to an exclusion diet is required. The dietitian
educates patients about their diet to ensure that their diet remains
nutritionally adequate.
Other conditions that can be helped by individual tailored advice
are acute pancreatitis, gastrectomy (stomach removal), intestinal
failure and other forms of gastro-intestinal surgery.
For further information contact: The Department of Nutrition & Dietetics,
Box 119, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 2QQ; Tel: 01223 216
655; Fax: 01223 216 824
