Skip to main content

Search

What if your own immune system is your enemy?

What if your own immune system is your enemy?

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a collective name for a group of chronic bowel diseases of which Crohn’s disease and colitis ulcerosa are the most common forms1. The main differences between these two are the site and the intensity of the inflammation. The complete digestive tract can be affected in Crohn’s disease, whereas only the most inner layer of the large intestine is affected in colitis ulcerosa. IBD are autoimmune diseases. This means that the immune system attacks healthy cells of the intestinal tract and hereby damages these organs. IBD patients suffer from abdominal pain, diarrhea, weight loss, fever and extreme fatique. The disease has major consequences for young individuals, as it is usually diagnosed between age 15 and 30.

World IBD Day

IBD has an enormous impact on patients living with IBD. They have to live with a disease that takes over their life. Yet, few people know what disease like Crohn’s and colitis ulcerosa are and which struggles patients have. On May 19th  - World IBD Day - we ask attention for people with IBD all over the world. Together with our partners we want to create more awareness and urge governments and healthcare professionals to make an effort for the 5 million people living with IBD globally1. To raise awareness about IBD, we will hang posters at the public toilets of 2theloo in Sint-Niklaas, Antwerp and Charleroi together with patient associations CCV-VZW and CROHN-RCUH. Furthermore, we will highlight IBD through our social media channels.