Ultra-processed foods can trigger debilitating bowel disease flare-ups, study reveals By Luke Chafer Published: 23:54 BST, 19 October 2024 | Updated: 00:05 BST, 20 October 2024 e-mail View comments Ultra-processed foods can cause debilitating bowel disease flare-ups, a new study has found. Poor diet has long been associated with the onset of Crohn's disease but now researchers have found that there are specific high-risk food groups that can cause severe relapse. The study – presented at the United European Gastroenterology conference (UEG) in Vienna, Austria this week – found that ultra processed items such as bread, pastries, and starch as well as oil and spreads increased the risk of the disease returning by approximately threefold.
About half-a-million Britons suffer with Crohn's disease, which causes agonising pain, diarrhoea, exhaustion and extreme weight loss . The disease can also cause the bowels to narrow, making it difficult for food to pass through. A new study presented at the United European Gastroenterology conference has found ultra-processed foods can cause debilitating bowel disease flare-ups (stock image) Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are foods which have large numbers of ingredients, not commonly found in home kitchens Around a third of patients living with the condition, where the gut lining becomes inflamed, will require surgery.
This latest research though found that diet is likely to cause severe symptoms to return even when being managed by medicat.
